European Parliament resolution on the postponement of discharge to the Commission in respect of implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 1998 (SEC(1999) 412 - C5-0006/1999 - 1999/2050(DEC)

P5_TA(2000)0150 A5-0087/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the revenue and expenditure account, the analysis of financial management and the balance sheet of the European Union for the financial year 1998 (SEC(1999) 412 - C5-0006/1999 , SEC(1999) 413 - C5-0007/1999 , SEC(1999) 415 - C5-0009/1999 , SEC(1999) 1473 - C5-0204/1999 ),

-  having regard to the annual report concerning the 1998 the financial year (C5-0266/1999 )(1) and the special reports of the Court of Auditors and the Institutions' replies,

-  having regard to the statement of assurance as to the reliability of the accounts and the legality and regularity of the underlying transactions provided by the Court of Auditors pursuant to Article 248 of the EC Treaty (C5-0266/1999 ),

-  having regard to the Council recommendation of 13 March 2000 (C5-0154/2000 ),

-  having regard to Article 276 of the Treaty establishing the European Community,

-  having regard to Rule 93 and Annex V of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinions of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs, the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy, the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Policy, the Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism and the Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities (A5-0087/2000 ),

A.  whereas Article 276(2) the EC Treaty requires the Commission to submit to Parliament any necessary information on the execution of expenditure and operation of the financial control systems,

B.  whereas Article 276(3) of the EC Treaty requires the Commission to take all appropriate steps to act on Parliament's observations concerning execution of expenditure,

C.  whereas, pursuant to Article 274 of the EC Treaty, the Commission bears responsibility for implementing the budget in accordance with the principles of sound financial management,

D.  whereas the Commission must, in so doing, ensure the legality and regularity of revenue and expenditure,

E.  whereas Parliament is required to give a discharge to the Commission in respect of implementation of the budget and thereby assumes responsibility for ensuring that the Commission meets its Treaty obligations in full,

1.  Informs the Commission that it postpones discharge and asks the Commission to take the following steps by 15 May 2000:

2.  Records the fact that, in a number of other cases, the Commission has not yet submitted all necessary information for an assessment to be made of its efforts to clarify matters;

3.  Notes that the explanatory statement, for which the rapporteur alone is responsible, does not reflect the balance of the report as adopted in committee;

4.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council and the Court of Auditors.

(1) OJ C 349, 3.12.1999. (2) OJ C 379, 7.12.1998, p. 40. (3) Texts Adopted, Item 2. (4) Texts Adopted, Item 3.

European Parliament resolution on postponement of the decision concerning discharge to the Commission in respect of the financial management of the sixth, seventh and eighth European Development Funds for the 1998 financial year (COM(1999) 227 - C5-0003/1999 - 1999/2004(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0151 A5-0089/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the balance sheets and accounts of the sixth, seventh and eighth European Development Funds for the financial year (COM(1999) 227 - C5-0003/1999 ),

-  having regard to the Convention signed in Lomé on 31 October 1979 (sixth EDF, Lomé II),

-  having regard to the Convention signed in Lomé on 8 December 1984 (seventh EDF, Lomé III)(1) ,

-  having regard to the Convention signed in Lomé on 15 December 1989 (eighth EDF, Lomé IV)(2) ,

-  having regard to the Convention signed in Mauritius on 4 November 1995 (eighth EDF, Lomé IV bis)(3) ,

-  having regard to the report of the Court of Auditors for the 1998 financial year, and the replies of the institutions (C5-0266/1999 )(4) ,

-  having regard to the recommendation of the Council of 13 March 2000(C5-0154/2000 ),

-  having regard to Article 276 of the EC Treaty,

-  having regard to Rule 93 and Annex V of its Rules of Procedure

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control and the opinion of the Committee on Development and Cooperation (A5-0089/2000 ),

A.  whereas, as at 31 December 1998, financial aid corresponding to the sixth, seventh and eighth European Development Funds amounted to EUR 1.469 billion,

1.  Recommends postponing discharge to the Commission for the sixth, seventh and eighth European Development Fund for 1998; requests the Commission to draw up by 15 May 2000 an Action Plan with dates where appropriate incorporating the following elements:

2.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution containing its observations to the Commission, the Council, the Court of Auditors, the European Investment Bank and each of the other institutions, and to have it published in the Official Journal (L series).

(1) OJ L 86, 31.3.1986, p. 1. (2) OJ L 229, 17.8.1991, p. 1. (3) OJ L 156, 29.5.1998, p. 1. (4) OJ C 349, 3.12.1999.

Decision of the European Parliament granting discharge to the Administrative Board of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions in respect of the implementation of its budget for the 1998 financial year (C5-0150/2000 - 2000/2094(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0152 A5-0089/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the report of the Court of Auditors on the financial statements and management of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Dublin-Foundation) for the financial year ended 31 December 1998 (C5-0150/2000 )(1) ,

-  having regard to the Council Recommendation of 13 March 2000 (C5-0152/2000 ),

-  having regard to the EC Treaty and in particular Article 276 thereof,

-  having regard to Rule 93 and Annex V of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0089/2000 ),

A.  whereas Parliament granted discharge to the Administrative Board of the Foundation on 4 May 1999(2) for the financial year 1997 on the basis of commitments to separate the duties of authorising and accounting officer, to enact a memorandum of understanding with the European Agency for Health and Safety in Bilbao and to improve day-to-day management by reducing the reliance on imprest accounts and by actively controlling mission expenses and study contracts,

B.  whereas the report of the Court of Auditors for 1998 notes that the Foundation relies substantially on the imprest accounts, needs to strengthen analysis and management of mission expenses, has not updated its version of the Implementation of the Financial Regulation since 1976 and needs to review its in-house translation with regard to the development of the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union in Luxembourg,

C.  whereas the Foundation has not adopted the budget and on-line visa system of the Commission, available for agencies since 1 January 1998,

D.  whereas the relatively long contradictory procedure between the Foundation and the Court of Auditors for a relatively short report leads to the submission of the annual report for 1998 in November 1999,

E.  whereas the Court of Auditors, whose mandate is not to evaluate the effectiveness of the Foundation in meeting its goals but to audit its accounts, concludes that it has obtained reasonable assurance that the annual accounts for the financial year ended 31 December 1998 are reliable and the underlying transactions are, as a whole, legal and regular,

1.  Notes the following figures for the accounts of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions:

Marking 25 years of operation

2.  Congratulates the Foundation on its silver jubilee year of operation, since its creation by Council Regulation (EEC) No 1365/75 on 26 May 1975;

Impact of Commission reform programme

3.  Notes that Parliament's demands for the Commission to reform its structure and financial management systems and the consequent change in the role of the Directorate-General for Financial Control will have a direct bearing on the Foundation and will require the recasting of the financial regulations and the introduction of activity-based budgeting;

Sharing experiences with other Agencies

4.  Welcomes the active collaboration of the Foundation with six other Agencies, as well as with the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, in using the SINCOM2 accounting system developed by the Commission, but is disappointed to note that only Agencies based in Copenhagen, Turin and Luxembourg have fully implemented the system at present;

5.  Calls on the Commission to extend the system to encompass activity-based management for Agencies, including monitoring, auditing or evaluation of personnel, missions, documents and inventory, on the lines of the Integrated Resources Management System (IRMS);

Cooperation with other Agencies

6.  Welcomes the fact that Parliament's call for a Memorandum of Understanding with the European Agency for Health and Safety in Bilbao, on 31 March 1998(3) , has resulted in the directors of both agencies attending each other's Board meetings as observers and stronger links at project management level;

7.  Notes favourably that following observations by the Court of Auditors, more than 85% of the Foundation's translation requirements are met by the Translation Centre in Luxembourg and will result in the review of the language and translation service in the Foundation;

Imprest accounts

8.  Encourages the Foundation to further reduce its reliance on imprest accounts for payments and welcomes the fact that usage has decreased from EUR 3.89 million in 1997, or 40% of total expenditure excluding salaries, to EUR 3.40 million or 37% in 1998 and, following further cuts, to EUR 2.94 million or 32% in 1999;

Mission expenses

9.  Welcomes the fact that the Foundation has managed to reduce the cost of mission expenses through the use of strict guidelines whereby low-cost tickets are used and that it has managed to cut expenses from EUR 443,000 in 1997, to EUR 423,600 in 1998, to EUR 350,000 in 1999;

Requests to the Court of Auditors

10.  Welcomes the short and precise reporting by the Court of Auditors and hopes that the Court will continue in this business-like fashion; calls on the Court of Auditors to follow up systematically the decisions of the discharge authority and to produce a comprehensive analysis of the audits of all Agencies;

11.  Calls on the Foundation and Court of Auditors to reduce the duration of the contradictory procedure to ensure that the annual report can be presented to Parliament before 15 July of the year following the financial year in question;

New strategy and action plan for 2001-2004

12.  Welcomes the Foundation's preparation of its next four-year programme for 2001-2004, following the launch of an evaluation process in spring 1999, and notes with interest the progress in training staff and dedicating resources to monitoring and evaluating activities;

13.  Calls on the Foundation to present to Parliament the results of its evaluation exercise and new strategy and action plan before 31 December 2000;

Discharge decision

14.  Gives discharge to the Administrative Board of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions in respect of the implementation of its budget for the 1998 financial year, on the basis of the report of the Court of Auditors;

15.  Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Administrative Board of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors and to have it published in the Official Journal (L series).

(1) OJ C 372, 22.12.1999, p. 38. (2) OJ C 279, 1.10.1999, p. 139. (3) OJ C 138, 4.5.1998, p. 58.

Decision of the European Parliament granting discharge to the Management Board of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training in respect of the implementation of its budget for the 1998 financial year (C5-0149/2000 - 2000/2093(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0153 A5-0089/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the report of the Court of Auditors on the statements and management of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop - Thessaloniki) for the financial year ended 31 December 1998(1) , (C5-0149/2000

-  having regard to the Council Recommendation of 13 March 2000 (C5-0151/2000 ),

-  having regard to the EC Treaty and in particular Article 276 thereof,

-  having regard to Rule 93 and Annex V of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0089/2000 ),

A.  whereas Parliament granted discharge to the Management Board on 4 May 1999(2) for the financial year 1997 on the basis of commitments to introduce a new budgetary and accounting system, to reduce reliance on imprest accounts, to adopt a new staff policy and to submit bi-annual progress reports on the state of the new premises,

B.  whereas the report of the Court of Auditors for 1998 notes that the Centre still uses an old and complex system for drawing up its budget and balance sheets, relies on the imprest accounts for paying staff, does not systematically review staff entitlements and suffers from delays when issuing calls for tender,

C.  whereas the Centre is behind schedule in the completion of its own management and accounting system, begun in 1997, whilst a similar system was developed for decentralised Agencies for the Commission as of 1 January 1998,

D.  whereas the Centre foresees final approval of its new building in November 2000, following its official opening in November 1999,

E.  whereas the relatively long contradictory procedure between the Centre and the Court of Auditors for a short report leads to the submission of the annual report for 1998 in November 1999,

F.  whereas the Court of Auditors, whose mandate is not to evaluate the effectiveness of the Centre in meeting its goals but to audit its accounts, concludes that it has obtained reasonable assurance that the annual accounts for the financial year ended 31 December 1998 are reliable and the underlying transactions are, as a whole, legal and regular,

G.  whereas there is a need for an external evaluation to assess the effectiveness of the Centre in meeting its goals of developing vocational training, given that the last study on the impact of the Centre was conducted in February 1995,

1.  Notes the following figures for the accounts of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training:

25th year of operation of first decentralised Agency

2.  Congratulates the Centre on its silver jubilee year of operation, since its creation by Council Regulation (EEC) No 337/75 on 10 February 1975, and believes that its revitalisation in recent years will lead to a marked improvement in the delivery of products and services;

3.  Recognises that the Centre has managed to overcome staffing and location problems resulting directly from its enforced transfer from Berlin to Thessaloniki in September 1995;

Impact of Commission reform programme

4.  Notes that Parliament's demands for the Commission to reform its structure and financial management systems and the consequent change in the role of the Directorate-General for Financial Control will have a direct bearing on the Agency and will require the recasting of the financial regulations and the introduction of activity-based budgeting;

Delays in development of computer system

5.  Notes that the Centre expended scarce resources in 1997, 1998 and 1999 to develop a tailor-made computer system to manage its budget and accounts, whilst a number of Agencies employ a decentralised application developed by the Commission, SINCOM2;

6.  Calls on the Centre to ensure that the old system is fully replaced before 1 July 2000 and expects that the new application will be vetted by the Commission and that adequate documentation and in-house expertise will be provided for;

7.  Calls on the Commission to extend the system to encompass activity-based management for Agencies, including monitoring, auditing or evaluation of personnel, missions, documents and inventory, on the lines of the Integrated Resources Management System (IRMS);

Imprest accounts

8.  Welcomes the fact that the Centre has reduced its reliance on imprest accounts for payments from EUR 6.6 million in 1997 and EUR 5.9 million in 1998 to EUR 3.1 million in 1999 and, whilst recognising the environment in which the Centre operates, urges a further reduction in the use of imprest accounts;

Buildings policy

9.  Congratulates the Centre on the official inauguration of its building on 22 November 1999, but is concerned that final approval is only foreseen for November 2000;

Recommendations to the Court of Auditors

10.  Welcomes the short and precise reporting by the Court of Auditors and hopes that the Court will continue in this business-like fashion; calls on the Court of Auditors to follow up systematically decisions of the discharge authority and to produce a comprehensive analysis of the audits of all Agencies;

11.  Calls on the Centre and Court of Auditors to reduce the duration of the contradictory procedure to ensure that the annual report can be presented to Parliament before 15 July of the year following the financial year in question;

New strategy and action plan in the light of the 5-year evaluation

12.  Welcomes the launching of an external evaluation of the impact of the Centre's activities and asks that recommendations made in its last evaluation of 1995 be appraised, and calls for presentation to Parliament of the new strategy and action plan before 31 December 2000;

Discharge decision

13.  Gives discharge to the Management Board of the European Centre for the Development for Vocational Training in respect of the implementation of its budget for the 1998 financial year;

14.  Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Management Board of the European Centre for the Development for Vocational Training, the Council, the Commission and the Court of Auditors and to have it published in the Official Journal (L series).

(1) OJ C 372, 22.12.1999, p. 26. (2) OJ C 279, 1.10.1999, p. 140.

Decision of the European Parliament granting discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the 1998 financial year: Section IV - Court of Justice; Section V - Court of Auditors; Section VI - Part B - Committee of the Regions (SEC(1999) 414 - C5-0008/1999 - 1999/2166(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0154 A5-0089/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the revenue and expenditure account and the balance sheet for the 1998 financial year (SEC(1999) 414 - C5-0008/1999 ),

-  having regard to the Annual Report of the Court of Auditors concerning the financial year 1998 (C5-0266/1999 )(1) ,

-  having regard to the Council's recommendation of 13 March 2000 (C5-0154/2000 ),

-  having regard to Article 272(10) of the EC Treaty,

-  having regard to Article 22(2) and (3) of the Financial Regulation,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0089/2000 ),

Court of Justice

1.  Notes that the evacuation of the Court of Justice's main building (Palais) was made possible by those responsible, the Court of Justice and the Luxembourg authorities, four years after the first measures were taken to deal with the presence of asbestos;

2.  States that its assessment of the Court of Justice's buildings policy will be made in the light of the Special Report the Court of Auditors is currently drawing up concerning the annexes to the Palais building;

3.  Requests the Court of Justice to submit, in time for the first reading of the 2001 draft budget, a report on ways to improve the quality of financial forecasts used for the endowment of Article 270 (Official Journal) in light of the continuous need for the topping up of its appropriations in the 1995-1997 financial years;

Court of Auditors

4.  Reiterates its disapproval of the declining trend in the utilisation of appropriations earmarked for Chapter 15 (Staff exchanges between Community Institutions and the public and private sectors); underlines that those exchanges can be beneficial in particular to national civil servants and administrations; calls on the Court of Auditors to submit, in time for the first reading of the 2001 budget, a report outlining its policy as regards the staff exchanges in question and the problems which have hindered full utilisation of available resources from 1997 onwards;

5.  Notes that allocations earmarked for Article 104 (Mission expenses, local travel costs and incidental expenditure) had to be topped up twice to allow Members to complete the 1998 Audit Programme; asks the Court of Auditors to improve planning and forecasting in connection with that sector;

Committee of the Regions

6.  Urges the Committee of the Regions to take all necessary steps to reverse the seriously declining rate of utilisation of appropriations (56.27%) automatically carried over from the previous financial year; in this respect, asks for a report to be submitted to Parliament by 15 June 2000 on all Section VI appropriations automatically carried over from 1997 to 1998 and from 1998 to 1999 where the rate of cancellations is greater than 10%;

7.  Reiterates its request to the Committee of the Regions to improve financial management of the appropriations, the implementation of which has been entrusted to it by the budgetary authority;

8.  Points out that as part of its role of supporting Parliament in scrutinising implementation of the budget at the Committee of the Regions, the Court of Auditors carried out an investigation to assess the appropriateness and effectiveness of the measures taken by the Committee of the Regions to ensure that the irregularities identified in the 1996 annual report did not recur; notes that following the investigation, which took place in September 1999, the Court of Auditors found that it was not yet able to confirm the effectiveness of the measures introduced on 1 April 1999; insists that the latest set of rules, which entered into force on 1 April 2000, aimed at bolstering controls relating to the refunding of travel expenses and daily subsistence and travel allowances, must be fully in line with the Court of Auditors" observations; requests that the latter include the assessment of the efficiency of the new rules in the follow-up to its 1996 Annual Report;

9.  Regrets that, almost two years after Parliament evacuated the Belliard building complex, the Committee of the Regions, jointly with the Economic and Social Committee, do not appear to have acted with the required diligence with regard to their relocation there; takes the view that the prolonged negotiations with the owners of the buildings ultimately risk undermining the validity of the two Committees" undertaking to move to the Belliard complex as soon as possible; underlines that the current situation is detrimental to the Union budget with expenditure on rent and associated costs being charged in connection with both the current (Ardenne and Ravenstein complex) and future (Belliard complex) premises of the Committees;

10.  Urges the Committee of the Regions, jointly with the Economic and Social Committee, to conclude the above-mentioned negotiations on the basis of the principle of sound financial management and to ensure optimum utilisation of appropriations put at their disposal by the budgetary authority at their own request (transfer No 44/99 involving EUR 26,000,000);

Discharge decision

11.  Grants discharge to the Registrar of the Court of Justice and the Secretaries-General of the Court of Auditors and the Committee of the Regions in respect of the implementation of their budgets for the 1998 financial year;

12.  Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Institutions and the advisory body concerned and to have it published in the Official Journal (L series).

(1) OJ C 349, 3.12.1999.

European Parliament resolution informing the Economic and Social Committee of the reasons for the postponement of the decision concerning discharge in respect of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 1998: Section VI - Part A: Economic and Social Committee (SEC(1999) 414 - C5-0008/1999 - 1999/2166(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0155 A5-0089/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the revenue and expenditure account and the balance sheet for the 1998 financial year (SEC(1999) 414 - C5-0008/1999 ),

-  having regard to the Annual Report of the Court of Auditors concerning the financial year 1998 (C5-0266/1999 )(1) ,

-  having regard to the Council's recommendation of 13 March 2000 (C5-0154/2000 ),

-  having regard to Article 272(10) of the EC Treaty,

-  having regard to Article 22(2) and (3) of the Financial Regulation,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0089/2000 ),

A.  whereas the management of financial resources put at the disposal of the Economic and Social Committee in 1998 was characterised by several shortcomings,

B.  whereas, in the light of the serious irregularities in the management of the appropriations of the Economic and Social Committee contained in the Court of Auditors" Annual Report for 1996, Parliament postponed, in its resolution of 7 October 1998(2) , its decision concerning discharge for 1996,

C.  whereas one of the main conditions which Parliament imposed on the Economic and Social Committee for the grant of discharge in its abovementioned resolution was that the matter should be referred to UCLAF “to enable the extent of administrative involvement or responsibility to be fully determined as regards the entry into the accounts, the commitment, the authorisation and the payment of expenditure”,

D.  whereas, since at the time of consideration of the 1997 discharge the previous condition had still not been met, Parliament postponed, in its resolution of 4 May 1999(3) , its decision concerning discharge for 1997 until it had received the conclusions of the UCLAF inquiry,

E.  whereas the Economic and Social Committee only referred the matter to OLAF on 27 January 2000,

Management of the 1998 appropriations

1.  Urges the Economic and Social Committee to take all necessary steps to reverse the declining rate of utilisation of appropriations (77.85%) automatically carried over from the previous financial year; in this respect, asks for a report to be submitted to Parliament by 15 June 2000 on all Section VI appropriations automatically carried over from 1997 to 1998 and from 1998 to 1999 where the rate of cancellations is greater than 10%;

2.  Asks the Economic and Social Committee to improve financial management of the appropriations, the implementation of which has been entrusted to it by the budgetary authority,

Relocation to the Belliard building complex

3.  Regrets that, almost two years after Parliament evacuated the Belliard building complex, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions do not appear to have acted with the required diligence with regard to their relocation there; takes the view that the prolonged negotiations with the owners of the buildings ultimately risk undermining the validity of the two Committees" undertaking to move to the Belliard complex as soon as possible; underlines that the current situation is detrimental to the Union budget with expenditure on rent and associated costs being charged in connection with both the current (Ardenne and Ravenstein complex) and future (Belliard complex) premises of the Committees;

4.  Urges the Economic and Social Committee, jointly with the Committee of the Regions, to conclude the above-mentioned negotiations on the basis of the principle of sound financial management and to ensure optimum utilisation of appropriations put at their disposal by the budgetary authority at their own request (transfer No 44/99 involving EUR 26,000,000);

Follow-up to the 1996 Annual Report of the Court of Auditors

5.  Regrets that it took the Economic and Social Committee over fifteen months to comply with the decision of the discharge authority to refer the matter to OLAF;

Postponing discharge

6.  Decides to postpone the discharge decision in respect of the 1998 financial year until it has received the conclusions of the OLAF inquiry, under the terms set out in its above-mentioned resolution on postponement of the 1996 discharge;

7.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Court of Auditors and the Economic and Social Committee.

(1) OJ C 349, 3.12.1999. (2) OJ C 328, 26.10.1998, p. 115. (3) OJ C 279, 1.10.1999, p. 132.

European Parliament decision on granting discharge to the Commission in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) for the 1998 financial year (C5-0153/2000 - 2000/2077(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0156 A5-0092/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the report of the European Court of Auditors on the financial statements of the European Coal and Steel Community at 31 December 1998(1) ,

-  having regard to the Court of Auditors" Annual Report on the ECSC for the financial year 1998 (including the statement of assurance concerning the ECSC), together with the Commission's reply (C5-0153/2000 )(2) ,

-  having regard to the special report of the Court of Auditors on the management and control of interest-rate subsidies by the Commission with the Commission's replies(3) ,

-  having regard to the ECSC Treaty, and in particular Article 78g thereof,

-  having regard to Rule 93 and Annex V to its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0092/2000 ),

1.  Proposes granting discharge to the Commission in respect of management of the ECSC for the 1998 financial year, but requires the following reports to be submitted before 15 August 2000:

2.  Instructs its President to forward this decision and the resolution containing its comments to the Commission, the Council, the Court of Auditors, the ECSC Consultative Committee and each of the other institutions and to have them published in the Official Journal (L series).

(1) OJ C 240, 25.8.1999, p. 24. (2) OJ C 338, 25.11.1999. (3) OJ C 217, 29.7.1999.

European Parliament decision closing the accounts in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) for the 1998 financial year (C5-0153/2000 - 2000/2077(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0157 A5-0092/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the report of the European Court of Auditors on the financial statements of the European Coal and Steel Community at 31 December 1998(1) ,

-  having regard to the Court of Auditors" Annual Report on the ECSC for the financial year 1998 (including the statement of assurance concerning the ECSC), together with the Commission's reply (C5-0153/2000 )(2) ,

-  having regard to the ECSC Treaty, and in particular Article 78g thereof,

-  having regard to Rule 93 and Annex V to its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0092/2000 ),

1.  Notes that the ECSC balance sheet, profit and loss accounts and implementation of the ECSC operating budget for the 1998 financial year amounted to:

2.  Closes the accounts relating to the implementation of the general budget of the ECSC for the 1998 financial year;

3.  Instructs its President to forward this decision and the resolution containing its comments to the Commission, the Council, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors and the European Investment Bank and to have them published in the Official Journal (L series).

(1) OJ C 240, 25.8.1999, p. 24. (2) OJ C 338, 25.11.1999.

European Parliament resolution containing the comments accompanying the decision to grant discharge to the Commission in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) for the 1998 financial year (C5-0153/2000 - 2000/2077(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0158 A5-0092/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the report of the European Court of Auditors on the financial statements of the European Coal and Steel Community at 31 December 1998(1) ,

-  having regard to the Court of Auditors" Annual Report on the ECSC for the financial year 1998 (including the statement of assurance concerning the ECSC), together with the Commission's reply (C5-0153/2000 )(2) ,

-  having regard to Special Report No 3/99 of the Court of Auditors on the management and control of interest-rate subsidies by the Commission with the Commission's replies (3) ,

-  having regard to Article 78g and Article 97 of the ECSC Treaty,

-  having regard to Rule 93 and Annex V of its Rules of Procedure

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0092/2000 ),

A.  whereas Article 2 of the ECSC Treaty lays down as objectives economic expansion, growth of employment and a rising standard of living,

B.  whereas in 1998, in a climate of very low market prices and a depressed freight market, coal restructuring in Germany and the effects of liberalisation of the electricity and gas markets in the United Kingdom, EU production of hard coal fell by 12% from the previous year to 107 million tonnes,

C.  whereas in its Special Report No 3/99, in particular in paragraph 3.11, the Court of Auditors concluded that, with regard to measures to create jobs under Article 56 of the ECSC Treaty, subsidies had almost no real impact and were more a windfall for the beneficiaries,

D.  whereas in 1998, depressed demand from Asia due to the economic crisis, resulted in a slowdown in the demand for steel in the motor industry, mechanical and electrical engineering but gradual improvements in the construction industry, resulting in production of 160 million tonnes,

E.  whereas the balance sheet of the ECSC declined by EUR 903 million from the previous year to EUR 5.027 billion, with 56.4% as loans and 39.1% as liquid assets,

F.  whereas the balance sheet reported that in comparison with the previous year, Off balance sheet commitments received fell from EUR 590 million to EUR 372 million, commitments given fell from EUR 712 million to EUR 497 million, and Other assets fell from EUR 87 million to EUR 8 million, of which EUR 5.4 million constituted loans to officials, while Other liabilities rose from EUR 12 million to EUR 29 million and Provisions for liabilities and charges rose from EUR 87 million to EUR 122 million,

G.  whereas the profit and loss account posted a fall of EUR 264 million from the previous year to EUR 588 million, whilst on the Charges side, Net losses on financial operations rose from EUR 15 million to EUR 73 million, Value adjustments (loans, advances, provisions) rose from EUR 9 million to EUR 62 million and Allocations to provision for the operating budget fell from EUR 274 million to EUR 26 million, and on the Income side, Interest received fell from EUR 420 million to EUR 345 million and Income relating to the ECSC operating budget fell from EUR 301 million to EUR 146 million,

H.  whereas the Budget Out-turn indicated a fall from EUR 459 million in the previous year to EUR 184 million, with fines rising from 0 to EUR 6 million, and the Net balance for the year falling from EUR 109 million to EUR 38 million,

I.  whereas from 1 January 1998 the Commission reduced the levy on coal and steel products to 0%, deciding to divide up its resources between social and research aid,

J.  whereas in the run-up to the expiry of the ECSC Treaty on 23 July 2002, its solvency ratio increased from 28.3% at the end of 1997 to 32.8%, bringing it a step closer to the stated goal of 100%, due to an increase in the Guarantee Fund and a substantial decrease in the volume of outstanding loans,

K.  whereas the European Council resolution on growth and employment adopted in Amsterdam on 16 and 17 June 1997 and the Council resolution of 21 June 1999 on the future of the ECSC call for the revenues of outstanding reserves to be used for a research fund for sectors related to the coal and steel industries,

L.  whereas under current forecasts the Commission estimates that reserves for the ECSC to use for funding research will amount to EUR 1.1 billion in 2002,

M.  whereas the Directorates-General for Economic and Financial Affairs, Research, Energy and Transport, Employment and Budget jointly manage the operating budget of the ECSC resulting during the course of 1998 in total expenditure of EUR 185 million, with EUR 84 million allocated as aid for research, EUR 43 million for aid for redeployment, and EUR 27 million for social measures for coal,

N.  whereas it appears that the Commission has not yet fully enacted Parliament's recommendations laid down in its discharge resolution of 4 May 1999 for the financial year 1997(4) , when Parliament called for outstanding legal problems to be solved in the disposal of buildings acquired by the ECSC with excess funds, in Lisbon and Milan in 1986, Canberra in 1987 and Windhoek in 1992,

O.  whereas the last independent assessment and evaluation of direct financial returns on ECSC steel research programmes carried out between 1981 and 1990 was commissioned in June 1994,

P.  whereas the Annual Report on the ECSC for the financial year 1998 was adopted by the Court of Auditors on 22 and 23 September 1999,

Q.  whereas, since the adoption of the Merger Treaty, only a small part (equivalent to a flat rate) of the administrative expenditure arising from the research activities of the ECSC is financed from the budget in question, while the major part of the expenditure is paid out of the general budget and whereas, with a view to the expiry of the Treaty, an assessment of real staffing needs and a reorganisation of the Commission's services must be undertaken,

R.  whereas the Court of Auditors concludes that the financial statements of the ECSC at 31 December 1998 give an accurate picture of the assets, of the financial situation and of the results of its operations for the financial year ending at the same date,

S.  whereas the Court of Auditors states that the legality and regularity of the transactions, on the whole, are adequately guaranteed and therefore proposes a positive statement of assurance,

Independent appraisal of the added-value of the ECSC

1.  Is deeply concerned that the Court of Auditors has concluded, in its special report on the management and control of interest-rate subsidies by the Commission, that subsidies had almost no real impact on the creation of jobs under programmes launched under Article 56 of the ECSC Treaty,

2.  Calls on the Commission before the expiry of the ECSC Treaty on 23 July 2002 to appraise the impact of the ECSC in meeting the objectives of economic expansion, growth of employment and a rising standard of living laid down in the Treaty;

3.  Notes that the Commission, in accordance with the ECSC Treaty, has individualised the social aid measures and research support measures;

Prudent approach to winding down the ECSC

4.  Calls on the Commission to assure Parliament that steps have been taken to raise the solvency ratio from the level of 32.8% on 31 December 1998 to the level of 100% before 23 July 2002;

5.  Notes the strength of the balance sheet of the ECSC which stood at EUR 5.027 billion at the end of 1998, but is concerned by the management of loans and the effective use of liquid assets;

Handover plan for successor of ECSC

6.  Observes that in 1997 the Amsterdam European Council on growth and employment called for the revenues of outstanding reserves to be used for research after the expiry of the ECSC Treaty, a decision confirmed in the resolution adopted by the Council on 21 June 1999; stresses in consequence the need to establish effective systems to monitor the quality of projects and contracts in the area of coal and steel with a view to the activities of the future research fund;

7.  Calls upon the Commission to present an independent report evaluating the ECSC's research activities with a view to the continuation of these activities after the expiry of the ECSC Treaty, using the ECSC's accumulated reserves;

8.  Calls for the Commission to publish criteria against which research projects in the coal and steel area are selected, monitored and appraised;

9.  Calls for greater coordination between the various directorates-general jointly managing the operating budget of the ECSC and calls for a rationalisation of the various services which will be responsible for the management of funds upon expiry of the Treaty;

10.  Reminds the Commission of the resolutions it adopted on 28 October 1999 on the operational budget of the ECSC(5) and the budget of the European Union(6) , in which it called on the Commission to carry out an assessment of real staffing needs in the light of the expiry of the ECSC Treaty, and, in consequence, a reorganisation of the directorates-general concerned, and to present Parliament with a report on the subject;

State of play of previous recommendations

11.  Regrets the absence of a full reply from the Commission to the recommendations contained in its abovementioned resolution of 4 May 1999 on the discharge in respect of the 1997 financial year, and calls on the Commission to take appropriate and vigorous measures to follow these recommendations within the shortest possible time;

Winding up of the ECSC

12.  Reminds the Commission that Parliament will continue to monitor the effective use of tax-payers' money in the operations of the ECSC;

o
o   o

13.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors and the European Investment Bank.

(1) OJ C 240, 25.8.1999, p. 24. (2) OJ C 338, 25.11.1999. (3) OJ C 217, 29.7.1999. (4) OJ C 279, 1.10.1999, p. 135. (5) Texts Adopted, Item 3. (6) Texts Adopted, Items 1 and 2.

European Parliament resolution postponing the decision on giving discharge in respect of implementation of the general budget for the financial year 1998 - Section I - European Parliament/Ombudsman Annex (SEC(1999) 414 - C5-0008/1999 - 1999/2051(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0159 A5-0097/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the revenue and expenditure account and the balance sheet for the financial year 1998 (SEC(1999) 414 - C5-0008/1999 ),

-  having regard to the administrative co-operation agreement concluded between the European Parliament and the European Ombudsman on 22 September 1995, which was prolonged on 7 December 1999,

-  having regard to the Annual Report of the Court of Auditors concerning the financial year 1998(1) ,

-  having regard to Opinion No 5/99 of the Court of Auditors on the Additional Voluntary Pension Scheme and Fund for Members of the European Parliament,

-  having regard to its Rules of Procedure, and in particular Rule 184(3) thereof,

-  having regard to Article 77 of the Financial Regulation and Article 13 of the Internal Rules for the implementation of the European Parliament's budget,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0097/2000 ),

A.  wishing to ensure that the principles of legality, regularity, economy, cost-effectiveness and sound financial management laid down in EU law are fully respected in the implementation of Parliament's budget,

B.  strongly reminding the administration of its full responsibility in regard to the proper management of funds derived from the European taxpayers and that it must therefore ensure that its proposals for the political decision-making bodies are in line with relevant EU legislation and in particular with the Financial Regulation,

European Parliament

1.  Adopts the figures closing the accounts of the European Parliament for the financial year 1998 on the basis of the following amounts:

Budgetary Implementation

2.  Welcomes the significant reduction in the cancellation of appropriations for 1998 and the modest improvement in the utilisation of non-automatic appropriations carried over from 1997, resulting from the measures introduced by the Secretary General; regrets, however, that there still remains a persistently high cancellation of appropriations automatically carried over; underlines the continued need for sustained progress in this area and urges that corrective measures be promptly taken to that effect;

3.  Expects financial requirements to be more thoroughly defined by authorising officers so that subsequent contradictory requests for transfers of appropriations can be avoided;

Calls for Tender

4.  Urges that the management of calls for tender forthwith ensure optimum use of available resources and avoid in future situations such as those encountered in 1998 whereby:

5.  Is surprised to note that a published call for tenders was put forward twice for Members' furniture in the Louise Weiss building and that on both occasions these were abandoned due to the failure of tenderers to meet the actual requirements of the call itself; notes that the contract was finally awarded on the basis of a normally exceptional procedure, namely the direct negotiation of a contract with a tenderer;

6.  Considers unacceptable the dramatic increase in the number of contracts awarded by the exceptional "direct treaty" procedure instead of by calls for tender (1998: 181 cases, compared to 58 in 1997), which means that half of all contracts awarded in 1998 were based on that procedure; requests the Secretary General to present by 1 June 2000 concrete measures to reverse this deplorable trend, including measures for training and improving qualifications of Parliament's staff involved in the awarding of contracts.

Buildings

7.  Regrets that, despite having taken up occupancy within the new Altiero Spinelli building in Brussels, Parliament, due to problems in logistical planning which were not necessarily of its own making, was nonetheless left with the continued financial burden of fulfilling its contractual obligations, i.e. lease agreements and other associated expenditure for those buildings actually left vacant and unused for part of the year as a result of the aforementioned move;

8.  Reiterates its regret at the Council's decision against the direct funding of the Altiero Spinelli building; is aware of its responsibility as the only institution responsible for discharge; notes that the Council decision had created a series of difficult conditions for Parliament's Bureau;

9.  Notes that the approach adopted for the funding of that building was based on the express recommendation of the Secretary-General, the Financial Controller and the Legal Service, who had come to the conclusion that the EU rules on the award of public service contracts were not applicable in this connection;

10.  Notes the findings of the Court of Auditors (paragraphs 6.13 and 6.14 of the Annual Report) that after exercising the option to purchase the Altiero Spinelli building Parliament is in the position of a borrower, which represents a new departure which is not permitted under the financial regulations currently in force;

11.  Calls on the Court of Auditors to deliver an opinion in the very near future on whether the procedure adopted for funding the Altiero Spinelli building is applicable to future projects in the light of the amendments which have now been made to the Financial Regulation and the rules on awarding public service contracts;

12.  Is very alarmed at the doubts that have arisen in connection with the construction of the Altiero Spinelli building about whether the relevant legal procedures have been properly applied and implemented; is obliged, under the Treaty, to apply the same standards in respect of the discharge of the implementation of the budget of all institutions; expects, in view of the possible purchase of further buildings, the options available to Parliament to be presented as rapidly as possible, including a legal assessment of these options, to the committees responsible; notes in this respect that the procedures selected by Parliament must remain unimpeachable; requests the Bureau to present options for an accurate action and financing plan, in particular for the Louise Weiss building in Strasbourg, including their legal assessment taking into account the situation of negotiations, before 1 July 2000;

13.  Insists on the preservation of its rights with regard to the late hand-over of the Louise Weiss building, in particular as regards the interim interest payments and the penalties referred to in the framework contract;

14.  Maintains that the concessions on the part of the French authorities relating to the Louise Weiss building, in particular the defrayment of land and other related costs as well as the waiving of VAT, should in no way be linked to the completely separate issue of penalties imposed upon the developer for failing to have completed on time his contractual obligations;

15.  Reaffirms its position that it is in no way involved in the various legal disputes between the developer of the Louise Weiss building and its sub-contractors and architects; consequently, takes the view that any costs arising from the settlement of those disputes should not be part of the final investment cost of the building;

16.  Notes with increasing concern the frequent problems connected with the award and execution of tenders for security services for its buildings; recalls that serious problems have also occurred at the Commission in this respect; calls on the Court of Auditors to present a special report on the practice of awarding such contracts, including an examination of whether it is economically feasible;

Management of Members' Pension Fund

17.  Takes note of the Court of Auditors" opinion No 5/1999 on the Members" Additional Pension Scheme and Fund giving reasonable assurance that the accounts of the Scheme are reliable; requests the College of Quaestors and the Bureau to act on its recommendations so as to ensure the separation of the Fund's management from that of the administration of Parliament;

Staff Policy

18.  Deplores the unnecessary financial costs and immaterial damage accruing to Parliament as a result of the spate of recent cases in which either the Court of Justice or the Court of First Instance decided against Parliament; deplores most strongly the residual impression left by these cases, whereby it would appear that favouritism plays a significant role in the granting of appointments to high-grade posts within the administration of Parliament; demands that the Appointing Authority take into account the courts" decisions and in particular their criticism of the use of inappropriate criteria in the future so that the appointment to said posts will be above all based on merit, professional qualifications for the position in question, as well as the ability of the candidate to perform the specific duties required of him/her;

19.  Demands that the Bureau, following up on a proposal by the Secretary General of Parliament, define a long-term policy on staff recruitment and appointments, which is based upon predictable needs for specific qualifications; asserts that in doing so, more attention should be given toward qualified personnel within the Member States, particularly in regard to the recruitment of specialists in bookkeeping, auditing and accountancy;

20.  Urges the Bureau to draw its own conclusions from the current reform process in the Commission relating to staffing policy and asks the Secretary General to deliver a report to the respective parliamentary committees by 30 June 2000;

21.  Regrets the ongoing problems in relation to freelance interpreters, the management of which is presently shared with the Commission; asks its Secretary General to submit a report, in time for the first reading of the 2001 Budget, examining the advisability of Parliament assuming sole responsibility for the management of its freelance interpreting needs;

Evaluation Reports and Reports to the Institution

22.  Demands that any evaluation reports concerning Parliament's administration, as well as the financial controller's reports to the institution, be forwarded to the Committee on Budgetary Control, immediately following their presentation to the Bureau;

23.  Expects its Legal Service to inform the Bureau about the risks of court cases before the Bureau takes its decisions, particularly in the light of previous judgments on staff matters;

Personal Allowances and Expenses

24.  Draws attention to the Court of Auditors" observations on the need for full adherence to:

Transparency of the work of the European political parties and groups

25.  (a)Specifically emphasises the need for a legally binding statute for European political parties, welcomes the fact that the Chairmen of four European alliances of parties and their parliamentary groups have submitted a draft text in this connection and looks to the Commission to submit a proposal for a legal act by 1 September 2000;

Inventory

26.  Deplores the unaccountability of large stocks of inventory in the past due to inadequacies in its control system and calls on the Secretary General to report on the final outcome of the 1994 inventory check, in which items not located and subsequently written off have been quantified and categorised;

27.  Notes that a new inventory system was launched by the Administration in 1998 with a view to labelling all items on all the Institution's premises, to be followed by a new management system using these labels; attaches the greatest importance to the success of this operation and urges its Secretary General to inform the Committee on Budgetary Control by 1 June 2000 as to the progress made;

28.  Notes, as regards the purchase of a second computer for Members" offices, that they are required to buy a specific make and type of computer for a given price from a specific supplier. Since this situation is totally incompatible with the rules of the free market and fair competition, it is requested that these conditions be abolished as soon as possible;

The case relating to the Members" Cash Office

29.  Notes that the Institution's appeal against the judgement, dated 3 April 1998, whereby the Luxembourg Commercial Court found as inadmissible the case brought on 22 March 1995 by the European Parliament against Royale Belge S.A., with which Parliament took out, on 30 June 1976, the insurance policy referred to in Article 75 of the Financial Regulation, is still pending;

30.  Stresses that the discrepancy of 4,136,125 BF between the cash situation and the accounts, an amount which was excluded from the scope of the discharge granted for the 1982 financial year, will have to be regularised when such an appeal procedure has been completed;

Ombudsman Annex

31.  Welcomes the increased take-up of appropriations earmarked for the 1998 budget of the Ombudsman; notes however that the utilisation of appropriations automatically carried over from 1997 worsened by comparison with the previous year; urges therefore the Ombudsman to improve implementation of these appropriations;

32.  Regrets the Commission's failure to include the analysis submitted by the Ombudsman's services on the implementation of the Ombudsman Annex budget in the overall presentation of the Revenue and Expenditure Account and Balance Sheet for 1998;

o
o   o

33.  Postpones the granting of discharge and instructs its Secretary General to take the following steps:

and expects that:

34.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission.

(1) OJ C 349, 3.12.1999.

Decision of the European Parliament granting discharge to the Commission in respect of the decisions on clearance of accounts of the Guarantee Section of the EAGGF for the 1993, 1994 and 1995 financial years (C4-0128/1998 - C4-0372/1998 - C5-0167/2000 - 1997/2167(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0160 A5-0095/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the revenue and expenditure accounts and the financial statement for the 1993, 1994 and 1995 financial years (C4-0128/1998 - C4-0372/1998 - C5-0167/2000 ),

-  having regard to the summary reports on the results of inspections concerning the clearance of the EAGGF Guarantee Section accounts for 1993, 1994 and 1995,

-  having regard to the annual report of the Court of Auditors concerning the 1997 financial year(1) and the annual report concerning 1998(2) ,

-  having regard to the special reports of the Court of Auditors for the 1993 financial year(3) and on the management of Community cereals trade involving export refunds, special import arrangements and regional aid schemes(4) ,

-  having regard to the EC Treaty and, in particular, to Article 276 thereof,

-  having regard to Rule 93 of and to Annex V to the Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0095/2000 ),

1.  Notes that the financial correction for expenditure of EUR 32 397 million in financial year 1993, decided on 23 April 1997 and 30 July 1997, amounted to EUR 744 million;

2.  Notes that the financial correction for expenditure of EUR 33 593 million in financial year 1994, decided on 6 May 1998(5) , amounted to EUR 308 million;

3.  Notes that the financial correction for expenditure of EUR 34 503 million in financial year 1995, taken on 3 February 1999 and 28 July 1999 and 1 March 2000, amounted to EUR 595 million;

4.  Grants discharge to the Commission, subject to the receipt of further information concerning the Fléchard case, the export refund scheme and the operation of the common organisation of markets, in respect of the clearance of accounts for the 1993, 1994 and 1995 financial years;

5.  Records its comments in the resolution which forms part of this decision;

6.  Instructs its President to forward this decision and the resolution containing its comments to the Commission, the Council, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors and the European Investment Bank and to have them published in the Official Journal (L series).

(1) OJ C 349, 17.11.1998. (2) OJ C 349, 3.12.1999. (3) OJ C 52, 21.2.1997, OJ C 121, 20.4.1998. (4) OJ C 159, 26.5.1997. (5) cf. Commission decision 98/358/EC (OJ L 163, 6.6.1998, p. 28).

European Parliament resolution containing the comments accompanying the decision granting discharge to the Commission in respect of the decisions on clearance of accounts of the Guarantee Section of the EAGGF for the 1993, 1994 and 1995 financial years (C4-0128/1998 - C4-0372/1998 - C5-0167/2000 - 1997/2167(DEC))

P5_TA(2000)0161 A5-0095/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the revenue and expenditure accounts and the financial statement for the 1993, 1994 and 1995 financial years (C4-0128/1998 - C4-0372/1998 - C5-0167/2000 ),

-  having regard to the summary reports on the results of inspections concerning the clearance of the EAGGF Guarantee Section accounts for 1993, 1994 and 1995,

-  having regard to the annual report of the Court of Auditors concerning the 1997 financial year(1) and the annual report concerning 1998(2) ,

-  having regard to the special reports of the Court of Auditors for the 1993 financial year(3) and on the management of Community cereals trade involving export refunds, special import arrangements and regional aid schemes(4) ,

-  having regard to the EC Treaty and, in particular, to Article 276 thereof,

-  having regard to Rule 93 of and to Annex V to the Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0095/2000 ),

A.  whereas the clearance of accounts must ensure that the Community is not charged for any amounts paid without a legal basis,

B.  whereas the European Court of Justice has repeatedly ruled that the Commission may refuse to implement expenditure for the EAGGF account if the scale of amounts wrongly paid cannot be determined and that the burden of proof for the level of losses actually incurred rests with Member States,

C.  whereas respect for Community legislation must be ensured and must on no account be encouraged or bought with financial concessions charged to the Community budget,

D.  whereas the Court of Auditors has not been able to give a positive DAS for the 1998 financial year and has noted that the rate of substantive and formal errors in the EAGGF sector was again too high, although lower than the rate for the overall budget, with half of the substantive errors concerning final beneficiaries,

E.  whereas irregularities can best be prevented by adjusting the underlying legislation,

F.  whereas the Commission has failed to ensure that Member States set up suitably robust control systems, including those for cotton, tobacco and olive oil and for controls at customs posts for export refunds,

G.  whereas export refunds have constituted an area of control left neglected for some time, although it has proved particularly prone to significant irregularities,

H.  whereas it has been noted that the Commission has taken steps with a view to following up the recommendations made by the Court of Auditors and by Parliament in its resolution of 20 February 1998(5) regarding the management of the Community cereals trade involving export refunds,

I.  whereas again, in 1993, 1994 and 1995, the findings on Corsica were amongst the most serious ever encountered, illustrating an almost total breakdown of control at every level, with subsequent commonplace abuses leading to the application of a 25% financial correction,

J.  whereas, for the fourth year in succession, the Commission failed to carry out its threat to apply a correction above 10% for olive oil in Greece, thereby showing an inability or unwillingness to act upon repeated irregularities or illustrating that repeated irregularities cannot be addressed satisfactorily under the present rules,

K.  whereas the Integrated Administration and Control System is operational in most Member States but is still not fully operational in some Member States,

L.  whereas the Commission has taken steps to follow up the recommendations made by the Court of Auditors in its special report No 2/98 on the clearance of accounts for 1993(6) to draw up overall work plans and to include particular Member States or smaller measures in periodic on-the-spot controls,

M.  whereas expenditure on rural development measures will increase in coming years,

N.  whereas the level of staffing in the clearance of accounts unit remains a cause for concern,

O.  whereas, on occasion, Member States have prolonged and distorted the clearance procedure by not handing over information to the Commission from the outset,

P.  whereas Member States have not always taken sufficient steps to attract and retain suitably qualified and experienced staff for exercising the important functions of payment and control, including the strengthening of customs controls for export refunds, and whereas the use and the effectiveness of the 10-25% retained for collecting own resources by Member States is unclear,

Q.  whereas the added-value and effectiveness of the Conciliation Body has yet to be confirmed, as a significant number of its cases are passed to the European Court of Justice,

R.  whereas the recovery of funds by Member States and of debts by the Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and the Commission(7) should be improved in terms of coverage, timeliness, transparency and procedural rigour, thereby ensuring equality of treatment and hence competition,

S.  whereas the information supplied to Parliament on the action taken on cases referred to OLAF is inadequate,

T.  whereas judgment is reserved until the Court of Auditors reports on what is known as the Fléchard case and the Anti-Fraud Office reports on the action taken by the Spanish prosecutor on alleged mismanagement or fraud in the aid regime for flax(8) ,

General

1.  Is concerned at the consistently high levels of financial corrections - EUR 755 million for 1993, EUR 308 million for 1994 and EUR 595 million in 1995 - and sees in these annual figures confirmation that major problems within national payment and control systems have not been addressed with sufficient urgency, rigour and determination by Member States;

2.  Welcomes efforts made by the Commission to propose fraud-proof legislation and, whilst urging the Commission to continue along this path, calls upon Council together with Parliament to assume proper responsibility for preventing irregularities through fraud-proof legislation;

Declaration of Assurance per sector

3.  Calls upon the Court of Auditors to work with the Commission, Member State certifying bodies and paying agencies to explore the feasibility of drawing up a separate DAS for the EAGGF and its respective sectors, and to report back to Parliament as soon as possible;

Integrated Administration and Control System (IACS)

4.  Calls for the Integrated Administration and Control System to be fully operational in all Member States before April 2002, after which date the Commission should revert to maximum financial corrections if controls are breached;

Extension of clearance of accounts to the Guidance Section of the EAGGF

5.  Calls for the clearance of accounts system to be extended to include the Guidance Section of the EAGGF, as the clearance of accounts could prove a useful instrument for monitoring and preventing irregularities in other areas of expenditure such as the Structural Funds;

Responsibility of the Commission in implementing the budget

6.  Welcomes the introduction of a central work plan based on risk analysis and, noting that export refunds are included in each work programme, calls upon the Commission and Court of Auditors to put increased emphasis on the control of rural development measures;

7.  Calls upon the Commission to take all the necessary steps to comply fully, with no further delays, with its obligations under Article 274, namely by creating a common database on all final beneficiaries as the Court of Auditors has repeatedly demanded;

8.  Calls upon the Commission to investigate the legal possibility of penalties being applied, should infringements be recurrent or structural, as, under current legislation, only the Court of Justice has the power to sanction a Member State, and to report to Parliament as soon as possible;

9.  Reminds the Commission that under the new guidelines improvements made subsequent to the period in question cannot be used as an argument for decreasing the correction;

10.  Welcomes the creation of an additional fifteen posts in the clearance of accounts unit, but is dismayed that nine administrator posts remain vacant and calls upon the Commission to address the underlying causes of a relatively high turnover; calls on the Commission to attract, motivate and retain suitably qualified and experienced staff in the clearance of accounts unit and to alert Parliament if the level of staffing proves to be inadequate;

11.  Calls upon the Commission to report on the action it takes on the recommendations made by the Court of Auditors;

Responsibility of Member States

12.  Calls upon the Member States to place suitable importance on attracting and retaining staff for agencies involved in administering payments and exercising controls;

13.  Calls upon the Member States to supply the Commission with all necessary information from the outset in order to prevent the clearance procedure from being prolonged and distorted;

14.  Calls upon the Member States to improve coordination between administrations operating within a country, to strengthen the prevention, detection and prosecution of fraud or irregularities and to cooperate fully and unconditionally with OLAF;

15.  Calls upon the Commission to inform Parliament of the use and possible role of the 10-25% retained nationally for collecting own resources with a view to strengthening customs and export refund controls;

Conciliation Body

16.  Welcomes the Commission's evaluation of the Conciliation Body, looks forward to receiving a comprehensive appraisal from the Court of Auditors and will address this as part of the discharge procedure for the clearance of accounts for the 1996 financial year;

Recovery of funds and action taken by the Anti-Fraud Office

17.  Is alarmed that statistics relating to amounts to be recovered following cases of fraud and other irregularities show that, out of a total of EUR 7 559 million in irregularities notified by Member States between 1972 and 1998, EUR 1 747 million has yet to be recovered, with paying agencies in Italy, Germany and Spain accounting for 84% of this total;

18.  Urges the Commission and OLAF to take a clearance of accounts decision to charge either the Member State concerned if it has not met all its obligations or the EAGGF if recovery proves impossible; concerned that information on cases referred to OLAF is not properly notified to Parliament, calls upon OLAF and the Commission to provide Parliament with regular information on the progress of cases under investigation, to inform Parliament when the EUR 1 747 million has been recovered and to come forward with proposals to improve recovery;

19.  Calls upon the Commission's legal services to consider the possibility of forcing Member States to pay penalties if delays in the recovery of debts are excessive;

Exclusion of Flax and Fléchard cases

20.  Expects the Court of Auditors to submit as soon as possible its findings concerning the allegations made in December 1998 that Commission officials and members of Commissioners" private offices had arbitrarily reduced the penalty from EUR 17.6 million to EUR 3 million in what is known as the Fléchard case;

21.  Looks forward to receiving a full report from the Anti-Fraud Office, following the latter's request of 7 June 1999 to the Spanish judicial authorities for an inquiry into the possible abuse of the flax aid regime, in the light of a 500-fold increase in production between 1993 and 1998;

22.  Asks the Commission to present full reports on the export refund system and the flax and hemp mechanism explaining why the above-mentioned failures took place as well as on the measures already taken and planned to ensure that they will not be repeated;

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23.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors and the European Investment Bank.

(1) OJ C 349, 17.11.1998. (2) OJ C 349, 3.12.1999. (3) OJ C 52, 21.2.1997, OJ C 121, 20.4.1998. (4) OJ C 159, 26.5.1997. (5) OJ C 80, 16.3.1998, p. 299. (6) OJ C 121, 20.4.1998. (7) cf. Council Regulation (EEC) No 595/91 (OJ L 67, 14.3.1991, p. 11). (8) cf. Council Regulation (EEC) No 1308/70 (OJ L 146, 4.7.1970, p. 1) and Council Regulation (EEC) No 619/71 (OJ L 72, 26.3.1971, p. 2), amended by Council Regulation (EC) No 154/97 (OJ L 27, 30.1.1997, p. 1).

Proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 723/97 on the implementation of Member States" action programmes on control of EAGGF Guarantee Section expenditure (COM(1999) 169 - C4-0225/1999 - 1999/0091(CNS) )

P5_TA(2000)0162 A5-0079/2000

The proposal was amended as follows:

Text proposed by the Commission(1)   Amendments by Parliament (Amendment 1) Citation 1 Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 37 thereof Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 280(4) thereof, (Amendment 2) ARTICLE 1 Article 5a (Regulation (EC) No 723/97) Within the limits of the financial resources available the Commission may, under this Regulation, provide part-financing of 50% of the additional expenditure incurred by carrying out additional controls in particular cases where the Commission asks the Member States to carry out a number of controls in certain sectors considerably above the minimum rate laid down in other Regulations. Within the limits of the financial resources available the Commission may, under this Regulation, provide part-financing of 50% of the additional expenditure incurred by Member States in particular cases where the Commission asks them to carry out a number of controls in certain sectors considerably above the minimum rate laid down in other Regulations. The expenditure in question may not cover staff costs or costs normally incurred under Article 1(4) of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70. The expenditure in question shall cover the administrative and staffing costs incurred by the Commission in administering this scheme but may not cover staff costs or costs normally incurred by Member States and aid recipients under Article 1(4) of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70.

European Parliament legislative resolution on the proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 723/97 on the implementation of Member States" action programmes on control of EAGGF Guarantee Section expenditure (COM(1999) 169 - C4-0225/1999 - 1999/0091(CNS) )

P5_TA(2000)0162 A5-0079/2000

(Consultation procedure)

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(1999) 169 )(2) ,

-  having been consulted by the Council pursuant to Article 37 of the EC Treaty (C4-0225/1999 ),

-  whereas the legal basis proposed by the Commission is inappropriate; whereas reference should be made instead to Article 280(4) of the Treaty;

-  having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market on the legal basis,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A5-0079/2000 ),

1.  Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.  Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, pursuant to Article 250(2) of the EC Treaty;

3.  Calls on the Council to notify Parliament should it intend to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

4.  Calls for the conciliation procedure to be initiated should the Council intend to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

5.  Asks to be consulted again if the Council intends to amend the Commission proposal substantially;

6.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

(1) OJ C137, 18.5.1999, p. 8. (2) OJ C 137, 18.5.1999, p. 8.

European Parliament resolution containing the European Parliament's proposals for the Intergovernmental Conference (14094/1999 - C5-0341/1999 -1999/0825(CNS) )

P5_TA(2000)0163 A5-0086/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having been consulted by the Council, pursuant to Article 48(2) of the Treaty on European Union, on the convening of an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) to consider the changes to be made to the treaties establishing the European Union (C5-0341/1999 ),

-  having regard to the Commission opinion of 26 January 2000 on 'Adapting the institutions to make a success of enlargement' (COM(2000) 34 - C5-0072/2000 ),

-  having regard to the conclusions of the Helsinki European Council (10 December 1999),

-  having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions of 17 February 2000 on "The 2000 Intergovernmental Conference",

-  having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee of 1 March 2000 on "The 2000 Intergovernmental Conference - the role of the Economic and Social Committee" (CES237 - 2000),

-  having regard to its resolutions of 18 November 1999 on the preparation of the reform of the treaties and the next Intergovernmental Conference(1) and 3 February 2000 on the convening of the Intergovernmental Conference(2) , and in particular paragraph 5 thereof,

-  having regard to its resolution of 16 March 2000 on the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights,(3)

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs and the opinions of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defence Policy, the Committee on Budgets, the Committee on Budgetary Control, the Committee on Citizens" Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs, the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market, the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy, the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Policy, the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, the Committee on Fisheries, the Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism, the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education, the Media and Sport and the Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities (A5-0086/2000 ),

I. A more democratic and effective Union - composition and functioning of the institutions and bodies of the Union and decision-making procedures

1.  Reaffirms that the composition, functioning and balance between the institutions of the Union, Parliament, the Council and the Commission, must reflect its dual legitimacy as a union of peoples and a union of States and that an overall balance must be struck between the small and large States and populations; considers therefore that the constitutional principle that the Union of the Peoples is represented by Parliament and the Union of the States is represented by the Council has to be taken account of;

2.  Notes that the provisions to be adopted concerning the composition of the institutions will have to take account of the duration of the enlargement process and consequently provide for transitional adjustment rules;

3.  Takes the view that a fundamental debate on the prospects for the process of European unification and the limits of the future Union is urgently required;

4.  Stresses the need to conclude the IGC during 2000, so as not to delay the vital and historical enlargement process;

European Parliament

5.  Confirms that the number of Members of Parliament should remain subject to an upper limit of 700 and, as far as its composition is concerned, proposes the following principles:

5.1.  with the likelihood of a first wave of new States joining the EU around 2004-2006, proposes that the 2004-2009 Parliament be composed on the basis of a first transitional adjustment of the number of seats per Member State, aiming to keep Parliament under 700;

5.2.  before the 2009 elections, and irrespective of the pace of accessions, the number of representatives to be elected to Parliament in each Member State should be calculated on the basis of the population of a Union comprising all the applicant countries with which negotiations are being held, subject to an upper limit of 700 seats; it should be determined on the basis of population, under a proportional allocation system adjusted by allotting each State a minimum of four seats(4) ;

6.  Proposes that the Treaty should provide for the possibility that a number of Members of Parliament could be elected in a single European constituency, by giving each voter two votes - one for the national lists and one for the European lists; the European lists should comprise at least one citizen of each Member State;

7.  Calls for Article 190(5) of the EC Treaty to be amended as follows: "The European Parliament shall lay down the regulations and general conditions governing the performance of the duties of its Members";

8.  Proposes the following provisions for political parties:

8.1.  Article 191 of the EC Treaty should be worded as follows: 'Political parties at European level contribute to forming a European awareness and to expressing the political will of the citizens of the Union'; on a proposal from the Commission, the European Parliament and the Council shall adopt, within twelve months of the entry into force of this Treaty and in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251, the requirements for recognition, the statute and funding arrangements (including Community funding) for European political parties;

8.2.  European political parties which do not respect democratic principles and fundamental rights, may be the subject of proceedings in the Court of Justice of the European Communities, at the request of the Commission, after consulting the European Parliament and the Council, to suspend their EU funding; the suspension procedures that may be applied pursuant to this Article shall be adopted, within twelve months of the entry into force of this Treaty, on a proposal from the Commission, by a decision of Parliament and the Council adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251;

9.  Proposes to add the following phrase to Article 289 of the EC Treaty: "In the case of the European Parliament, it shall decide by an absolute majority of its members, on the location of its seat and of all its meetings";

Council

10.  Proposes, with regard to qualified majority voting in the Council, that:

10.1.  Council measures requiring a qualified majority should be adopted if they secure the support of at least a simple majority of Member States representing at least the majority of the total population of the Member States of the Union;

10.2.  the IGC should establish the democratic principle of publicity of the Council acting as a legislator or budgetary authority; a verbatim record of Council meetings should be published; the Council should account for its decisions to Parliament;

11.  In order to enhance its own performance and discipline, the European Council should adopt, publish and abide by rules of procedure;

Commission

12.  Proposes, with regard to the composition of the Commission, that:

12.1.  the Commission should be of a workable size. It should be composed :

12.2.  Parliament should elect the President of the Commission from among the candidates proposed by the Council;

12.3.  the President of the Commission, in agreement with the Member States, should appoint the members of the College; he should ensure that the Commission includes a citizen of each Member State at least every two terms of office(5) ;

12.4.  the Commission should be invested by Parliament;

12.5.  Parliament should, by means of hearings, assess the merits of the Commissioners-designate;

12.6.  any Member of the Commission guilty of serious misconduct in the performance of his duties should be required to tender his resignation when asked to do so by the President of the Commission;

12.7.  under the terms of Article 216 of the EC Treaty, any Member of the Commission may be ordered to resign by the Court of Justice, also at the request of Parliament;

13.  Considers it essential to ensure the complete independence of the Commission, its role as guardian of the treaties and its collective responsibility, in particular by strengthening the role of its President in determining policy; proposes, with regard to the functioning and powers of the Commission, that:

13.1.  the President of the Commission may, after consideration by the College, ask Parliament for a vote of confidence; where the vote of confidence is not given by a majority of Members of Parliament, the Commission should resign;

13.2.  the Commission should exercise executive functions and regulatory power under the supervision of the legislative authorities in accordance with arrangements adopted by the Council and Parliament in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the EC Treaty;

13.3.  the Commission should have the right of legislative initiative, without prejudice to the provisions of Article 192 of the EC Treaty and Titles V (Provisions on a common foreign and security policy) and VI (Provisions on police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters) and Article 48 of the EU Treaty;

Court of Justice and Court of First Instance

14.  Proposes that the Court of Justice should consist of an odd number of judges equal to or higher than the number of Member States, with a corresponding increase in the number of advocates general;

15.  Proposes that members of the Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance should be appointed for a non-renewable 9 year term of office;

16.  Considers that decisions on the classes of action and the amendment of the Statute of the Court of Justice should be adopted by the Council acting by a qualified majority after obtaining Parliament's assent; the Rules of Procedure should be approved and amended, where necessary, by the Court to which they apply;

17.  Proposes to delete the clause in Article 225 of the EC Treaty prohibiting the Court of First Instance from giving preliminary rulings in order to deal with problems that might arise in the future for certain classes of action, provided that the decisions of the Court of First Instance may be appealed against in the Court of Justice and are thereby subject to judicial review;

18.  Proposes that the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice should be extended to all matters covered by Title IV of the EC Treaty (Visas, asylum, immigration and other policies related to free movement of persons) and Title VI of the EU Treaty (Provisions on police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters) by removing the limitations and restrictions in force;

19.  Proposes that Parliament should be included among the institutions authorised to submit requests for rulings to the Court of Justice pursuant to Article 68(3) of the EC Treaty;

20.  Calls for the normal system of references to the European Court of Justice for preliminary rulings to apply to matters falling under Title IV of the EC Treaty;

21.  Considers it essential to modernise and simplify procedures by making provision for the use of modern means of communication;

22.  Proposes that Articles 230 and 232 of the EC Treaty should be amended to accord Parliament the right to bring an action in the Court of Justice on grounds of lack of competence, infringement of an essential procedural requirement, infringement of this Treaty or of any rule of law relating to its application, misuse of powers or failure to act;

23.  Proposes that, subject to the provisions of Article 300(6) of the EC Treaty, the Court of Justice should be authorised to rule on a request submitted by Parliament if the latter has been consulted on the conclusion of an agreement envisaged, in accordance with the procedure laid down in the second subparagraph of Article 300(3);

European Public Prosecutor's office

24.  Proposes the creation of a European Public Prosecutor's office as an independent entity responsible for the protection of the Union's interests against fraud throughout the Community;

25.  Considers that Article 280 of the EC Treaty should be amended to allow the Union to take legislative action in criminal matters in respect of fraud that damages the interests of the Union;

Court of Auditors

26.  Proposes that the Court of Auditors should consist of a fixed number of members; they should be appointed for a term of six years by the Council acting by a qualified majority after obtaining the assent of Parliament; membership should be partially renewed every three years; if the number of members of the Court of Auditors were less than the number of Member States, a system of rotation should be put in place to ensure that it comprises one citizen of each Member State at least every three years; the Court of Auditors should have the right of direct access to the financial control of national and regional authorities when and in so far as they are involved in spending from the EU budget;

European Central Bank

27.  Considers that the structure of the governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) and the other decision-making bodies in the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) should also take account of enlargement so that the decision-making processes of the ECB and ESCB remain effective;

Committee of the Regions

28.  Proposes, with regard to the composition of the Committee, that:

28.1.  the number of members of the Committee should be no more than half the size of Parliament;

28.2.  in order to safeguard the political legitimacy of the Committee, its members should hold elected political office at regional or local level or be politically accountable to an assembly elected by direct universal suffrage;

28.3.  in order to safeguard its right to be consulted, the Committee of the Regions should be entitled to bring an action before the Court of Justice;

Economic and Social Committee

29.  Proposes, with regard to the composition of the Committee, that:

29.1.  the number of members of the Committee should be no more than one-third of the size of Parliament;

29.2.  the Committee should consist of representatives of civil society, including representatives of the various categories of economic and social activity;

29.3.  its functioning should be adapted to strengthen its role as a framework for social dialogue and liaison with civil society;

Decision-making procedures

30.  Proposes, with regard to decision-making procedures, that:

30.1.  the codecision procedure referred to in Article 251 of the EC Treaty (which does not require amendment) and qualified majority voting in the Council should become the general rule for decision-making in the legislative sphere; the cooperation procedure still applying within the framework of Title VII of the EC Treaty (Economic and monetary policy) should be abolished; the codecision procedure should also apply to legislation under Title VI (Provisions on police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters) of the EU Treaty;

30.2.  qualified majority voting should also apply to decisions concerning appointments to Union institutions and bodies; for institutions or bodies which must include a certain number of members from each State, appointments should require the approval of the Member State concerned;

30.3.  unanimity in the Council should be confined to decisions of a constitutional nature which, in accordance with the Treaty, require the assent of the national parliaments(6) ;

30.4.  the repeated application of Article 308 of the EC Treaty in connection with the establishment of decentralised agencies, economic, financial and technical cooperation with third countries and the energy sector justifies the creation of specific legal bases in the EC Treaty, subject to the procedure referred to in Article 251 or, in the case of cooperation agreements with third countries, qualified majority voting in the Council and Parliament's assent;

30.5.  Parliament should be required to give its assent to the revision of the Treaties, all international agreements pursuant to Article 300 of the EC Treaty (in particular where the procedure laid down in Article 251 applies to the adoption of internal provisions), own-resources decisions and appointments to the Court of Auditors and the Court of Justice, the Court of First Instance and the Executive Board of the European System of Central Banks;

II. Constitutionalisation of the Union

31.  Proposes the following provisions to constitutionalise the Treaties:

31.1.  simplification and consolidation of the Treaties in a single text, comprising two parts:

31.2.  introduction of a hierarchy of legal acts:

32.  Is in favour, in the interests of making the allocation of political responsibility transparent for the citizens of the European Union, of a clearer delineation of powers between the European level and the national level;

33.  Calls on the IGC:

33.1.  to include on its agenda the incorporation into the Treaty of the Charter of Fundamental Rights with a view to giving it binding legal force, given the vital role it will play in the achievement of an ever closer Union among the peoples of Europe;

33.2.  to take steps to ensure that the Union accedes to the European Convention on Human Rights with a view to establishing close cooperation with the Council of Europe and avoiding any disputes or overlap between the Court of Justice of the European Communities and the European Court of Human Rights;

33.3.  to improve access by any natural or legal person to the Court of Justice, by adding to the existing judicial review procedures and by instituting appropriate preliminary procedures within national jurisdictions;

34.  Considers that the procedure for revision of the Treaties referred to in Article 48 of the EU Treaty must reflect the dual legitimacy of the Union as a union of peoples and a union of States;

35.  Considers that, since the present pillar structure and intergovernmental cooperation no longer enable efficient and democratic decision making, they should be progressively abandoned;

36.  Proposes that the procedure for suspending a Member State of the European Union should be modified as follows: "the Council, acting by a four-fifths majority of Member States on a proposal by one third of the Member States or the European Parliament or the Commission after obtaining the European Parliament's assent, may determine the existence of a serious breach(8) by a Member State of principles mentioned in Article 6(1) of the EU Treaty, after inviting the government of the Member State in question to submit its observations; the other provisions of Article 7 shall apply";

37.  Considers that closer cooperation should constitute a force of attraction in order that the Union may progress, that it should be used only when the Union is genuinely incapable of collective action, in which case the Union should take care to secure the cooperation of all Member States, and proposes, with regard to the relevant provisions, that:

37.1.  closer cooperation should be the subject of a single chapter of the EU Treaty applicable to Title V (Provisions on a common foreign and security policy) and Title VI (Provisions on police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters) of the EU Treaty and to the EC Treaty;

37.2.  closer cooperation should involve at least one third of the Member States; the other conditions (referred to in Article 40(1) and Article 43(1) of the EU Treaty and Article 11(1) of the EC Treaty) that have to be satisfied for closer cooperation should be maintained;

37.3.  authorisation to establish closer cooperation should be granted by the Council acting by a qualified majority on a proposal from the Commission and after obtaining the assent of Parliament, acting by a majority of its component Members, and steps should be taken to ensure the uniformity of the legal system and of the institutional framework;

III. Strengthening the external role of the European Union
Legal personality of the Union

38.  Considers that the Union as such should have legal personality defined by procedures complying with the restrictions and conditions laid down by the Treaty, without which its international status, visibility and negotiating power will continue to be limited;

External economic relations

39.  Proposes that the provisions of Article 133(1) to (4) of the EC Treaty should also apply to negotiations and international agreements concerning services, investment and intellectual property rights;

40.  Calls for procedures in this area to be simplified and Parliament's powers reinforced:

40.1.  by introducing the codecision procedure for commercial policy measures (Article 133(2) of the EC Treaty);

40.2.  by extending the assent procedure to Article 133 agreements and to all other international agreements when such agreements relate to an area for which the procedure referred to in Article 251 of the EC Treaty is required for the adoption of internal rules, and to measures to be taken in connection with economic sanctions (Articles 300 and 301 of the EC Treaty);

40.3.  by fully involving Parliament in the procedure for drawing up and concluding international agreements, notably through:

Prior to authorisation of the Commission by the Council (allocation of mandate):

During negotiations:

After the conclusion of negotiations:

CFSP

41.  Considers that the decisions taken by the Helsinki European Council leave open the question of whether and to what extent Treaty amendments are required to achieve a common European security and defence policy and that, where appropriate, the following modifications should be made to the EU Treaty:

41.1.  the distinction between the first and second pillars of the Treaty should be progressively diminished and Community competence reinforced, in particular by giving the Commission a major role in coordinating Community and national non-military instruments in respect of international crisis management;

41.2.  a Council of Defence Ministers should be instituted to deal with technical and operational issues relating to European security and defence policy; all proposals concerning the CFSP should be submitted to the General Affairs Council for a decision;

41.3.  if the WEU's role in performing Petersberg tasks is transferred to the EU by the end of 2000, a number of paragraphs of Article 17 of the EU Treaty will have to be revised (possibly removal of references to recourse to the WEU);

41.4.  transferring the institutional structures and operational capacities of the WEU to the EU would require redrafting of the provisions of the EU Treaty, in particular adding the mutual assistance clause under Article V of the WEU Treaty to the EU Treaty in the form of a protocol on the WEU, to which each Member State would be free to adhere;

41.5.  due account should be taken of the institutional problems posed by such integration and its consequences and the traditionally neutral Member States and those which are not part of any alliance should be able to play a full and equal part in European Union operations;

41.6.  the existing "Political Committee" in Article 25 of the EU Treaty should be replaced by the "Standing Political and Security Committee"; a reference to the "Military Committee" should be inserted where appropriate; the High Representative for the CFSP should head these bodies, whereas the Commissioner for External Relations would be responsible for coordinating arrangements for civilian crisis management;

41.7.  the possibility of a veto in Article 23(2) of the EU Treaty in the case of qualified majority decisions and referral to the European Council should be reviewed; instead of a veto, solutions should be explored in the IGC which would allow a Member State opposed to a common position or a joint action to derogate from endorsing the common position or taking part in the joint action;

41.8.  in Article 21 of the EU Treaty the provisions on informing and consulting Parliament should be expanded by stipulating that Parliament should be kept regularly informed of the development of the Union's foreign and security policy not only by the Presidency and the Commission, but also by the High Representative for the CFSP; with a view to full integration of the CFSP into the normal EC decision-making procedures, further measures should be taken to ensure that Parliament is associated with the most important decisions and is in a position to contribute to the definition of the general guidelines of the CFSP;

41.9.  in Article 28, which concerns the financing of operational expenditure in connection with Petersberg tasks, it must be made clear that although the costs of troops deployed in crisis management and their equipment are to be borne by participating Member States, the joint actions as a whole are funded from the Community budget; this would reinforce political solidarity;

41.10.  the positions of High Representative for the CFSP and Commissioner responsible for External Relations should, in due course, be merged into a specially appointed Vice-President of the Commission;

IV. Consolidating internal policies
Coordination of economic, social and employment policies

42.  Stresses the importance of the nature and meaning of the "social market economy" and calls on the IGC to include it in the Treaty in an appropriate place;

43.  Believes, however, that all matters concerning the broad guidelines of the economic policies of the Member States and of the Community should foresee an enhanced participation of Parliament to offset the democratic deficit currently characterising EMU; in particular, demands that the broad economic guidelines are put forward by the Commission in the form of a proposal, rather than a recommendation, and that Parliament is formally consulted as part of the process;

44.  Believes that the Council could adopt the broad guidelines on economic, employment and social convergence policies by a qualified majority, on a proposal from the Commission and after consulting Parliament, which must be consulted throughout the process and in particular in two ways:

44.1.  as part of the economic, employment and social convergence policy debate on the basis of the Commission's proposal on the broad guidelines on economic, employment and social convergence policies, with the active participation of the Commission and the Council:

44.2.  through the participation of the President of Parliament in the June European Council where economic, employment and social convergence policy is debated, which would lead to greater public awareness of the choices made;

45.  Calls for Parliament to be consulted systematically on acts involving a proposal or recommendation from the ECB and/or the Commission in areas covered by Title VII of the EC Treaty (Economic and monetary policy).;

46.  Proposes that current procedures in the field of employment (Title VIII of the EC Treaty) and economic policy (Title VII, Articles 103 and 104) should be streamlined and consolidated as part of the Treaty reform; believes this to be essential notably in view of achieving a better balance between the economic and monetary dimensions within EMU before any further enlargement of the European Union;

47.  Believes that, with regard to the widely increased role of the EIB as a key instrument at the disposal of the EU in pursuing its policy objectives both inside and outside the Community, the terms of its Protocol A annexed to the EC Treaty could be reviewed in order to ensure greater transparency in its activities;

48.  Believes that, within the framework of social policy, Parliament should be regularly informed of negotiations between the social partners and agreements between the latter; when such agreements are implemented by means of a Council decision they should be subject to Parliament's assent;

49.  Calls for recognition of social protection as a matter of Community interest in the Treaty and for recognition of fundamental social rights in the Charter of Fundamental Rights;

50.  Calls for a single coherent legal basis for equality for women and men in all policy areas to be introduced into the Treaty

Budget

51.  Considers necessary a revision of the Treaties, and particularly of the provisions concerning the budgetary procedure, which has been rendered obsolete by the practices adopted by the institutions under successive interinstitutional agreements on the Financial Perspective, and proposes that:

51.1.  the distinction between compulsory and non-compulsory expenditure should be abolished;

51.2.  the unity of the budget should be strengthened - the European Development Fund and the funding of decentralised agencies should be incorporated into the Union budget;

51.3.  the Financial Perspective should be integrated into the Treaty in the form of a medium-term financial plan adopted by common agreement between Parliament and the Council;

51.4.  the Union should not be financed by contributions from the Member States but by its own resources, the level of which should be fixed by Parliament acting in codecision with the Council;

Discharge procedure

52.  Proposes, with regard to the discharge referred to in Article 276 of the EC Treaty, that:

52.1.  the discharge act should comprise two components: the discharge proper (approval on the basis of a political assessment of the Commission's responsibility in budgetary management) and closure of the accounts (verification winding up the budgetary procedure for a given financial year).

52.2.  the discharge authority should have direct access to the information supplied by the authorities responsible for administering Community funds in the Member States;

Area of security, freedom and justice

53.  Notes that the development of the Union as an area of freedom, security and justice (AFSJ) requires the regulatory and institutional framework to be simplified substantially by:

53.1.  merging, within the Community framework, judicial and police cooperation in criminal matters and judicial cooperation in civil matters and measures relating to the free movement of persons,

53.2.  recognising, in application of the principle of the rule of law (Article 6(1) of the EU Treaty), that the Court of Justice has full jurisdiction over all measures relating to implementation of the AFSJ, the differentiation in legal protection in the third pillar being in breach of the principle of equality of European citizens before the law,

53.3.  with a view to affording European citizens equal protection before the law, making "Schengen" cooperation the general rule for the 15 Member States and renegotiating the special status of certain Member States so as to reduce to the strict minimum exceptions to the common regime,

53.4.  introduction of the codecision procedure and qualified majority voting for all measures relating to establishment of the AFSJ, coresponsibility of the European Parliament at EU level being the corollary of the role played by the parliaments of the Member States in the areas of freedoms and criminal law;

54.  Calls for Europol to be brought within the institutional framework of the Union as an operational structure and specialised agency for police cooperation (both inside and outside the framework of Schengen cooperation); in this context, calls for the establishment, by means of a specific protocol to the Treaties, of :

54.1.  appropriate means of control by Parliament and judicial review by the Court of Justice, particularly over any activities carried out in the interests of the institutions of the Union;

54.2.  structural cooperation (EUROJUST) with the judicial and police authorities of those States which intend to make use thereof for national investigations outside the jurisdiction of the Union.

Other issues

55.  Calls for the setting up of a specialist Community court with jurisdiction for disputes relating to both the validity of the Community patent and infringements thereof so as to ensure legal certainty in this respect throughout the territory of the Union

56.  Calls for the incorporation into the Treaty of a proper legal basis for the coordination of the tourism sector in a manner consistent with the subsidiarity principle;

57.  Considers that there are no clear provisions or institutional mechanisms for defining a common energy policy; as some provisions appear in the ECSC and Euratom Treaties, a new consolidated chapter should be inserted in the EC Treaty; Parliament should be given a role in legislation on nuclear matters;

58.  Reiterates its call for the EC Treaty to incorporate provisions for the establishment of a single European air traffic control agency;

o
o   o

59.  Instructs its President to examine, with the presidents/speakers of the national parliaments of the Member States and the applicant countries, the proposal to convene in the coming months, before conclusion of the IGC, an interparliamentary conference to discuss the principal challenges of European integration over the coming decade and the implications for the IGC and the new Treaty;

60.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Intergovernmental Conference on the reform of the Treaty, the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States and the applicant countries.

(1) Texts adopted, Item 4. (2) Texts adopted, Item 11. (3) Texts adopted, Item 4. (4) The current minimum of six seats per State is reduced by one third owing to the one-third increase in the population of the Union. (5) Each country could propose a Commissioner in 5 Commissions out of 7. (6) Unanimity should be required for each new accession. However, new Member States should not be able to block subsequent accessions unless a certain amount of time has elapsed. (7) See the Commission report on the scope of application of the codecision procedure adopted on 3.7.1996 (SEC(96) 1225 - C4-0464/96 ), p. 10 and Parliament's resolution of 14.11.1996 on the report (OJ C 362, 2.12.1996, p. 267). (8) The concept of 'persistent' disappears.

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Iraq

P5_TA(2000)0164 RC-B5-0342/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to UN General Assembly Resolutions 687, 688, 1293 and 1284 (which was adopted by two permanent members of the Security Council),

A.  whereas the Iraqi government is obliged to continue to accept and assist with the inspections carried out by the UN with a view to destroying nuclear and chemical weapons and to cooperate with the International Committee of the Red Cross, which has been given the task of locating and repatriating all those who disappeared during Iraq's occupation of Kuwait,

B.  whereas the Iraqi people are in a tragic situation as a result of the imposition of sanctions,

C.  whereas these sanctions are penalising the civilian population but, in nine years, have not succeeded in weakening the Iraqi regime, which caused the conflict and bears most of the responsibility for it,

D.  whereas numerous international agencies and several former UN officials responsible for overseeing the Food for Oil Programme have denounced the tragic consequences the sanctions are having for the Iraqi people, and some of them have gone so far as to resign from their posts,

E.  whereas, according to UNICEF, over half a million children have died in the decade since sanctions were imposed,

1.  Calls, on grounds of humaníty, on the Council, the Commission and the High Representative for the CFSP to take action to ensure that:

2.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the High Representative for the CFSP and the governments of the Member States, of the United States and of Iraq.

European Parliament resolution on Chechnya

P5_TA(2000)0165 B5-0363/2000

The European Parliament,

-  recalling its resolutions of 7 October 1999(1) , 18 November 1999(2) , 20 January 2000(3) , 17 February 2000(4) and 16 March 2000(5) ,

-  having regard to Council of Europe Recommendation 1444 (2000) of 27 January 2000 on restoration of the rule of law, respect for human rights and democracy in Chechnya,

-  having regard to Council of Europe Recommendation 1456 (2000) of 6 April 2000 on the implementation by Russia of Recommendation 1444 (2000),

-  having regard to the visit of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, to the Russian Federation, Dagestan, Ingushetia and Chechnya,

A.  reiterating its deep concern about the situation in Chechnya and the risk of the conflict spilling over into neighbouring countries,

B.  deeply concerned about ongoing reports of gross violations of human rights and international humanitarian law,

C.  whereas the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly called on the Committee of Ministers to suspend Russia's membership if it did not immediately call a cease-fire and engage in political dialogue with a cross-section of the Chechen people; whereas the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly has also suspended the voting rights of the Russian parliamentary delegation,

1.  Calls on the Russian authorities once again to take immediate steps towards a peaceful solution to the conflict, in particular by calling a cease-fire and putting an end to the use of indiscriminate force, as well as initiating a political dialogue between their government and Chechen representatives;

2.  Proposes to set up a common delegation with the Russian Duma to visit the North Caucasus region, in order to discuss with the Russian authorities and Chechen representatives all issues related to the current conflict;

3.  Calls on the Council and the Commission to elaborate with the Russian authorities and Chechen representatives a post-war programme of reconstruction for Chechnya once a cease-fire has been reached;

4.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Council of Europe, the OSCE, the Secretary General of the UN, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Russian State Duma and Federal Council, the government of the Russian Federation and the Chechen authorities.

(1) Texts adopted, Item 1. (2) Texts adopted, Item 15. (3) Texts adopted, Item 6. (4) Texts adopted, Item 16. (5) Texts adopted, Item 12.

European Parliament resolution on the prisoners facing trial in Iran on charges of espionage on behalf of Israel and the United States

P5_TA(2000)0166 RC-B5-0340/2000

The European Parliament,

-  recalling its resolution of 16 September 1999 on the situation of prisoners accused of espionage in Iran(1) ,

-  having regard to the letter sent by the President of the European Parliament to the President of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran of 12 August 1999, on the Jewish prisoners,

-  having regard to its previous resolutions on the death penalty,

-  having regard to the United Nations Human Rights Charter,

A.  having regard to information from human rights organisations, such as Amnesty and Human Rights Watch, on the institutional hardships of the Jewish community and other minorities, such as the Christians and the Bahais, in Iran,

B.  disturbed by the fact that two Jews were executed in 1997 on espionage charges, that a 60-year-old man was executed on vague charges of being a Zionist agent in 1998, and that since 1979, it is understood that 15 Jewish leaders have been executed under similar circumstances in Iran,

C.  noting that in Iran any contact whatsoever with Israel can be defined as espionage, punishable by the death penalty,

D.  expressing concern that 13 Jews and eight Moslems are scheduled to face trial in Iran on charges of espionage on behalf of Israel and the United States, starting on 13 April 2000, and further concerned that this trial would last for only one day and be held behind closed doors,

E.  disturbed that their arrest was only made public in June 1999 following their arrest in March 1999 and that most have been in detention ever since,

F.  dismayed by the spurious nature of the charges and their possible anti-Semitic basis, given the professions of the accused,

G.  disturbed that until only recently the accused have not been allowed to appoint their own lawyers, and that the state-appointed lawyers have complained of obstruction in seeing their clients, even for signing documents,

H.  pointing out that the way in which Iran is handling this matter does not concur with its stated goal of establishing a society based on human rights, law and justice and of seeking stronger ties with the West,

I.  having regard to the damning report by Amnesty International on the general conditions of imprisonment in Iran,

1.  Urges the authorities in Iran to provide a fair trial for the accused including access of international observers to the trial;

2.  Calls for the immediate release of the accused unless its conditions are fulfilled;

3.  Calls on the Council to send an official delegation to visit the prisoners;

4.  Asks the Council, the Member States and the Commission to associate themselves fully with the Parliament's position, to follow closely the way this trial will be conducted and to take due account of its outcome when considering the establishment of more normal and mutually productive relations with Iran, based on respect for fundamental human rights;

5.  Calls on the Iranian authorities to endorse a moratorium on the death penalty and to respect the human rights of the prisoners and of religious minorities and the fundamental principles of law and justice;

6.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and Commission, the government and authorities in Iran, the Government of the United States, the Government of Israel and the President of the UN Commission on Human Rights.

(1) OJ C 54, 23.2.2000, p. 112.

European Parliament resolution on the imprisonment of Akin Birdal

P5_TA(2000)0167 RC-B5-0352/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to its previous resolutions on the human rights situation in Turkey and in particular its resolution of 14 May 1998(1) and 19 November 1998(2) on Akin Birdal,

A.  whereas Turkey was granted EU candidate country status by the Helsinki European Council in December 1999,

B.  whereas Turkey has ratified the European Convention on the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

C.  recalling that, on 1 September 1998, the Security Court sentenced Mr Akin Birdal, President of the Human Rights Association of Turkey (IHD), to one year's imprisonment and to pay a fine of LT 420 000, on the grounds that a speech by Mr Birdal during the World Day of Peace constituted an incitement to hatred, and that the General Board of Criminal Departments of the Court of Appeals later ruled in favour of the Security Court's sentence, and noting that there is no higher national court to which Mr Birdal could appeal and that the Commission already in 1998 in its progress report on Turkey stated that 'by their very nature these courts ("State Security Court') do not offer defendants a fair trial',

D.  whereas Mr Birdal was seriously wounded in an assassination attempt in 1998 and a medical report from the Ankara State Hospital, issued on 22 March this year, stated that the continuing effects of these injuries were a danger to his life - a report that, however, was contradicted by the Forensic Institute in Istanbul two days later,

E.  whereas Mr Birdal was released on 25 September 1999 on health grounds but the Turkish courts decided on 30 March 2000 that he must serve the rest of his sentence in prison,

F.  whereas the Turkish Criminal Code, and in particular Article 312 thereof limiting the freedom of expression in Turkey, has also been used to convict Mr Necmettin Erbakan, a former Prime Minister, and Mr Erdogan, a former mayor of Istanbul, as well as journalists, writers and political personalities,

G.  noting that the day before Mr Birdal's imprisonment, Prime Minister Ecevit assured visiting MEPs that changes to the Criminal Code, including Article 312, were foreseen in the very near future,

1.  Extremely disappointed by the re-imprisonment of Mr Birdal, not only out of sympathy with the man himself, but also because of the lack of sustained goodwill that Turkey is thereby showing in its relations with the EU, condemns his arrest and insists that the Turkish authorities release him immediately along with all other political prisoners;

2.  Considers this measure to be a clear sign that the Turkish authorities are far from understanding what future EU membership means;

3.  Emphasises and reiterates its commitment to the conclusions of the Helsinki Summit and to strict application of the Copenhagen criteria on respect for human rights in the applicant countries;

4.  Calls on the Turkish Government urgently to restore the momentum of reform and democratisation that seemed to emerge just before Turkey was officially recognised as an EU candidate;

5.  Calls on the government and political parties of Turkey to take advantage of the current constitutional revision procedure in order to implement, in the spirit of the Helsinki agreements, urgent reforms which would enable the Turkish State to guarantee the essential democratic rights of freedom of opinion and free speech, in keeping with Turkey's undertakings as a country applying for membership of the European Union, and calls furthermore for reforms to make the Turkish judicial system truly independent;

6.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Turkish Government and the Turkish Grand National Assembly.

(1) OJ C 167, 1.6.1998, p. 220. (2) OJ C 379, 7.12.1998, p. 266.

European Parliament resolution on Tibet

P5_TA(2000)0168 RC-B5-0343/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to its earlier resolutions on the occupation of Tibet and the repression of its people by the Chinese authorities,

A.  whereas respect for human rights is a prominent priority of EU policies and one of the founding principles of the Union,

B.  whereas the Peking government is refusing to allow Mrs Mary Robinson, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, to have access to Tibet,

C.  pointing out that informal talks under way between the Chinese Government and the Tibetan religious authorities have not led to an improvement in the human rights situation in Tibet, particularly freedom of expression,

D.  having regard to His Holiness the Dalai Lama's appeal to the international community to act for a peaceful solution of the Tibetan problem,

E.  having regard to the conclusions on China issued by the Council during the General Affairs Council meeting of 20 March 2000,

F.  having regard to the 56th session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights,

G.  deeply concerned by the fact that the EU-China Human Rights dialogue has not produced enough progress on the ground and reiterating the importance it attaches to the opportunity presented by the EU-China Human Rights dialogue and Cooperation programme, which foresees joint work on the promotion and respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms in China,

H.  deeply concerned by the fact that the Tibetan cultural and spiritual heritage is threatened with extinction, inter alia by a large-scale transfer of ethnic Chinese to Tibet and the continuing and widespread restrictions on fundamental freedoms, notably freedom of assembly, expression, association and religion,

1.  Condemns the ongoing discrimination of the Tibetan people by the People's Republic of China on religious, political, educational, language and cultural grounds;

2.  Calls on the Chinese government to open the dialogue, without pre-conditions, on the future of Tibet, with the Dalai Lama and on the basis of his five-point peace plan: (1) Transformation of the whole of Tibet into a zone of peace; (2) Abandonment of China's population-transfer policy; (3) Respect for the Tibetan people's fundamental human rights and democratic freedoms; (4) Restoration and protection of Tibet's natural environment; (5) Commencement of earnest negotiations on the future autonomous status of Tibet;

3.  Calls on the Commission and the Council to express publicly their concerns about the situation in Tibet and in China and to raise them in meetings with China at all levels and expects the Council to abandon its "no action" approach to China, which is preventing the human rights situation in China from being discussed;

4.  Urges the Council to take the initiative, at the current session of the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, on the adoption of a resolution expressing concern at the serious human rights violations perpetrated in China, including the continual oppression of Tibet;

5.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the government of China, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Parliament in exile of Tibet.

European Parliament resolution on the abolition of the death penalty in the United States

P5_TA(2000)0169 RC-B5-0341/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to its previous resolutions on the death penalty,

A.  welcoming the worldwide trend towards the abolition of the death penalty,

B.  welcoming the appeal to all the world's governments by the Sant'Egidio Community for a moratorium on the death penalty by the end of 2000,

C.  dismayed that a date may soon be set for Juan Garza's execution in the USA, the first execution of a prisoner under US federal law since 1963,

D.  noting with interest that the Governor of Illinois has imposed a moratorium on executions owing to serious concern about the fairness of capital convictions in his State,

E.  noting reports that the US Justice Department is conducting a review into race and the federal death penalty and urging that the methodology and scope of this study be made public,

F.  whereas 98 persons under sentence of death were executed in the United States in 1999,

G.  disturbed by Amnesty International figures which estimate that only China, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Iraq carried out more judicial executions than the United States in 1998,

H.  noting that even the US Attorney General Janet Reno admits that no study so far has been able to prove the dissuasive effects of the death penalty,

1.  Reiterates its call for the abolition of capital punishment and the immediate imposition of a moratorium in countries where capital punishment still exists;

2.  Urges the US Government to comply with the request made by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on 27 January 2000 that the execution should not proceed before the Commission has examined and ruled on the case;

3.  Urges President Clinton to grant clemency to Juan Garza and to impose an immediate moratorium on federal executions, as a first step toward the universal abolition of the death penalty in the United States;

4.  Calls on all candidates running in the current presidential elections also to endorse a moratorium on the death penalty and support the universal abolition of capital punishment;

5.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, President Clinton, Vice-President Gore and Governor Bush, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the President of the UN Commission on Human Rights.

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Zimbabwe

P5_TA(2000)0170 RC-B5-0381/2000

The European Parliament,

A.  whereas the EU General Affairs Council has urged the Zimbabwean Government to call early elections which should be free and fair,

B.  whereas Zimbabwe has scheduled democratic elections this year and whereas it is of the utmost importance for democratic and sustainable development that these elections are open and transparent,

C.  whereas Zimbabwe lacks implementation of basic democratic principles, such as a fully dependent judiciary system, respect for human rights and proper accountability,

D.  whereas the Zimbabwean Government is spending a large part of the state budget to finance the cost of the military intervention in the Democratic Republic of Congo,

E.  whereas in a currently escalating crisis more than 800 mainly white-owned commercial farms have been occupied by supporters of the ruling Zanu-PF party and former guerrillas in moves declared illegal by the High Court and rejected in a national referendum, but condoned by President Robert Mugabe, who has ruled since independence from Britain in 1980,

F.  recalling that part of the land given out immediately after independence was wrongly allocated to President Mugabe's political supporters instead of being evenly distributed to the population,

G.  whereas many opposition activists in Zimbabwe declared their support to the owners of seized farms,

H.  whereas the seizure of farms is a further violation of the rule of law in Zimbabwe and whereas the important point of fair land distribution can only be solved by a democratic and non-violent process based on the rule of law,

1.  Calls for general elections to be held at the earliest date, not later than the suggested date of 1 June 2000;

2.  Calls on the Zimbabwean authorities to respect human rights, including the rights of minorities, and to respect international standards governing elections;

3.  Urges the Zimbabwean authorities to launch a democratisation process in the country, also by enabling the independent press and the civil society to fully enjoy freedom of expression;

4.  Calls on the Zimbabwean Government to withdraw its armed forces from the Democratic Republic of Congo and to devote its financial resources to improving the living conditions of its citizens;

5.  Considers that the issue of land reform can only be settled through non-violent and legal means;

6.  Takes this opportunity to warn that the rule of law must be re-established as soon as possible in order to permit normal development to continue;

7.  Calls on the Council and the Commission to involve the European Parliament in the monitoring of the forthcoming elections;

8.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the ACP-EU Joint Assembly, the OAU and the Government of Zimbabwe.

European Parliament resolution on the World Education Forum

P5_TA(2000)0171 RC-B5-0355/2000

The European Parliament,

A.  having regard to the Education for All Conference at Jomtien in 1990 where the world's governments agreed to provide education for all by 2000, the five year review of the Education for All Conference in Amman in 1995 and the World Summit for Social Development at Copenhagen in 1995 where Governments put back the targets concerning gender equality to 2005 and those concerning universal primary education to 2015,

B.  having regard to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child both of which are legally binding and which commit the world's governments to providing free education,

C.  having regard to the fact that meeting the international development targets on education is a prerequisite for meeting other targets on health and for halving the number of people living in poverty by 2015,

D.  having regard to the fact that literacy and education are the building blocks for democracy and good governance and that, without access to quality education, democratic societies cannot flourish,

E.  having regard to the World Education Forum meeting in Dakar from 26 to 28 April 2000,

F.  whereas 125 million children do not go to school and 880 million adults are illiterate,

G.  whereas two thirds of children not attending school are girls,

H.  whereas education is a human right that governments must provide,

I.  whereas the Community aid programme and the EU Member States are the largest donor group,

J.  whereas donors average only around 2% of Official Development Assistance expenditure on basic education which is far below the amount required to finance education for all,

K.  whereas the new ACP-EU Convention provides a definite role for civil society in national development processes,

1.  Calls on the Commission to ensure it is represented at the highest political level at the World Education Forum in Dakar and that thereby its stated commitments to basic education match its commitment to the process for achieving increased prioritisation for basic education in developing countries;

2.  Calls on the Commission and Member States to ensure that their aid to basic education is sufficient to ensure that no developing country committed to achieving education for all is prevented from doing so by lack of funds; this implies that the budget for 2001 has to be at least doubled in the area of basic education;

3.  Urges the Commission and Member States to encourage developing countries at the World Education Forum to devote a greater proportion of the national budget to basic education and for the national education budget to be distributed on an equitable basis;

4.  Calls on the Commission and Member States in Dakar to support the development of National Education Action Plans that include clear and binding mechanisms for ongoing consultation with civil society;

5.  Calls on the Commission to co-ordinate effectively Member States' bilateral aid to education policies thereby ensuring that developing countries to do not waste precious resources responding to donor demands;

6.  Calls on the Commission and the Member States to make special efforts to ensure that the gender gap in education is closed by 2005;

7.  Urges the Commission to honour its commitment to the European Parliament to issue a communication on children's rights including a section on child focused development policy;

8.  Calls on the Member States to provide quick and generous debt relief in support of developing country efforts to fund education for all;

9.  Calls on the IMF and the World Bank to ensure that their policies do no undermine equity and accountability in education; in particular, IMF/and World Bank policies should not undermine national government attempts to meet the international development targets;

10.  Calls on UNESCO to work with developing countries and donors to develop effective qualitative targets in areas such as teacher training, curriculum development and gender equity;

11.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the parliaments of the Member States, UNESCO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, the IMF and the World Bank.

European Parliament resolution on Taiwan

P5_TA(2000)0172 RC-B5-0347/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to its previous resolutions on Taiwan and on China, notably its resolution of 18 July 1996 on Taiwan's role in international organisations(1) ,

A.  whereas the recent presidential elections brought to power the candidate of the Democratic Progressive party Chen-Shui-bian after more than fifty years of power of the Nationalist Party (Kuomintang),

B.  whereas the voter turnout for the election of over 82% indicates a very high level of interest and participation in the democratic process,

C.  whereas Mr Chen Shui-bian was elected President and Ms Annette Lu was elected Vice-President with a 39.3% share of the vote and they will take office on 20 May 2000,

D.  deeply concerned by the threats of the Chinese authorities who tried to affect and undermine the electoral campaign,

E.  whereas on 21 February 2000 the People's Republic of China (PRC) published a White Paper in which it threatens to use military force, not only if Taiwan should proclaim independence, but also if Taiwan keeps delaying indefinitely talks on an eventual reunification with China,

F.  whereas Mr Chen has said he will not declare independence and right after the elections offered to meet China's leaders for a “peace summit”,

G.  stressing the positive and constructive role that Taiwan could play in the region with regard to respect for human rights, the development of democracy and consolidation of the rule of law,

1.  Welcomes the outcome of the Presidential election as a further proof of Taiwan's development into a fully fledged democracy;

2.  Rejects any military threats and calls on both China and Taiwan to refrain from any kind of provocative action;

3.  Calls on China and Taiwan to use dialogue and negotiations to find a solution to their differences and welcomes the statements of the newly elected President offering to the People's Republic of China the possibility to negotiate immediately the establishment of trade relations and direct transportation between them;

4.  Notes the commitment of the PRC and Taiwan regarding eventual reunification on the basis of a One China policy based on democratic development, respect for human rights and the rule of law;

5.  Reiterates that cooperation among Asian countries in a constructive and peaceful spirit and good cooperation between Asian countries and the European Union is in the broader interests of the European Union;

6.  Calls on EU Member States and the Commission to step up their relations with Taiwan with a view to securing better representation for Taiwan in international fora (including the WTO) and to open a Commission Representative office in Taipei;

7.  Instructs its Delegation for Relations with China to find ways of establishing relations with the Parliament of Taiwan;

8.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the governments of Taiwan and the People's Republic of China.

(1) OJ C 261, 9.9.1996, p. 169.

European Parliament legislative resolution on the joint text approved by the Conciliation Committee for a European Parliament and Council decision establishing the Community action programme for youth (C5-0116/2000 - 1998/0197(COD) )

P5_TA(2000)0173 A5-0100/2000

(Codecision procedure: third reading)

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the joint text approved by the Conciliation Committee (C5-0116/2000 ),

-  having regard to its position at first reading(1) on the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(1998) 331 )(2) ,

-  having regard to the amended proposal (COM(1998) 695 )(3) ,

-  having regard to its position at second reading on the Council common position, (4)

-  having regard to the Commission's opinion on Parliament's amendments to the common position (COM(1999) 659 - C5-0345/1999 ),

-  having regard to Article 251(5) of the EC Treaty,

-  having regard to Rule 83 of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of its delegation to the Conciliation Committee (A5-0100/2000 ),

1.  Approves the joint text;

2.  Instructs its President to sign the act with the President of the Council pursuant to Article 254(1) of the EC Treaty;

3.  Instructs its Secretary-General duly to sign the act and, in agreement with the Secretary-General of the Council, to have it published in the Official Journal of the European Communities;

4.  Instructs its President to forward this legislative resolution to the Council and Commission.

(1) OJ C 359, 23.11.1998, p. 75. (2) OJ C 311, 10.10.1998, p. 6. (3) OJ C 28, 3.2.1999, p. 8. (4) “Texts Adopted” of 28.10.1999, Item 5.

Proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on European Year of Languages 2001 (COM(1999) 485 - C5-0278/1999 - 1999/0208(COD) )

P5_TA(2000)0174 A5-0099/2000

The proposal was amended as follows:

Text proposed by the Commission (1)   Amendments by Parliament (Amendment 1) Recital 2a (new) (2a)Article 151 of the Treaty states that the Community shall contribute to the flowering of the cultures of the Member States while respecting their national and regional diversity, and shall take cultural aspects into account in its action under other provisions of the Treaty; among the cultural aspects, matters pertaining to languages are of great importance; (Amendment 2) Recital 2b (new) (2b)All the European languages, in their spoken and written forms, are equal in value and dignity from the cultural point of view and are an integral part of European cultures and civilisation; (Amendment 3) Recital 2c (new) (2c)The languages question is a challenge that must be tackled as part of the European integration process and the European Year of Languages may therefore prove to be highly instructive as far as the formulation of measures to encourage cultural and linguistic diversity is concerned; (Amendment 4) Recital 2d (new) (2d)Article 6 of the Treaty on European Union states that the Union shall respect fundamental rights, as guaranteed by the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms signed in Rome on 4 November 1950; (Amendment 5) Recital 2e (new) (2e)Access to the vast literary heritage in the languages in which it was originally produced would contribute to developing mutual understanding and giving tangible content to the concept of European citizenship; (Amendment 6) Recital 2f (new) (2f)It is important to learn languages as it enhances awareness of cultural diversity and helps eradicate xenophobia, racism, anti-Semitism and intolerance; (Amendment 7) Recital 2g (new) (2g)In addition to the human, cultural and political advantages, learning languages is also of considerable potential economic benefit; (Amendment 8) Recital 2h (new) (2h)A command of the respective mother tongue and knowledge of the classical languages, in particular Latin and Greek, can make it easier to learn other languages; (Amendment 9) Recital 2i (new) (2i)It is necessary to raise awareness among public and private decision-makers of the importance of easy access to language learning facilities, (Amendment 10) Recital 4a (new) (4a)The Council resolution of 31 March 1995 on improving and diversifying language learning and teaching within the education systems of the European Union1 stipulates that pupils should, as a general rule, have the opportunity of learning two languages other than their mother tongue(s) for a minimum of two consecutive years for each language during compulsory schooling and if possible for a longer period; ______________________ 1 OJ C 207, 12.8.1995, p. 1. (Amendment 11) Recital 6a (new) (6a)The "Culture 2000" programme also contributes to improving mutual understanding of the cultural achievements of the European peoples, especially by highlighting cultural diversity and multilingualism; (Amendment 43) Recital 9a (new) (9a)However, it is also important that there should be close cooperation and coordination between the Commission and the Member States, so as to ensure that actions undertaken at European level are underpinned by small-scale actions undertaken at local, regional and national level which are likely to be more suited to the needs of target groups and specific situations, and that cultural diversity is strengthened as a result; (Amendment 13) Recital 10a (new) (10a)It is important to take into account the fact that the European Year will take place against the background of preparations for the enlargement of the Union; (Amendment 14) Recital (12a) (new) (12a)The measures to be taken for the implementation of this Decision should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission; 1 ______________________ 1 OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. (Amendment 15) Article 1(2)    2. During the European Year, information and promotional measures will be undertaken on the theme of languages, with the aim of encouraging language learning by all persons legally residing in the Member States, notably by raising awareness of the influence of language competencies on the quality of life and on economic competitiveness. These measures will cover the official languages of the Community, together with Irish, Letzeburgesch, and other languages recognised by the Member States.    2. During the European Year, information and promotional measures will be undertaken on the theme of languages, with the aim of encouraging language learning by all persons residing in the Member States. These measures will cover the official languages of the Community, together with Irish, Letzeburgesch, and other languages as identified by the Member States for the purpose of implementing this Decision . (Amendment 16) Article 2(a)    (a) to raise awareness of the richness of linguistic and cultural diversity within the European Union.    (a) to raise awareness of the richness and the value in terms of civilisation and culture of linguistic diversity within the European Union, acknowledging the principle that all languages must be recognised to have equal value and dignity and encouraging multilingualism, (Amendment 17) Article 2(b)    (b) to bring to the notice of the widest possible public the advantages of competencies in a range of languages, as a key element in personal development, in intercultural understanding, in making full use of the rights conferred by European citizenship and in enhancing the economic potential of individuals, enterprises and society as a whole;    (b) to bring to the notice of the widest possible public the advantages of proficiency in several languages, as a key element in personal and professional development (including in finding one's first job) , in intercultural understanding, in making full use of the rights conferred by citizenship of the Union and in enhancing the economic and social potential of enterprises and society as a whole; the public referred to above shall include, among others: pupils and students, parents, workers, job seekers, the speakers of certain languages, the inhabitants of border areas, the peripheral regions, cultural bodies, disadvantaged groups, migrants, etc; (Amendment 18) Article 2(c)    (c) to encourage the lifelong learning of languages and related skills by all persons legally residing in the Member States, whatever their age, background or previous educational experiences and achievements;    (c) to encourage lifelong learning, where appropriate starting at preschool and primary school age, of languages and related skills involving the use of languages for specific purposes, particularly in a professional context, by all persons residing in the Member States, whatever their age, background, social situation or previous educational experiences and achievements; (Amendment 19) Article 2(d)    (d) to collect and disseminate information about the teaching and learning of languages, and about skills, methods and tools which assist that teaching and learning and/or facilitate communication between users of different languages.    (d) to collect and disseminate information about the teaching and learning of languages, and about skills, methods (especially innovative methods) and tools which assist that teaching and learning, including those that are developed in the framework of other Community actions and initiatives, and/or facilitate communication between users of different languages. (Amendment 20) Article 3, 1st paragraph The actions designed to meet the objectives set out in Article 2 above may include, in particular: The actions designed to meet the objectives set out in Article 2 may include, in particular:    - the use of a common logo and of slogans;    - the use of a common logo and of slogans, together with the Council of Europe, in accordance with Article 10 ;    - a Community-wide information campaign;    - a Community-wide information campaign;    - the organisation of meetings and events at Community, transnational, national, regional and local level ;    - the organisation of meetings, competitions, prizes and other activities    - the organisation of competitions and prizes at Community, transnational, national and regional level;    - financial support for initiatives, at transnational, national, regional and local level, which promote the objectives of the European Year of Languages. (Amendment 21) Article 4, Title Implementation Implementation of the Decision and cooperation with Member States (Amendment 22) Article 4(1)    1. The Commission shall be responsible for the implementation of this Decision.    1. The Commission shall ensure the implementation of the Community actions pursued under this Decision. (Amendment 23) Article 4(2)    2. Each Member State shall designate an appropriate body to organise its participation in the European Year, and to be responsible for the coordination and implementation at national level of the actions provided for in this Decision, including through assistance with the selection procedure described in Article 7.    2. Each Member State shall designate one or more appropriate bodies to organise its participation in the European Year, and to be responsible for the coordination and implementation at national level of the actions provided for in this Decision, including through assistance with the selection procedure described in Article 7. (Amendment 44) Article 5 The Commission shall be assisted by an advisory committee composed of the representatives of the Member States and chaired by the representative of the Commission.    1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. The representative of the Commission shall submit to the committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft within a time limit which the chairman may lay down according to the urgency of the matter, if necessary by taking a vote. The opinion shall be recorded in the minutes; in addition each Member State shall have the right to ask to have its position recorded in the minutes. The Commission shall take the utmost account of the opinion delivered by the committee. It shall inform the committee of the manner in which its opinion has been taken into account.    2. Where reference is made to this Article, Article 3 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to Articles 7 and 8 thereof. (Amendment 25) Article 7(1)    1. Applications for the co-financing of actions from the Community budget under Article 6, paragraph 2, shall be submitted to the Commission through the body designated under Article 4, paragraph 2.    1. Applications for the co-financing of actions from the Community budget under Article 6(2), shall be submitted to the Commission through the body or bodies designated under Article 4(2) . They shall include information enabling the outcome to be assessed on the basis of factual criteria. The Commission shall take the utmost account of the assessment provided by the bodies concerned. (Amendment 26) Article 7(2)    2. Decisions on the financing and co-financing of actions under Article 6 shall be taken by the Commission in accordance with the procedures set out in Article 5. The Commission shall ensure a balanced distribution among Member States and among the different relevant fields of activity.    2. Decisions on the financing and co-financing of actions under Article 6 shall be taken by the Commission in accordance with the procedures set out in Article 5. The Commission shall ensure a balanced distribution among Member States, among, where appropriate, the various languages referred to in Article 1 and among the different relevant fields of activity. (Amendment 27) Article 7(2a) (new) 2a.The Commission (in particular through its national and regional agencies), in cooperation with the bodies referred to in Article 4(2), shall ensure that calls for proposals are made in sufficient time and circulated as widely as possible. (Amendment 28) Article 8, first indent    - consistency between the actions provided for in this Decision and other Community actions and initiatives, in particular those in the field of education and training;    - consistency between the actions provided for in this Decision and other Community actions and initiatives, in particular those in the field of education, training and culture ; (Amendment 29) Article 10 In the framework of the European Year, and in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 5, the Commission may cooperate with relevant international organisations. In particular, it shall make appropriate arrangements for cooperation with the Council of Europe. In the framework of the European Year, and in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 5, the Commission may cooperate with relevant international organisations. In particular, there shall be close cooperation and coordination as well as joint initiatives with the Council of Europe in order to help establish links between the peoples of Europe. (Amendment 30) Article 11 The Commission shall submit, by 31 December 2002 at the latest, a report to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on the implementation, results and overall assessment of the actions provided for in this Decision. The Commission shall submit, by 31 December 2002 at the latest, a detailed report containing factual information to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on the implementation, results and overall assessment of every action provided for in this Decision. (Amendment 45) Annex (1)(A), heading    (A) Actions which may be financed up to 100% from the Community budget.    (A) Actions which may be financed up to 100% from the Community budget. As a guideline, such actions may be allocated 40% of the total budget, which the Commission may adjust pursuant to the procedure laid down in Article 5(2). (Amendment 32) Annex (1)(A)(1)(c)    (c) organisation in each Member State of one or more presentations of the Year.    (c) organisation in each Member State of one or more presentations of the Year, designed to reach large numbers of people from different social backgrounds ; (Amendment 33) Annex (1)(A)(2)(b)    (b) an information campaign on a Community-wide scale.    (b) an information campaign on a Community-wide scale, including, among other things, the setting-up of an interactive Web site and the dissemination of information on projects (including those referred to in part C) ; (Amendment 34) Annex (1)(A)(2)(c)    (c) the production of tools and aids, for use throughout the Community, designed to raise public awareness of the conditions for successful language learning and of effective teaching and learning techniques;    (c) the production of tools and aids, for use throughout the Community, which are also accessible to disadvantaged groups, designed to raise public awareness of the conditions for successful language learning and of effective teaching and learning techniques; (Amendment 35) Annex (1)(A)(3) Surveys and studies on a Community-wide scale, having notably the aim of better defining : Surveys and studies on a Community-wide scale, having notably the aim of better defining:    - the situation in Europe with regard to languages, their use and language teaching and learning;    - the situation in Europe with regard to languages (including sign languages and the classical languages) , their use (including in scientific and university research) and language teaching and learning and the acquisition of related skills; as far as possible, all the languages referred to in Article 1 could be concerned;    - the expectations of different target groups with regard to the objectives of the European Year ;    - the expectations of different target groups (including those in bilingual areas) with regard to language learning and the way in which the Community could fulfil those expectations;    - the way in which the Community could fulfil those expectations both in the course of the Year and afterwards, in particular in the framework of its programmes in the fields of education and training ;    - evaluation studies concerning the effectiveness and impact of the European Year    - evaluation studies concerning the effectiveness and impact of the European Year, examining best practice in the field of language teaching and learning and disseminating the results throughout the Member States. (Amendment 46) Annex (1)(B), heading    (B) Actions which may be co-financed by the Community budget    (B) Actions which may be co-financed by the Community budget As a guideline, such actions may be allocated 60% of the total budget, which the Commission may adjust pursuant to the procedure laid down in Article 5(2). (Amendment 42) Annex (2) In carrying out the action, the Commission may have recourse to technical assistance organisations the financing of which may be provided within the overall envelope for the programme. It can, under the same conditions, have recourse to experts. In carrying out the action, the Commission may have recourse to technical assistance organisations the financing of which may be provided within the overall envelope for the programme. It can, under the same conditions, have recourse to experts. The Commission shall consult the committee referred to in Article 5 on the financial impact of this assistance.

European Parliament legislative resolution on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on European Year of Languages 2001 (COM(1999) 485 - C5-0278/1999 - 1999/0208(COD) )

P5_TA(2000)0174 A5-0099/2000

(Codecision procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council (COM(1999) 485 )(2) ,

-  having regard to Article 251(2) of the EC Treaty and Articles 149 and 150 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C5-0278/1999 ),

-  having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education, the Media and Sport and the opinion of the Committee on Budgets (A5-0099/2000 ),

1.  Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.  Asks to be consulted again should the Commission intend to amend its proposal substantially or replace it with another text;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

(1) OJ C 56 E, 29.2.2000, p. 62. (2) OJ C 56 E, 29.2.2000, p. 62.

Proposal for a European Parliament and Council regulation clarifying Council Regulation (EC) No 2223/96 as concerns principles for recording taxes and social contributions (COM(1999) 488 - C5-0220/1999 - 1999/0200(COD) )

P5_TA(2000)0175 A5-0073/2000

The proposal was amended as follows.

Text proposed by the Commission(1)   Amendments by Parliament (Amendment 1) Title Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Regulation clarifying Council Regulation (EC) No 2223/96 as concerns principles for recording taxes and social contributions Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Regulation amending Council Regulation (EC) No 2223/96 as concerns principles for recording taxes and social contributions (Amendment 2) Recital 3    (3) The condition according to which the Commission cannot change underlying concepts is not, in the present case, clearly respected;    (3) The condition according to which the Commission cannot change underlying concepts is not, in the present case, clearly respected; clear criteria need to be established which will make it possible for accounts in the various Member States to be homogeneous ; (Amendment 3) Recital 4    (4) It is therefore necessary to refer the clarifications concerning the recording of taxes and social contributions in ESA 95 to the European Parliament and to the Council;    (4) It is therefore necessary to refer the clarifications concerning the recording of taxes and social contributions in ESA 95 to the European Parliament and to the Council, for the purposes referred to in the preceding recital ; (Amendment 4) Recital 7a (new) (7a) Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 2223/96 provides for ESA second edition to be used as the European system of integrated economic accounts for budgetary and own resource purposes as defined in Regulation (EEC, Euratom) No 1552/89, while Decision 94/728/EC, Euratom remains in force ; (Amendment 5) Recital 7b (new) (7b) ESA second edition data are no longer available in the level of detail required for determination of the VAT own resource; this does not, however, affect the procedures agreed for determination of the GNP own resource; (Amendment 6) Article 1 The purpose of this Regulation is to establish common principles clarifying the content of ESA 95 as concerns taxes and social contributions in order to ensure comparability and transparency among the Member States. The purpose of this Regulation is to establish common principles clarifying the content of ESA 95 as concerns taxes and social contributions in order to ensure comparability and transparency among the Member States and to ensure that ESA 95 data can be used for determination of the VAT own resource . (Amendment 7) Article 3(a)    (a) If assessments and declarations are used, the amounts shall be adjusted by a coefficient reflecting assessments never collected. The coefficients shall be estimated on the basis of past experience in respect of assessed amounts never collected. They shall be specific to different types of taxes and social contributions. The determination of these coefficients shall be country specific, the method being cleared with the Commission (Eurostat) beforehand.    (a) If assessments and declarations are used, the amounts shall be adjusted by a coefficient reflecting assessments never collected. Alternatively, a transfer of capital may be recorded to the sectors affected by the volume of such adjustments. The coefficients shall be estimated on the basis of past experience and present and future expectations in respect of assessed amounts never collected. They shall be specific to different types of taxes and social contributions. The determination of these coefficients shall be country specific, the method being cleared with the Commission (Eurostat) beforehand. (Amendment 8) Article 6 The Commission, within 6 months of the adoption of the present Regulation, will introduce in the text of ESA 95, in the context of the procedure defined at the Article 2 (2) of the Regulation (EC) No 2223/96, the changes needed for the application of the present Regulation. The Commission, within 6 months of the adoption of this Regulation, will introduce in the text of Annex A to Regulation (EC) No 2223/96, following the procedure set out in Article 4 of that Regulation, the changes needed for the application of this Regulation. (Amendment 9) Article 7, 1st paragraph a (new) Member States may ask the Commission for a transition period of no more than two years in which to bring their accounting systems into line with this Regulation.

European Parliament legislative resolution on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council regulation clarifying Council Regulation (EC) No 2223/96 as concerns principles for recording taxes and social contributions (COM(1999) 488 - C5-0220/1999 - 1999/0200(COD) )

P5_TA(2000)0175 A5-0073/2000

(Codecision procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council (COM(1999) 488 (2) ),

-  having regard to Article 251(2) and Article 285 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C5-0220/1999 ),

-  having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (A5-0073/2000 ),

1.  Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.  Asks to be consulted again should the Commission intend to amend its proposal substantially or replace it with another text;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

(1) OJ C 21 E, 25.1.2000, p. 68. (2) OJ C 21 E, 25.1.2000, p. 68.

Proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EEC) No 404/93 on the common organisation of the market in bananas (COM(1999) 582 - C5-0277/1999 - 1999/0235(CNS) )

P5_TA(2000)0176 A5-0093/2000

The proposal was amended as follows(1) :

Text proposed by the Commission   Amendments by Parliament (Amendment 1) Recital 1a (new) (1a)The common organisation of the market in bananas is extremely important for the ACP producer countries and the outermost regions of the Union in terms of export revenues, employment, the development of infrastructures and environmental protection. (Amendment 2) Recital 1b (new) (1b)The fundamental principles which governed the establishment of the common organisation of the market in bananas were designed to guarantee European consumers the variety and balance of the sources of supply for the market on the basis of respect for Community preference and the Community's various international obligations, contracted primarily towards its ACP partners, as set out in Protocol No 5 of the Lomé Convention. (Amendment 3) Recital 1c (new) (1c)When it was established, the common organisation of the market in bananas was based on a compromise respecting the interests of the various sources of supply, while taking account of the Union's previous commitments, namely Community preference, preferential access for ACP countries and the GATT rules with regard to third countries. (Amendment 4) Recital 1d (new) (1d)The terms of the ACP/EU Partnership Agreement for Development, which replaced the Lomé Convention, provides for a transitional period to allow gradual adaptation to the rules and standards of the WTO. (Amendment 5) Recital 1e (new) (1e) The time has come to find a lasting and acceptable compromise which will settle the disputes in the WTO and, at the same time, solve the problems inside the European Union or at least minimise them. (Amendment 6) Recital 2    (2) Analysis of all the options presented by the Commission suggests that establishment in the medium term of an import system founded on the application of a customs duty at an appropriate rate and application of a preferential tariff to imports from ACP countries provides the best guarantees, firstly of achieving the objectives of the common organisation of the market as regards Community production and consumer demand, secondly of complying with the rules on international trade, and thirdly of preventing further disputes. (Deleted) (Amendment 7) Recital 2a (new) (2a) An import system based on a flat tariff would pose a serious risk of a collapse in banana prices on the Community markets owing to surplus supply of bananas imported at a low price, over and above what is currently being experienced, which makes it necessary to increase the compensatory aid granted to Community producers in the outermost regions to guarantee their level of income. (Amendment 8) Recital 2b (new) (2b) The financial perspective adopted in Agenda 2000 for the financing of the common agricultural policy is insufficient to cope with the additional expenditure which would result from a change to the common organisation of the market in bananas and should therefore be revised before the relevant regulation is adopted. (Amendment 9) Recital 2c (new) (2c) Consideration should be given to the possibility of having recourse also to Article 299(2) of the Treaty, which provides for the adoption by the Council, on a proposal from the Commission and after consulting the European Parliament, of specific measures for the outermost regions, including in the field of the CAP, in the event that the negative social, economic and environmental consequences arising from the new flat tariff system place banana producers in those regions at a disadvantage. (Amendment 10) Recital 2d (new) (2d) In order to offset the consequences of the reform of the common organisation of the market in bananas, support should be given to restructuring measures financed under the Structural Funds. (Amendment 11) Recital 3    (3) However, such a system must be introduced upon completion of negotiations with the Community's partners in accordance with WTO procedures, in particular Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).    (3) However, a new system shall be introduced, for a period which cannot be less than 10 years nor involve ipso facto transition to a tariff only scheme, in parallel with a process of negotiations with the Community's partners in accordance with WTO procedures, in particular Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). (Amendment 12) Recital 3a (new) (3a)The failure of the last meeting of the WTO showed that this organisation was not capable of responding to the expectations and demands of public opinion and consumers in areas such as product quality, environmental protection, training, social conditions and the protection of workers. (Amendment 13) Recital 3b (new) (3b) The European model of agriculture cannot comply with and yield to the idea of profit alone, to the detriment of respect for fundamental principles in the areas of social rights, environmental protection, product safety and quality and abuses of dominant positions. (Amendment 14) Recital 3c (new) (3c) A study should be made of the operation of this Regulation over a minimum period of ten years to enable consideration to be given to the system to be applied after that period . (Amendment 15) Recital 3d (new) (3d)The Commission noted during consultations with the interested parties that there is a considerable preference for a system of tariff quotas and that the reverse auction system was formally and unanimously rejected by all the importers and ACP producers. (Amendment 16) Recital 4    (4) Until the entry into force of that regime , the Community should be supplied under several tariff quotas open to imports from all origins and managed in line with the recommendations made by the dispute settlement body. The first tariff quota of 2 200 000 tonnes at a rate of EUR 75 should be bound in the WTO. A second, additional tariff quota of 353 000 tonnes should be opened to cater for the increase in consumption resulting from enlargement of the Community in 1995, with the same rate applying. To ensure satisfactory supply to the Community, a third, autonomous tariff quota of 850 000 tonnes should be opened, also for all origins. Under this latter tariff quota, the common customs tariff rate should be reduced in accordance with the most appropriate method, and the preferential tariff granted to the ACP countries must be applied.    (4) The Community should be supplied under several tariff quotas open to imports from all origins and managed in line with the recommendations made by the WTO's dispute settlement body. The first tariff quota of 2 200 000 tonnes at a rate of EUR 75 should be bound in the WTO. A second, additional tariff quota of 353 000 tonnes, not bound in the WTO, should be opened to cater for the increase in consumption resulting from enlargement of the Community in 1995, with the same rate applying. To ensure satisfactory supply to the Community, a third, autonomous tariff quota of 850 000 tonnes should be opened, also for all origins. Under this latter tariff quota, the preferential tariff granted to the ACP countries must be applied. (Amendment 17) Recital 5    (5) In view of the contractual obligations towards the ACP countries and the need to guarantee them proper conditions of competition, application to imports of bananas originating in those countries of a tariff preference of EUR 275 per tonne would allow the trade flows in question to be maintained. This will entail in particular the application to such imports of zero duty under the first two tariff quotas, and a cut of EUR 275 in the duty to be paid under the third tariff quota after application of the aforementioned reduction.    (5) In view of the contractual obligations towards the ACP countries and the need to guarantee them proper conditions of competition, application to imports of bananas originating in those countries of a tariff preference of at least EUR 300 per tonne would allow the trade flows in question to be maintained. This will entail in particular the application to such imports of zero duty under the first two tariff quotas, and a cut of EUR 300 in the duty to be paid under the third tariff quota after application of the aforementioned reduction. (Amendment 18) Recital 6    (6) The Commission should be authorised to open negotiations with supplier countries having a substantial interest in supplying the Community market to endeavour to achieve a negotiated allocation of the first two tariff quotas. The Commission should also be granted authority to lay down rules for the management of the tariff quotas established by this Regulation.    (6) The Commission should be authorised to open negotiations with supplier countries having a substantial interest in supplying the Community market to endeavour to achieve a negotiated allocation of the first two tariff quotas. The Commission should also be granted authority to lay down rules for the management of the tariff quotas established by this Regulation, and should be asked to make an in-depth study of all the possibilities with regard to calculating the reference periods . (Amendment 19) Recital 7    (7) Provision should be made for the additional tariff quota of 353 000 tonnes to be modified to take account of any increased Community demand found when a supply balance is drawn up. Provision should also be made for suitable specific action to be taken in response to exceptional circumstances liable to affect supply of the Community market.    (7) Provision should be made for the additional tariff quota of 353 000 tonnes to be modified to take account of any increased or reduced Community demand found when a supply balance is drawn up. Provision should also be made for suitable specific action to be taken in response to exceptional circumstances liable to affect supply of the Community market. (Amendment 20) Recital 7a (new) (7a) The objective of organic production methods, as defined in Council Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91(1 ), is to contribute to the utilisation of sustainable methods of production, with a minimal impact on the environment and on health; such methods should be encouraged in third countries, in particular in ACP partner countries, and should benefit from specific incentives within the corresponding regulatory frameworks and budget headings. _____________ ( 1 ) OJ L 198, 22.7.1991, p. 1. (Amendment 21) Recital 7b (new) (7b) The Commission Communication of 29 November 1999 to the Council and the European Parliament on Fair Trade lays down the framework for the promotion of "fair-trade" operators. (Amendment 22) Recital 7c (new) (7c)It is necessary for the Commission to assess the impact of this Regulation on prices and the incomes of banana producers within the European Union and in the ACP countries and make provision to strengthen the measures established in favour of Community producers to alleviate the negative effects of new rules. In any case compensatory aid should be adjusted in line with the impact of this Regulation, based on the principle of guaranteeing producers" incomes. (Amendment 23) Recital 8    (8) Accordingly, amendments should be made to Title IV of Regulation (EEC) No 404/93,    (8) Accordingly, amendments should be made to Titles III and IV of Regulation (EEC) No 404/93, (Amendment 24) ARTICLE 1(-1) (new) Article 12(8a) (new) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    - 1. The following paragraph is added to Article 12: "8a. Every two years after the entry into force of this Regulation, the Commission shall present a report assessing its impact on prices and the incomes of Community and ACP producers. On the basis of the conclusions of the assessment report, the Commission shall, where necessary or at the request of the European Parliament, submit a proposal for the adjustment of compensatory aid with the objective of guaranteeing the income of Community producers and the marketing of the product.” (Amendment 25) ARTICLE 1(-1a) (new) Article 12a (new) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    - 1a. The following Article is inserted after Article 12: "Article 12a Aid shall be granted for the marketing of bananas produced in the outermost regions and placed on European Union markets. Such aid shall be granted to the entities marketing those bananas, whether they are individual producers, producers" organisations, individual operators or groups of operators established in those regions.” (Amendment 26) ARTICLE 1(1) Article 16(1) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    1. Articles 16 to 20 of this Title shall apply to imports of fresh products falling within CN code ex 0803 00 19 up to the entry into force of the rate of the common customs tariff for those products, no later than 1 January 2006, established under the procedure provided for in Article XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade .    1. Articles 16 to 20 of this Title shall apply to imports of fresh products falling within CN code ex 0803 00 19. (Amendment 27) ARTICLE 1(1) Article 16(2) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    2. Until the entry into force of the rate referred to in paragraph 1 , imports of the fresh products referred to in paragraph 1 shall be under the tariff quotas opened by Article 18.    2. Imports of the fresh products referred to in paragraph 1 shall be under the tariff quotas opened by Article 18. (Amendment 28) ARTICLE 1(1) Article 18(3) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    3. By derogation from Article 15, imports under tariff quota "C” shall be subject to the duty referred to in that Article less a reduction which may be determined by tender. (Deleted) (Amendment 29) ARTICLE 1(1) Article 18(4) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    4. A tariff preference of EUR 275 per tonne shall apply to imports originating in ACP countries both under and outside the tariff quotas.    4. A tariff preference of at least EUR 300 per tonne shall apply to imports originating in ACP countries both under and outside the tariff quotas. (Amendment 30) ARTICLE 1(1) Article 18(6), first subparagraph (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    6. The additional tariff quota provided for in paragraph 1(b) may be increased if demand in the Community increases as indicated by a balance sheet of production, consumption, imports and exports.    6. The additional tariff quota provided for in paragraph 1(b) may be increased or reduced if demand in the Community increases or falls as indicated by a balance sheet of production, consumption, imports and exports. (Amendment 31) ARTICLE 1(1) Article 19(1) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    1. The tariff quotas may be managed in accordance with the method based on taking account of traditional trade flows ("traditional/newcomers') and/or other methods.    1. The tariff quotas shall be managed in accordance with the method based on taking account of traditional trade flows ("traditionals/newcomers') and/or other methods, provided that the method of management and the reference periods used are not detrimental to the operators and producers already present on the market. The method adopted shall not discriminate against any of the currently existing classes of operators working in the market. If the method used is the 'traditionals/newcomers' method, it must include the recent past . (Amendment 32) ARTICLE 1(1) Article 19(2) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    2. The method adopted shall take account as appropriate of the need to maintain the equilibrium of supply to the Community market.    2. The method adopted must take account of the need to maintain the equilibrium of supply to the Community market. (Amendment 33) ARTICLE 1(1a) (new) Article 20a (new) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93) 1a. The following Article is inserted after Article 20: "Article 20a Specific provisions shall be drawn up, according to the procedure laid down in Article 27, for bananas produced in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91 on organic farming and certified by independent monitoring bodies in accordance with the standard EN45011. A strict system of equivalence with Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91 shall be applied to these bananas and the products derived therefrom coming from traditional ACP, ACP or third-country quotas. The producers and operators of organically produced bananas, in conjunction with the monitoring bodies, shall be eligible for special support measures under the financial and technical assistance for this type of production which seeks to achieve better protection of the environment and public health.” (Amendment 34) ARTICLE 1(1b) (new) Article 20b (new) (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93) 1b. The following Article is inserted after Article 20: " Article 20b Measures shall be provided, according to the procedure set out in Article 27, for bananas produced in accordance with the conditions laid down by Fair Trade Labelling Organisations International (FLO). These bananas shall be designated "fair trade" bananas. The conditions laid down by the FLO are annexed to this Regulation and shall apply regardless of the developing country of origin. The Member States shall be responsible for approving the "fair trade" certification bodies. The bodies shall be responsible for granting "fair trade" status to producers and operators satisfying the conditions described above. They shall also be responsible for monitoring and checking to guarantee that the "fair trade" conditions are fully respected. The approval of the Member State shall be granted to the "fair trade" certification bodies, which can demonstrate that they conform to standard EN45011 for certification bodies. "Fair trade" banana producers and operators and the "fair trade" certification bodies should be eligible for special support measures within the framework of technical and financial assistance.” (Amendment 35) ARTICLE 1(3) Article 32 (Regulation (EEC) No 404/93)    3. Article 32 is deleted. (Deleted) (Amendment 36) ARTICLE 1a (new) Article 1a By 30 April 2009 at the latest the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and the Council a report on the operation of the common organisation of the market in bananas together with any proposals for modification.

(1) The matter was then referred back to committee pursuant to Rule 69(2).

European Parliament resolution on the communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the stabilisation and association process for countries of South-Eastern Europe (COM(1999) 235 - C5-0124/1999 - 1999/2126(COS) )

P5_TA(2000)0177 A5-0069/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the Commission communication (COM(1999) 235 - C5-0124/1999 ),

-  having regard to the Commission communication to the Council and the European Parliament of 8 December 1999 on Community assistance for the stabilisation and association process for certain countries of South-East Europe - CARA Programme (Community association and reconstruction assistance - Guidelines and detailed arrangements for assistance to Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia under the future CARA programme (2000-2006)) COM(1999) 661 ,

-  having regard to the report of the Finnish presidency and the Commission to the European Council in Helsinki on EU Action in Support of the Stability Pact and South-Eastern Europe, 10-11 December (Council 13814/1999),

-  having regard to the decision on the introduction of a Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe adopted in Cologne on 10 June 1999 and the Declaration by the participants at the Balkan Summit on the Stability Pact held in Sarajevo on 30 July 1999,

-  having regard to the Work Plan adopted by the Regional Table of the Stability Pact in Brussels on 16 September 1999 and the results of the deliberations of the three Tables,

-  having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defence Policy (A5-0069/2000 ),

A.  convinced that the issue of establishing peace, stability, democracy and the rule of law, as well as economic development, in South-Eastern Europe is one of the central challenges facing the European Union in the coming years and will also be a test of its ability to develop an effective civil and military crisis management strategy aimed at conflict prevention,

B.  convinced that the region's problems cannot be dealt with in isolation from one another or separately from the problems of the rest of Europe,

C.  whereas the Kosovo crisis once again made it clear that the Balkan region is part of Europe and that ethnic conflicts, the exodus of refugees and unstable economies can have an enormous impact on the stability of Europe as a whole,

D.  convinced that the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe constitutes a proper conceptual framework for crisis prevention, in which the region is considered as a whole and the establishment of democracy, economic development and security are seen as interdependent elements,

E.  whereas all countries involved in the region should respect the resolution of United Nations concerning the respect of borders between the countries in the area,

F.  whereas all countries in the region - to varying degrees - have to combat the same problems: weak political institutions and legal uncertainty, lack of media freedom, corruption and crime, ruined or neglected infrastructure and environment, inadequate economic activity and a low level of investment, high unemployment, an inefficient banking and taxation system, insufficient border management, an undersized private sector and inadequate economic legislation,

G.  whereas following the conflicts in former Yugoslavia, reconstruction is to be understood not only in the physical and economic sense but also as the reconstruction of social infrastructure, society and institutions, and hence the central aim of any reconstruction strategy must be the reestablishment of the rule of law,

H.  having regard to the severe damage caused by the NATO bombing to industrial and civilian infrastructure in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), the consequences of which affect the normal and basic conduct of daily life, including health, food supply, employment, energy supply etc.,

I.  whereas long-term stability in the region cannot be accomplished as long as the FRY remains in isolation, producing an ongoing void in the region's geographical centre and the permanent presence of destabilising factors in the soft underbelly of Europe,

J.  whereas the offer made by the EU to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Albania to conclude Stabilisation and Association Agreements (SAAs) opens up to them the long-term prospect of EU membership,

K.  whereas the Stability Pact constitutes the link between these five SAA countries and the applicant countries Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Slovenia, since they all participate together with the EU and its Member States, the USA, Russia, Canada, Japan and Turkey, as well as the international organisations and international financial institutions, in the Regional Table, where programmes for the development of the region are discussed,

L.  convinced that the EU's offer of integration into the European structures and the support for regional cooperation are not to be seen as alternatives but as two complementary and mutually enhancing processes,

M.  whereas between 1991 and 1999 the EU supplied aid worth more than EUR 7.5 billion to the five countries in the region and whereas the Commission has proposed to make approximately EUR 5.5 billion available for the period 2000-2006, as well as EUR 6.2 billion for Romania and Bulgaria,

1.  Considers the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe as the central challenge for the European Union at present, and considers that it will be decisive for the future of peace and stability in South-Eastern Europe, as well as for the Union's political credibility;

2.  Calls therefore on the EU to take over the central leading role in the Stability Pact using all the instruments, programmes and funding potential at its disposal;

3.  Calls on the High Representative for the common foreign and security policy and the Commissioner for External Relations to ensure that the EU, as the principal donor for the region, is closely dovetailed with the Special Coordinator responsible for the implementation of the Pact;

4.  Calls for this dovetailing and the strengthening of the European pillar within the structure of the Stability Pact to be used to reduce the number of actors on the Balkan stage and to ensure greater transparency in the use of existing structures;

5.  Supports the strategic concept of the Stability Pact as a preventive policy in which external and internal security, democratisation and the rule of law and economic development are to be dealt with on an equal footing and in parallel as interdependent issues;

6.  Stresses the need to isolate extreme nationalist groups which resist all efforts to bring about a return to democratic dialogue and the economic development wanted by moderate groups in the region;

7.  Notes the results of the financing conference of 29/30 March 2000 for Stability Pact projects and considers its implementation as a decisive test of the Pact's ability to transform political concepts into practice;

8.  Calls on the Commission to cofinance practical projects from all three subject areas in the context of the new Association and Reconstruction Programme for the five countries of the Western Balkans (CARA), under the PHARE programme and exploiting Interreg; not only should regional economic projects be promoted, but particular attention should also be devoted to projects in the first subject area - democratisation and promotion of civil society as well as the third - regional disarmament, mine-clearance, improving police work and anti-corruption measures;

9.  Urges the Commission, in this respect, to make an overall evaluation of the European Community Monitoring Mission with a view to discussing with Parliament the possibility of redefining its tasks with regard, in particular, to conflict prevention and confidence-building within the new framework of the Stability Pact;

10.  States that, if any of the countries develops policies or undertakes activities which seek unilateral border changes or in any other way cause damage to the Stability Pact, it will be excluded from the financing procedures of the Stability Pact;

11.  Stresses that with the introduction of the Stabilisation and Association process the EU is offering the peoples in the region the prospect of being incorporated in the structures of the EU in the long term and giving them hope of a better future after years of suffering;

12.  Considers the regional approach to the Western Balkans advocated by the EU since 1996 still to be valid, and takes the view that the principle of political conditionality should also apply to the Stability Pact;

13.  Considers that there is an urgent need to submit a comprehensive aid programme for the five SAA countries in the interests of making the Stability Pact directly effective and providing the necessary financial support for the stabilisation and association process;

14.  Calls for particular emphasis to be laid on regional cooperation and programmes for several countries and cross-border projects to remain feasible in the context of the Stability Pact;

15.  Takes the view that the sphere of responsibility of the European agency for reconstruction should be extended beyond Kosovo to the whole region covered by the new association and reconstruction process and that the agency must be responsible for implementing the horizontal EU programmes as well as for coordination with projects devised by other international donors;

16.  Considers that, in addition to the regional projects for each country, special national programmes must be set up, tailored to the particular needs and conditions of each country, and that the relevant EU delegations should manage their implementation on the spot;

17.  Considers, in this context, Bosnia Herzegovina, Kosovo and Albania to be particular trouble spots, to which the EU and the international community must devote special attention, requiring a rational and feasible division between the work of the institutions outside the Stability Pact, e.g. UNMIK, and the work of the Stability Pact;

18.  Believes, in this respect, that a strict armaments control policy is a fundamental factor for the stabilisation and security of these three countries as well as the whole region; urges Member States therefore, together with all the signatories of the Stability Pact, to set up a common programme to assist and train local police forces, while keeping national armies as limited in size as possible;

19.  Considers, with regard to the FRY, that the selective lifting of sanctions might be a way of strengthening the Serb opposition and weakening the Milosevic regime;

20.  Considers that a distinction should be made between sanctions against the establishment in Yugoslavia and sanctions against the people of the country, so that the latter sanctions may be gradually lifted, thus allowing democratic dialogue in Yugoslavia to be promoted;

21.  Supports the participation of Montenegro in the political dialogue launched with democratic forces in the FRY;

22.  Requests, in the interests of the whole region, the earliest possible re-establishment of conditions for ensuring the navigability of the Danube;

23.  Welcomes the democratic developments in Croatia and encourages the new government to take the necessary steps to ensure that the EU can extend its aid towards the country and the negotiations for a Stabilization and Association Agreement to commence;

24.  Insists on the need to provide direct assistance to the municipalities in the region and to further development cooperation and partnership between local authorities in South-Eastern Europe and in the European Union, especially in institution-building, management of public service and local economic development;

25.  Calls on the Council and the Commission to ensure their active participation in the Conference on the Security and Development of the Adriatic and Ionian Seas, to be held on 19 and 20 May this year, as a valid contribution to the work of the Stability Pact, as mentioned in the conclusions of the extraordinary meeting of the European Council in Tampere;

26.  Is of the opinion that the Stability Pact is of great significance for the wider region as well and therefore asks for the Republic of Moldova to be given the opportunity to participate directly in the Stability Pact;

27.  Considers the combating of corruption and organised crime to be a decisive precondition for creating a civil society based on the rule of law and democracy and, in this context, requests that appropriate attention be given to recruitment, training and adequate levels of pay for police forces;

28.  Proposes that the SAA countries should be offered zero-tariff free trade with the EU, EFTA, EEA and CEFTA and offered compensation for the latest tariff reviews, as this action would boost the economy and undermine smuggling and organised crime;

29.  Stresses the increasingly dangerous nature of the links between criminal organisations operating in certain countries of South-Eastern Europe and those in the Member States nearest to the area, such as Italy and Greece; deplores the fact that these links thrive on illicit trafficking such as smuggling, drugs and trafficking in illegal immigrants;

30.  Calls on the Council, the Commission and the Pact coordinator to promote a specific initiative for drawing up common agreements on police and judicial cooperation between the European Union and the countries concerned and to offer active support for the projects needed for its achievement;

31.  Stresses the importance of the independent media for the development of civil society; welcomes the draft Charter for Media Freedom in the context of the Stability Pact and considers that it should also receive tangible support in the form of precisely targeted projects;

32.  Insists on the creation of a free and independent regional network of existing channels from each country in the region, to create links and synergies between national and local broadcasting in order to ensure fair and adequate information;

33.  Calls for the teaching of tolerance and cooperation, not least in schools, and calls for particular attention to be devoted to this when school books, curricula, etc. are being drawn up;

34.  Supports the formation of concrete plans aimed at contributing to the cultural and religious approach between the five countries and stresses the need for protection of the monuments and the cultural heritage treasures in the region with precise actions;

35.  Stresses the important role of international and local NGOs in economic and social reconstruction; stresses also the need for the greater participation of as many local NGOs as possible in the reconstruction projects, retaining on the other hand strict and efficient control over their financial procedures in order to avoid corruption;

36.  Reiterates its demand for active regional aid from the EU in the context of the Stability Pact, to promote regional infrastructure projects, such as the extension of European corridors 8 and 10, cross-border energy, environment and water projects and the joint improvement of border management and customs;

37.  Welcomes the Commission's latest initiative for a 'regional environmental reconstruction plan' in the framework of the Stability Pact;

38.  Calls on the Commission, in particular by means of coordination between the individual departments, to ensure that there are no barriers to trade between the countries in the region, in particular between the applicant countries and the other countries;

39.  Supports the efforts of the Commission to create an effective mechanism for civilian crisis management;

40.  Is open to the idea of creating a rapid reaction fund, and in its capacity as part of the budget authority expresses its willingness to discuss the practicalities of such a fund with the Commission at an early date;

41.  Expresses its willingness to take part in strengthening the parliamentary dimension in the region; intends, therefore, to take the initiative of extending its existing bilateral relations with the parliaments in the region to include an annual multilateral meeting in the framework of the Stability Pact;

42.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and the Council.

European Parliament resolution on the Commission communication on implementing the framework for financial markets: Action Plan (COM(1999) 232 - C5-0114/1999 - 1999/2117(COS) )

P5_TA(2000)0178 A5-0059/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the Commission communication (COM(1999) 232 - C5-0114/1999 ),

-  having regard to its resolution of 4 May 1999(1) on an earlier Commission communication on Financial Services: Building a Framework for Action (COM(1998) 625 - C4-0688/1998 ),

-  having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the opinions of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market, the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy and the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Policy (A5-0059/2000 ),

A.  whereas the Commission communication entitled “Implementing the framework for financial markets: Action Plan” is the basis for a future working programme in this field, which will take the form of 43 concrete measures, to be adopted over a five-year period with a view to deriving maximum benefit from the introduction of the euro and guaranteeing the stability and competitiveness of the Union's financial markets,

B.  whereas the strategic objectives set out in the Action Plan (a single EU wholesale market, open and secure retail markets, state-of-the-art prudential rules and supervision and wider conditions for an optimal single financial market) may be summarised under two headings, namely to develop further the internal market in technical services (liberalisation of the sector) and to improve a number of technical aspects (reduction of systemic risk and/or improvement of the forecasting system for those risks while also facilitating the conclusion of transactions),

C.  whereas much progress needs to be made before a genuine single market in retail financial services exists in the EU; whereas numerous impediments to competition exist through, inter alia, failure to implement and enforce existing legislation and differing national interpretations of existing directives,

D.  whereas, while it is universally agreed that consolidating the single market in financial services means removing the barriers to its smooth operation, a number of major discrepancies still exist as regards listing those barriers, inter alia because the Commission has never spelt them out in detail,

E.  whereas the Commission believes that the EU should strive to maintain the highest standards of prudential financial market regulation, which must be kept up to date with market developments, and has declared itself willing to engage in an open discussion on the structures that will be needed to ensure the appropriate regulation,

F.  whereas, however, many consider that it is scarcely acceptable that an investor (or at least a non-professional investor) should contract financial products without knowing what legal regulations they are subject to, or should, in case of conflict, have to bring a complaint before a jurisdiction and under a procedure which are completely unfamiliar to him,

G.  whereas the smooth operation of a financial services market requires the establishment of a fiscal framework to facilitate cross-border transactions involving movable assets and reduce the opportunities for tax evasion or deception, but without encouraging the risky relocation of savings and investments within the territory of the Union,

H.  whereas the Treaty on European Union makes almost no reference to financial supervision, confining itself to mentioning the possibility of the ECB taking on “specific tasks concerning policies relating to the prudential supervision of credit institutions and other financial institutions with the exception of insurance undertakings” (Article 105(6)),

I.  whereas cooperation mechanisms must be established with the authorities of third countries, since sound and coherent regulations, guaranteeing a level worldwide playing field, will become increasingly important as international liberalisation gathers pace,

J.  whereas the Commission considers that if the Action Plan is to be developed the formal legislative procedure must be speeded up on a fast-track basis and that the Commission itself must be allowed broad powers of interpretation concerning sensitive aspects and aspects in need of improvement; whereas this position raises considerable doubts as to the role of Parliament and the delegalisation of the rules foreseen in the Action Plan,

K.  whereas its resolution of 4 May 1999 requested the Commission to undertake specific measures:

L.  whereas the pace of market developments, due to communications technology and capital liberalisation, the work of the Basle Committee and the emergence of new market actors such as financial conglomerates, may call for changes in priorities and for new measures not foreseen in the Action Plan,

1.  Welcomes the objectives and the principles of the Action Plan for financial services, as its proposals should underpin the competitive position of the EU's financial services industry, while safeguarding the interests of the consumer; notes, however, that very few of the measures foreseen are completely new, yet if taken as a whole the Action Plan could be thought of as a comprehensive overview of the state of the Union in financial services, pointing to the measures needed to reap the benefits of the euro and integrated financial markets;

2.  Believes that the introduction of the euro gives a new impetus to the creation of competitive financial markets within the EU and that the stability of these markets would be enhanced if all Member States joined the EMU;

3.  Agrees with the strategic objectives of the Action Plan; points out, however, that these objectives may not be attained unless the existing institutional arrangements are completely reformed; urges the Commission, accordingly, to provide a list of the administrative practices and provisions which prevent financial service providers and investors from benefiting from the opportunities offered by a single financial market;

4.  Believes that the Commission should promptly table proposals for legislative harmonisation to eliminate the current legal and administrative obstacles in the various Member States to the development of integrated securities dealing systems and to the exploitation of the benefits deriving from access to certain Community-scale capital markets; subsequently, the necessary guarantees must be laid down to protect investors against the potential risks of fraud and maladministration resulting from the opening-up of financial markets; a thorough assessment of legal and fiscal barriers that prevent SMEs and corporate entities from reaping the full benefits of the single currency, for example by not being able to use cross-border cash management techniques, is needed;

The measures concerning wholesale markets

5.  Supports the measures on enabling corporate issuers to raise capital on an EU-wide basis (the 1989 Directive on prospectuses and the 1982 directive on regular reporting) for reasons other than the ones stipulated in the Action Plan; the former needs major revision because the definition of 'EU securities' is so broad that anything could be called 'EU securities' and because the availability of simplified prospectuses in the language of the investor in the Member State where the securities are marketed is an essential marketing tool; the latter needs revision because the disclosure requirements of a single market are different today;

6.  Calls upon the Commission to prepare, as soon as possible (priority 1), legal proposals on the 'distinction between sophisticated investors and retail investors', drawing on the work of the Forum of European Securities Commission, on 'market manipulation', and on revising the 1993 directive on investment services in the securities field;

7.  Is of the view that the proposed measures related to the corporate sector should be seen in a broader global context, not purely as a consequence of the single market; urges the Commission, therefore, to explain the reasons justifying the revision of the existing rules and to submit a communication describing best practice in the field of enterprise management (benchmarking) before proposing mandatory rules or voluntary recommendations in this area;

8.  Stresses that, account being taken of the current extent of restructuring processes in the financial sector, the Commission should table legislative proposals on cross-border concentrations of limited-liability companies and on the relocation of company headquarters, involving amendment of the Tenth and Fourteenth Company Law Directives;

9.  Considers that, as a matter of urgency, the existing accounting directives must be updated, since, as things stand, they make it possible to register the same operation in different forms, depending on the jurisdiction chosen, while they cannot compete in quality terms with US accounting legislation;

10.  Stresses the lack of attention paid to the problems faced by banks" wholesale clients ranging from small and medium-sized enterprises to corporate clients, for whom the regulatory and logistical costs of transacting business are still very high in the Eurozone, compared to the domestic market;

11.  Is of the opinion that the 1976 directive on insurance intermediaries must be brought up to date by bolstering consumer protection and by laying down common requirements for, inter alia, registration, financial security and information disclosure to consumers; the solvency margin requirements under the insurance directives should also be amended; bearing this in mind, calls for the proposal to amend the directive on insurance intermediaries to be made a priority 1 action rather than the priority 2 action provided for in the Action Plan;

12.  Agrees with the view expressed by the ECB that the Council has unduly delayed adoption of the directives on take-over bids, on the European Company statute and on the winding up and liquidation of banks and hence recalls its resolution of 4 May 1999, which regretted the lack of progress on the adoption of these essential directives, despite the Member States' strong support for these initiatives;

13.  Reiterates its position of 4 May 1999 on supporting efforts by individual stock markets to increase rationalisation of systems, but is of the opinion that adoption of new procedures geared to electronic means would lead to consolidation and greater efficiency and access by small and medium-sized enterprises to risk and venture capital;

The measures on retail markets

14.  Points to the fact that the measures mentioned in the Action Plan, seeking to establish “open and secure retail markets”, are not the measures requested by Parliament; requests the Commission, therefore, to inform Parliament of its position on codifying information for purchasers, on best practice on mortgage credit, on the general good in insurance, and on a single market for payments;

15.  Notes that different national regulations predominate in the area of retail financial services and that consumers are thus denied access to a wider range of choice and cheaper services; therefore welcomes the variety of proposals put forward by the Commission to equip the consumers with the instruments necessary to participate actively in the single financial market;

16.  Commends the Commission on its decision to conduct an in-depth analysis of consumer protection rules in the financial services sector and emphasises that it is absolutely essential to strike a harmonious balance between the principles of market liberalisation and consumer protection if the system is to achieve the required degree of effectiveness; stresses that the common level of protection must be defined on the basis of the highest standards;

17.  Reiterates its earlier position as stated in its resolution of 4 May 1999 that “open and secure retail markets” presuppose a high level of consumer protection, meaning appropriate instruments (information disclosure), the harmonisation of rules of conduct on the best practices that companies should apply (such as those related to adequate identification of clients and completion of contract transactions) and effective safeguards (dispute settlement and compensation schemes); is, therefore, not persuaded by the Commission's intention simply to develop a “Union-wide complaints network (including the use of an ombudsman for financial services)”;

18.  Asks the Commission to submit a communication to Parliament on whether the existing regulatory apparatus for electronic commerce in the EU, if compared to the US legal framework, provides a fair and secure framework for companies and citizens, whether the question of liability is resolved by the present legislation and whether internet service providers offering a global service should be regulated by EU legislation or at global level;

19.  Calls on the Commission to study the possibility of an EU directive on “consumer protection in the field of financial services”, based on the appropriate elements of existing EU legislation, e.g. by developing the directive on investment services (especially its Article 11 on the codes of conduct applicable to service provision), cross-border credit transfers (97/5/EC)(2) , the Commission recommendation on out-of-court settlements of consumer disputes (98/257/EC)(3) and investor compensation schemes (97/9/EC)(4) ;

20.  Believes that cross-border payments should be made easier and cheaper in the interests of consumers; the Commission should adopt the necessary measures as soon as possible to reduce costs for consumers since the introduction of the euro in 11 Member States;

21.  Fully endorses the Commission's decision to foster direct dialogue between service providers and consumers during the formulation of common rules governing the information to be made available to consumers; calls, however, on the Commission to monitor carefully the process as a whole, so as to be able to take swift action, inter alia in the legislative sphere, wherever necessary, and to take particular account of any differences in the two parties' understanding of the subject matter;

22.  Calls for the development of a modern payments infrastructure which is capable of supporting efficient, secure and low-cost cross-border (card) payments and stresses that the current situation, where cross-border (card) payments incur charges which far exceed domestic transfer charges, is intolerable;

23.  Notes the huge potential for provision of consumer financial services via the Internet since such services are particularly well suited to sale via e-commerce; further notes that the information revolution has great potential to open up cross-border trade in consumer financial services, leading to increased competition within the EU, yielding benefits to consumers of reduced prices and increased choice; consequently urges the Commission rapidly to implement an effective legal framework for e-commerce and regrets the slow pace of progress to date; in particular, calls on the Commission to resolve the current dispute over civil legal jurisdiction measures to replace the Brussels and Rome Conventions;

24.  Draws the Commission's attention to the necessity to implement special measures concerning fraud and counterfeiting in payment systems and in electronic commerce;

25.  Insists on the importance of the application of the principle of mutual recognition within the EU to essential requirements for supplying cross-border financial services, including dispute settlement procedures; stresses the need for efficient dispute settlement with third countries;

The measures on prudential rules and supervision

26.  Expresses guarded satisfaction with regard to the measures mentioned in the Action Plan because they do not address three important aspects of the future supervisory and regulatory regime in the EU:

27.  Welcomes the Commission's consultation document on equity capitalisation in the context of the Basle Convention on banking supervision in the G-10 that justifies in-depth analysis of the alternative approach to regulatory capital if based on an 'internal ratings-based approach', because major issues need clarification, i.e. the recognition of rating agencies and the competitiveness of the European financial industry; calls on the Commission to submit a Green Paper on the list of directives needing amendment;

28.  Calls on the Commission to submit a Green Paper on the creation of an EU Securities and Exchange Commission (Euro-Sec) along the lines of the US-SEC; the Green Paper should concentrate on the identification of asymmetries embodied in the regulatory or supervisory rules and practices of the fifteen European authorities, on the problems securitisation and disintermediation would create for effective supervision and the harmonisation of national structures of regulation/supervision;

29.  Asks the Commission to submit a Green paper on whether there is a need to create a single Advisory Forum for financial stability in Europe in order to enhance cooperation and coordination among European supervisors (banking, capital markets and insurance), extending beyond sectorial disciplines to cover all types of financial services;

30.  Stresses the fact that because of the development of distance trading and distance selling, rules on prudential regimes and reporting must be strengthened throughout the EU, with a view to protecting consumers, and that a directive is needed on the distance selling of financial services;

Supplementary measures for an optimal market

31.  Reiterates its position of 4 May 1999 on the fast-track legislative procedures and the conditions attached to them; requests, therefore, that the Commission submit to Parliament a 'model' of fast-track legislation, laying down principles, scope and other essential features that would keep legislation up to date;

32.  Believes that the codecision procedure provided for in Article 251 of the EC Treaty must be applied as soon as possible to the financial markets area, account being taken of the internal market provisions under Article 95 of the EC Treaty;

33.  Is of the view that the creation of a Securities Committee should fall under priority 1 and that the main responsibilities of the Securities Committee could be listing rules, prospectuses, insider trading and take-over bids and rules of conduct relating to the provision of investment services; repeats its position that such committees should not be regulatory or management committees under the comitology procedure;

34.  Believes that the Action Plan is not, from the outset, linked to the efforts being made to advance tax harmonisation; admits, however, that minimum standards in the field of taxation would contribute to an optimal market for financial services; recommends that rapid progress be made in removing the disparities in the tax treatment of transferable securities in order to reduce the risks of distortion of competition inside the EU and prevent capital flight towards tax havens located in dependent or associated territories where Member States have particular responsibilities and third countries with considerable potential for attracting capital from the EU;

35.  Stresses the fact that the creation of a single market for supplementary pension funds requires, inter alia, a level playing field to be created at Community level, addressing the tax treatment of cross-border contributions of migrant workers, the removal of tax disincentives to cross-border investments as well as the tax exemption of contributions and the subsequent taxation of pension payments in the beneficiary's country of residence;

36.  Calls on the Commission to submit to Parliament a progress report by the year 2002, appraising the progress made on the measures proposed in the Action Plan and in this resolution;

o
o   o

37.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the governments of the Member States.

(1) OJ C 270, 24.9.1999, p. 7. (2) OJ L 43, 14.2.1997, p. 25 (3) OJ L 115, 17.4.1998, p. 31 (4) OJ L 84, 26.3.1997, p. 22

European Parliament resolution on the communication from the Commission 'Towards a single market for supplementary pensions - results of the consultations on the Green Paper on supplementary pensions in the single market' (COM(1999) 134 - C5-0135/1999 - 1999/2131(COS) )

P5_TA(2000)0179 A5-0053/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the communication from the Commission (COM(1999) 134 - C5-0135/1999 ),

-  having regard to the Commission's Green Paper of 10 June 1997 on supplementary pensions in the single market (COM(1997) 283 - C4-0392/1997 ),

-  having regard to Council Directive 98/49/EC on safeguarding the supplementary pension rights of employed and self-employed persons moving within the Community(1) ,

-  having regard to its opinion of 30 April 1998(2) on the proposal for a Council Directive on safeguarding the supplementary pension rights of employed and self-employed persons moving within the European Union (COM(1997) 486 - C4-0661/1997 - 1997/0265(CNS) ),

-  having regard to Directives 79/267/EEC (3) , 90/619/EEC (4) and 92/96/EEC (5) on life assurance undertakings,

-  having regard to Directives 85/611/EEC (6) and 88/220/EEC (7) on investment companies,

-  having regard to Article 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the opinions of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Single market and the Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities (A5-0053/2000 ),

A.  whereas the Commission communication is concerned solely with supplementary, funded pension schemes, and any legislative initiatives derived from it will not have the aim of initiating structural changes to national pension schemes,

B.  whereas the structure of supplementary pensions depends on the basic state scheme (=1st pillar pensions), which in many Member States is based on inter-generation compacts and, in accordance with the subsidiarity principle, is solely the Member States' responsibility; greeting with satisfaction, however, the fact that the Member States are looking for ways to ensure the sustainability of state schemes in the light of their increasing cost,

C.  whereas the state safety net has made it possible to ensure an adequate standard of living and to curtail poverty and whereas this model should remain the cornerstone of the European Union's social insurance system,

D.  whereas retirement provision is one of the greatest political and economic challenges of our times; whereas not only in Europe, but world-wide, nations are facing a situation where state pension schemes cannot be sustained in their present form; whereas in the past the voluntary pension instruments in the field of the second pillar in Europe have not been able to reach out to small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) which are the largest employers in the Union and that is why SMEs are often deterred by the administrative and other costs as well as the liability risks associated with traditional pension instruments; whereas in many Member States SMEs in particular are increasingly expressing an interest in defined contribution schemes which do not oblige them to cover biometric risks and whereas if this need is not addressed there is a risk that a large number of future pensioners in the Union will not be reached,

E.  whereas neither funding nor pay-as-you-go can entirely prevent demographic tensions in future pension schemes in the European Union's Member States, although funded pension schemes enable positive use to be made of international growth effects for individual pension provision in a globalised capital and investment environment,

F.  whereas, particularly at the beginning of the 21st century, funded pension schemes have considerable development potential and the favourable trend in the capital markets may enhance this potential,

G.  whereas supplementary funded pensions will play an increasingly important role in covering the pension risk in old age in the European single market and so perform a decisive function as a complement to the statutory pension scheme; whereas it is of the utmost importance to improve returns on pension scheme investments without compromising their security,

H.  whereas supplementary pension funds in the Community give defined benefits and/or make defined contributions; whereas, however, both systems include pension funds that cover biometric risks, and it is therefore confusing to equate pension schemes entailing defined contributions with pension schemes that accept no biometric risks,

I.  whereas the stability and profitability of capital markets are increasingly influenced by the accumulation of pension capital; stressing the significant impact of the greater investment flexibility on the capital markets in terms of improving liquidity and increasing the availability of capital for investment in order to benefit job creation and promote European competitiveness,

J.  whereas the introduction of the euro has improved the structure and function of the capital markets, thereby abolishing the need to lay down quantitative investment restrictions, which have proved to be counter-productive while generating sub-optimal performances, and should be replaced by strict qualitative supervisory rules to ensure that investment operations are carried out under the "prudent-person principle” to ensure adequate security for the pensioner,

K.  whereas existing supplementary pension products in the Community vary widely and are only partly covered by Community legislation; whereas not only an adjustment to existing Community legislation but also additional rules will therefore be needed if there is to be equal treatment and the differences are to be taken into account,

L.  whereas persons entitled to pensions in a closed supplementary pension scheme fund this scheme and are therefore eligible to participate in the governance of the pension scheme according to the legislation in several Member States; whereas it should be noted that no such similar provisions exist for insurance industry, and have never been discussed during the preparatory process for the life insurance directives,

M.  whereas the national disparities in the tax treatment of pension products, their complexity and specific characteristics are major obstacles to labour mobility and freedom to provide services in the Union; whereas the Commission should resume discussions in the Taxation Policy Group in order to adopt the EET-model according to which the pension is taxed only at the time of pension payout; whereas taxation during the pension payout period results in the accumulation of greater assets as a result of the compound interest effect and therefore makes higher economic growth possible, although some Member States must accept some losses of tax in the short term,

N.  whereas there is an urgent need for coordination of tax legislation and prudential rules if serious distortions of competition are to be avoided where suppliers of supplementary pension schemes have cross-border membership,

O.  whereas freedom of movement as regards maintaining acquired supplementary pension entitlements should first be resolved within the Member States in order to ensure that those remaining in the same Member State while changing employer are not treated differently from those who move to an employer situated in another Member State; whereas the vesting periods should be adjusted and rules should be laid down on cross-border membership in respect of all supplementary pension schemes,

P.  whereas the Member States should not be entitled to discriminate against people who, for whatever reason, whether choice of scheme or migration, pay into pension schemes outside the Member State in which they work,

1.  Welcomes the Commission's intention to submit to the legislature - the Council and Parliament - a proposal for a directive on supplementary pensions, which must essentially establish a Community framework for the development of a genuine single market for pension funds by eliminating the obstacles to free choice of a pension fund, free movement of persons and freedom to provide services, and to prevent double taxation, whilst recognising that levels of tax-relief remain matters for individual governments;

2.  Notes that it is essential that by definition a pension includes cover for longevity through the purchase of an annuity and takes the view that supplementary pensions which also cover biometric risks are particularly advantageous for the person covered and for society as a whole and that accordingly, in the future legal framework for supplementary pensions, they could be given preference;

3.  Notes that contributions to a pension fund constitute just one of many methods of making provision for old age;

4.  Emphasises that guaranteed pension cover is particularly important in every pension pillar, especially for people on a low income who consequently pay minimal contributions and may therefore expect no more than a low level of entitlements;

5.  Reaffirms its commitment to the European social model, based on the principle of solidarity, and to its effective social security systems founded on the conviction that economic and social progress are interlinked; considers, therefore, that social security should be regarded as a productive factor and thus that everyone's access to rights and benefits should be guaranteed while acknowledging that in this context, supplementary pension schemes can help to meet the challenges arising from demographic trends and high levels of unemployment in European countries, since they will complement pay as-you-go pension schemes without replacing them;

6.  Notes that combating unemployment and the creation of stable and fulfilling jobs play a decisive role in strengthening the financial efficiency of the first pillar of pension schemes, which is still the most important element in safeguards for old age;

7.  Reaffirms the continued validity of the approach taken in 1992 by the Council in its recommendations concerning, on the one hand, common criteria for sufficient levels of revenue and benefits in the social protection system, and on the other the convergence of objectives and policy in the field of social protection;

8.  Welcomes the new process of dialogue initiated by the Commission with its Green Paper and continued with this communication in respect of supplementary pensions, a sensitive issue for European citizens;

9.  Welcomes the proposal to establish a European Pensions Forum bringing together representatives of the Member States, pension funds and the social partners to monitor existing and future Community legislation;

10.  Considers that prudential rules must ensure that funds are secure without being disproportionate to this objective, that these rules must be differentiated according to whether a scheme is internal or external to the enterprise, that only an internal financing (book reserve) scheme should provide a guarantee against insolvency, with the proviso that external financing schemes (insurance companies or pension fund) already provide a guarantee ín case of bankruptcy of the employer;

11.  Endorses the principle upheld by the Court of Justice that supplementary pensions, including compulsory schemes, do not come within the scope of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71(8) ;

12.  Calls on the Commission to take particular account in the directive of the principles established by the Court of Justice concerning the social function of supplementary pension systems, which are to be found, for example, in the judgment it handed down in Case C-67/96;

13.  Calls on the Commission to submit at the earliest opportunity a proposal for a directive on prudential rules for pension funds; calls for this proposal to be complemented by a proposal on the removal of obstacles to labour mobility and a proposal on the coordination of tax systems;

14.  Stresses that ultimately complete freedom of investment presents the best guarantee of compliance with pension obligations and calls on the Commission, therefore, to provide as a general rule in the planned proposals for directives on supplementary pensions in the internal market that Member States may not compel pension funds to invest in particular categories of investment;

15.  Considers that, in implementing a directive on pension funds, which has been long overdue, account must be taken of security aspects, and above all of the investment process (the prudent-person principle) and the prudent use of certain financial instruments concerned with long-term pension obligations;

16.  Recommends to the Commission that pension funds not be restricted in their freedom to choose an investment manager, for part or the whole of their assets, who is established in another Member State and duly authorised for this activity, according to Directives 92/96/EEC , 89/646/EEC (9) , 93/22/EEC (10) and Directive 85/611/EEC currently in the process of being amended;

17.  Emphasises that pensions that cover biometric risks, i.e. that guarantee payment of a pension until the end of the insured person's life, its payment to surviving dependants and cover for invalidity risks, play an important role in supplementing the first pillar and, in the great majority of Member States, are already taxed during the payout period; therefore considers cross-border memberships within the Community to be most readily achievable in this product group, as loss of tax revenue in the Member State would be within acceptable limits;

18.  Endorses the goals set by the Commission but focuses on different means; supports the proposal that quantitative prudential rules be replaced by qualitative rules if it can be ensured that Community conditions relating to internal monitoring, external monitoring and monitoring by the supervisory authority, and the priority of pensioners' rights in the event of the pension schemes' bankruptcy are adequately defined in a proposal for legislation; opposes the proposals concerning insolvency insurance since they restrict competition between pension schemes and life insurance companies;

19.  Emphasises the importance of maintaining acquired pension rights, the adjustment of non-forfeitability periods and the transfer of entitlements with regard to the free movement of workers in the internal market and supports the Commission's proposal to establish a Pensions Forum consisting of representatives of governments and the social partners in order to identify possible solutions to these problems;

20.  Regrets the fact that there is currently no consensus on Community legislation regarding supplementary pension vesting periods and calls therefore on the European social partners to open negotiations on a framework agreement at sectoral or European level on this subject; urges the Member States, the Commission and the Council to stimulate such negotiations;

21.  Recommends the adoption of legislative measures to facilitate transfers of acquired rights or cross-border affiliation to funds in order to ensure complete free movement of workers, both men and women, at the same time as the acquisition or preservation of pension entitlements;

22.  Reiterates its call for the establishment of European pension funds open to workers from a company or group that has offices in several Member States;

23.  Stresses that the growing importance of supplementary pension schemes is liable increasingly to hamper the free movement of workers unless European coordination rules are established in this area; calls therefore on the Commission, as a matter of urgency, to submit concrete options for proposals ensuring transferability of pension rights under supplementary pension schemes;

24.  Considers that the preservation of acquired rights is essential when a spouse interrupts or abandons his or her work in order to devote himself or herself to his or her family or look after next of kin who are in need of assistance; considers that for the purpose of calculating pensions, certain periods devoted to the upbringing of children or care of family members should be taken into account; considers it desirable to provide for the possibility of continued voluntary or optional insurance to preserve and improve pension rights and guarantee a right to payment of the capital under certain conditions;

25.  Calls on the Commission to take account in the future directive of the specific earning patterns of women, for example as regards vesting periods, and to build in mechanisms that will combat the current discrimination which is caused by those earning patterns;

26.  Notes that account needs to be taken of the growth of atypical and non-continuous employment patterns, particularly among women workers, who still assume the bulk of family duties and are thus disadvantaged by long pension qualification periods geared to continuity of employment;

27.  Notes that harmonisation of the vesting periods should, however, apply only to the schemes established after a certain date;

28.  Considers that, in the event of departure before retirement age, subscribers to a supplementary pension scheme should be able to request payment, in the form of capital, of the value of their acquired rights on certain conditions, inter alia if moving to another enterprise abroad or reducing their working time from age 55;

29.  Finds that the best solution to the taxation problem is the model that relies on the taxation of the pension payout while exempting from tax contributions to the fund and returns within the fund (EET-model), and calls on the Member States to find solutions that, in the medium term, permit taxation of pension payouts in the single market so that fiscal benefits may also accrue from long-term growth effects and, above all, so that the double taxation of pensions that still exists in some places may be eliminated;

30.  Welcomes specifically, therefore, the fact that the working group on tax policy has started work on the tax treatment of cross-border contributions of migrant workers in relation to occupational and sectoral systems and calls on the working group to extend its discussions in due course to other aspects of taxation on supplementary pensions and life assurance contracts with the aim of eliminating the double taxation of pension benefits, which still exists in some cases;

31.  Looks forward to seeing the promotion of supplementary pensions by direct funding, as referred to in the Commission report on promotion of employee participation in profits and enterprise results (including equity participation) (PEPPER II - 1996 report) (COM(1996) 697 ), taking a form which will also enable pensioners on below-average incomes to benefit from it (e.g. in the form not only of tax breaks but also of savings supplements);

32.  Welcomes the specific reform proposals formulated in the Commission communication on the basis of the consultations conducted with the parties concerned after presentation of the Green Paper and calls on the Commission to present as soon as possible the planned draft versions of the relevant legislation in the form of a directive;

33.  Criticises the fact that insufficient attention has been paid in the Commission communication to the social policy aspects and, in particular, the specific women's issues and the conclusions to be drawn therefrom in respect of equality of opportunity; this applies above all with regard to resolving the problems with transfers, qualifying periods, the entitlements of divorced persons, assisting spouses, self-employed persons and survivors;

34.  Insists that the Member States implement more consistently the principle of 'equal pay for equal work' enshrined in Article 141 of the EC Treaty in order to guarantee equality for women and men at work and in retirement; any contractual arrangement infringing the principle of equal treatment for women and men should be invalid;

35.  Points out that because of wage discrimination women also remain more dependent than men on the retention of state pension schemes since in many cases they lack the resources to build up a supplementary pension provision;

36.  Believes it is essential in the interests of a fully functioning internal market to promulgate legislation aimed at removing the existing obstacles to the free choice of pension fund, to freedom of movement and to freedom to provide services;

37.  Recommends legislative measures to facilitate the transfer of pension entitlements and/or cross-border membership of pension funds in order to guarantee unrestricted freedom of movement of male and female workers when acquiring and/or preserving pension entitlements;

38.  Considers the preservation of acquired pension entitlements to be indispensable where a spouse interrupts or terminates gainful employment in order to look after the family or take care of dependants in need; advocates that certain periods spent bringing up children and looking after family members in need of care should be credited for the purposes of calculating pensions; believes the possibility of voluntary additional provision or of optional provision to preserve and top up pension rights as well as for the purposes of creating an entitlement to payment of the capital to be appropriate under certain circumstances;

39.  Calls once again on the Commission to present a revised version of the existing directives in the area of equal treatment for women and men in statutory and occupational social security schemes;

40.  Insists on appropriate representation of women on the planned Pensions Forum to be set up and on this body being allocated equal opportunities issues as its responsibility;

41.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and Council.

(1) OJ L 209, 25.7.1998, p. 46. (2) OJ C 152, 18.5.1998, p. 65. (3) OJ L 63, 13.3.1979, p. 1. (4) OJ L 330, 29.11.1990, p. 50. (5) OJ L 360, 9.12.1992, p. 1. (6) OJ L 375, 31.12.1985, p. 3. (7) OJ L 220, 19.4.1988, p. 31. (8) As last amended by Regulation (EC) No 118/97 (OJ L 28, 30.1.1997, p. 1.) (9) OJ L 386, 30.12.1989, p. 1. (10) OJ L 141, 11.6.1993, p. 27.

European Parliament resolution on the communication from the Commission on to the European Parliament and the Council: The Strategy for Europe's Internal Market (COM(1999) 464 - C5-0212/1999 - 1999/2167(COS) )

P5_TA(2000)0180 A5-0098/2000

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to the Commission communication (COM(1999) 464 - C5-0212/1999 ),

-  having regard to the amended Commission communication (COM(1999) 624 ),

-  having regard to Article 14 of the EC Treaty,

-  having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

-  having regard to the report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market and the opinions of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, the Committee on Fisheries and the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (A5-0098/2000 ),

A.  whereas the creation of a European market based on common rules and mutual recognition is an essential element in improving European competitiveness,

B.  whereas the European internal market is faced with the increasingly rapid globalisation of the world economy, the effect of which is further heightened by developments in information and communications technology,

C.  whereas the EU is faced with the enormous challenge of basing future economic success on specialisation of markets and local creativity,

1.  Welcomes the structure set in place by the Commission's Strategy for Europe's Internal Market, which is centred around the citizen and small and medium-sized businesses and incorporates operational objectives directed at sustainable development, protecting consumer interests, supporting employment and coordinating social protection and serving - often interdependent - strategic objectives; applauds the innovative switch from a linear approach to an annual Single Market cycle, with its emphasis on target actions with agreed deadlines and a measurable output, which can be reviewed and, where necessary, adjusted;

2.  Reiterates the concerns expressed in its resolution of 4 November 1999 on the strategy for Europe's single market(1) , especially with a view to preserving Parliament's rights;

3.  Announces that it intends to provide feedback and input on a regular basis throughout the lifetime of the Strategy for the Internal Market;

4.  Resolves to raise the profile of the internal market by stressing its enormous benefits, actual and potential, for the citizen and businesses and presses the Commission to do likewise; is concerned, however, that businesses are not always aware of the advantage of treating the whole of the EU (even the whole of the EEA) as a single market rather than as a collection of national markets, while neither administrative obstacles nor the behaviour of consumers is enough to explain this cautious attitude; mass information campaigns similar to those conducted in the case of the euro and incentives to encourage the private sector not to treat partners from other Member States unfavourably should be considered;

5.  Emphasises the importance of striking a proper balance in any new initiatives between self-regulation and public regulation, since it is vital to have the proper amount of public regulation as a framework affording the legal certainty needed to create a climate of confidence for businesses and consumers;

6.  Urges the Commission to concentrate on monitoring the implementation of internal market legislation in the Member States more closely;

7.  Draws the Member States' attention to the need to review their mechanisms for transposing and implementing internal market legislation, in particular to avoid gold-plating, and urges the Commission to pay special attention in the context of its pilot project on administrative cooperation to creating internal-market mindedness in its interlocutors (national and regional governments, business federations and even the Commission's own staff in certain cases) while monitoring national implementing measures for effects detrimental to the internal market; regards, therefore, the proposed supervision methods, which are largely based on business management methods, as a challenge to be taken up with vigilance and determination by traditional administrations, which must be seen as positive;

8.  Takes the view that improving and simplifying the legal, administrative and fiscal environment in order to enable companies to operate efficiently and effectively within the internal market must continue to be a key objective; considers that legislation should not involve costs and other burdens which lead to firms, and especially small and medium-sized businesses, which are a central feature of measures to improve the business climate and foster innovation, losing their competitive advantage over foreign competitors;

9.  Expresses its appreciation in this context of the study currently being carried out by the Economic and Social Committee into a database of internal market best practices, under its PRISM (Progress Report on the Single Market) initiative;

10.  Calls on the Commission, as regards its proposal for a regulation to modernise the rules on competition (amending Regulation No 17/62), to pay heed to Parliament's requests (for new procedural rules, the right to a legal hearing, separation of the individual stages of the procedure, processing deadlines - applying not least to the Commission - and for the parties concerned to be empowered to conduct litigation and inspect the records);

11.  Notes that the Commission intends to review its policy on horizontal agreements and calls on it to enter into detailed discussion with Parliament on the guidelines for the review (which have not yet been issued);

12.  Regrets that the competition policy measures fail to provide for firmer action against abuses of a dominant position encompassing the sectors affected by liberalisation and privatisation;

13.  Welcomes the projected legislative provisions (adoption of the exemption regulation and amendment of Regulation (EEC) No 1107/70) and non-legislative steps (enforcement of direct taxation measures) in the sphere of State aids;

14.  Welcomes the Dialogue with Business and Citizens as reflecting the need for the Commission to listen and react to the concerns of the community; notes that this ongoing interactive process with society should be stepped up and considers that it should be expanded into a common virtual working space between the Commission and Parliament for the benefit of citizens and business;

15.  Undertakes, in its capacity as budgetary authority, to support the provision of sufficient budgetary resources for this project;

16.  Calls on the Member States, the Economic and Social Committee, all interested parties and civil society in general to support this venture, which is consistent with the Council's conclusions of 6 and 7 December 1999 on transparency and cooperation in the field of information activities, through their participation in the ongoing effort to bring the European Union closer to its citizens;

17.  Undertakes to encourage the development of this European public information service and asks the Commission to report to it periodically on the progress made;

18.  Invites the Commission to cooperate with Parliament in organising an Internal Market Forum through which citizens and small and medium-sized businesses may channel their concerns and discuss solutions;

19.  Points out that small businesses are still hampered as regards taking advantage of the opportunities afforded by the internal market by the continuing absence of harmonisation in some areas of legislation and by barriers in the shape of lack of mutual recognition for product standards and certification in some Member States and the remaining barriers to freedom of movement and establishment; accordingly underlines the vital importance of making infringement procedures faster and more efficient;

20.  Urges the Commission not to shirk its role as guardian of the Treaties, while stressing the importance of the transparency and legal certainty of infringement procedures; accordingly the Commission is invited to use its discretion so as to ensure that decisions closing infringement procedures are duly reasoned and published;

21.  Welcomes the proposals to the Intergovernmental Conference which seek to accelerate the infringement procedures by means of Treaty amendments;

22.  Welcomes the initiative taken by the Commission to launch measures to simplify legislation, although it stresses the need for legislation to be applied uniformly by all the Member States, with particular reference to customs procedures; reiterates its call for an overall approach, resulting in a legal order for the internal market which is on the whole consistent and favourable for small and medium-sized businesses in particular, involves other interests in a balanced way and avoids unnecessary bureaucratic burdens and, to this end, calls for:

23.  Requests that, as far as financial services are concerned, the Commission informs Parliament, in detail of:

24.  Urges the Commission to submit proposals on ecological performance and efficiency indicators on the internal market, especially in the transport, energy, agricultural, and manufacturing sectors;

25.  Points out that the strategic objectives selected must be such as to demonstrate particular attention for the people of Europe from the point of view of environmental protection, the management of natural resources and public health safeguards, and that particular attention must also be paid to working conditions within companies in order to prevent accidents of any kind and to create a pleasant atmosphere for workers;

26.  Welcomes the Commission proposal on the simplification and modernisation of the regulation on social security schemes; expects, however, from the Commission a more ambitious proposal on a global reform of Regulation 1408/71, in order to ensure genuinely free movement of workers and citizens in general, with particular reference to the portability of their rights in order to maintain the rights accorded under the different national laws; proposes to develop EURES into a European employment service; considers that any obstacles within social security schemes which limit employment opportunities should be eliminated; and calls on the Commission to submit without delay proposals to amend the directive on the recognition of vocational training, including training for the disabled, and to recast the directives on the right of residence so as to promote mobility within the internal market and keep red tape to a minimum with the aim of improving employment opportunities (employability) as part of the principle of free movement of persons;

27.  Calls on the Commission to ensure that the Strategy for the Internal Market goes hand in hand with measures to foster cohesion so as to prevent regional disparities from widening still further, proceeding invariably from the premise that the EC Treaty assigns central importance to the principle and goal of economic and social cohesion as laid down in Article 158;

28.  Firmly believes that the Strategy for the Internal Market should be geared to promoting a cultural shift away from a risk-averse, longer decision-making cycle towards a shorter, quicker cycle by:

29.  Considers that the introduction of a cost-effective Community patent is a matter of urgency with a view to encouraging innovation, especially in the small-business sector, and that innovation in that sector can be encouraged and protected through the rapid introduction of measures to counter piracy and counterfeiting in the internal market;

30.  Calls for improvements in the field of company law, especially the law relating to insolvency and the creation of a statute allowing small and medium-sized businesses to set up as Union-wide firms, in view of their creativity and potential for job creation;

31.  Considers that the single market in pharmaceuticals is incomplete and that the consequent market distortions are causing wide disparities in patient access to needed medicines; is therefore of the opinion that progressive liberalisation of the pharmaceutical market is needed in order to improve patient choice and access to high-quality, safe, efficacious and cost-effective medicines and to ensure that these medicines are available throughout the European Union; calls on the Commission to include in its programmes a proposal for a framework directive for completing the internal market in pharmaceuticals by introducing a gradual economic liberalisation of all sectors of the industry and to propose legislation to amend Directive 65/65/EEC on medicinal products with a view to harmonising and recasting regulatory data protection, in the light of the December 1998 European Court of Justice decision on generics;

32.  Believes that work on the simplification of the value added tax system and its direct application to electronic commerce should be speeded up; stresses the need for measures to be adopted such as a reduction in the tax burden on employment, a timetable for the progressive approximation of VAT rates, the introduction of a lower VAT rate for labour-intensive activities and the principle of payment at the place of origin, abolition of the double taxation of cross-border workers, the abolition of tax havens and the drawing up of common principles on taxation schemes;

33.  Notes that, more than a year after the introduction of the euro, the high cost of bank-to-bank transfers in euro across Europe is maintaining monetary barriers which ought to have been abolished; calls on the Commission to take the necessary steps to ban, as from January 2001, the levying of fees on Euro-11 inter-bank transfers in euros that are higher than those levied on the national market;

34.  Stresses the need to introduce reforms to improve the functioning of capital markets and welcomes the Commission proposal for an action plan for financial services in general;

35.  Notes that the Helsinki European Council did not adopt the tax package owing to a lack of adequate progress on the two components of the package, i.e. the simultaneous adoption of directives on the taxation of savings and on company taxation; points out that there is no reason to kill off fair tax competition in the European Union and that the priority must be to eliminate the distortions which do exist and are actually disrupting the single market, that the competitiveness of European financial markets on a world scale must be preserved, and the geographical coverage of the directive on the taxation of savings should be extended to dependent or associate territories where Member States have special responsibilities and to non-Community countries likely to attract capital from the European Union;

36.  Urges the Council swiftly to adopt the directive on introducing a minimum tax on energy products while taking into account the European Parliament's opinion of 13 April 1999 on the proposal for a Council Directive on restructuring the Community framework for the taxation of energy products(2) ;

37.  Calls on the Commission to ensure the correct implementation of the liberalisation of the energy markets and to avoid any measures relating to the taxation of energy products which would result in increased costs, thus making companies located in the Union less competitive with non-Community undertakings, with disastrous consequences in particular for employment;

38.  Considers that the economic incentives which are proposed in the communication should be designed as a priority to achieve the full completion of the internal market;

39.  Welcomes the fact that the Commission in its latest Single Market Scoreboard gives special attention to progress in the implementation of the Financial Services Action Plan, and points out that while indeed some progress has been made there are still major issues to be addressed in this field, while the Commission's expectations have proved to be overoptimistic in some areas;

40.  Urges the Commission to set to work rapidly and in a coordinated manner on the promotion of a European network of alternative dispute-resolution systems and on procedural rules therefor, in particular for on-line transactions, which will provide consumers with a real possibility of obtaining redress, thereby increasing consumer confidence in electronic commerce while not deterring small businesses from opening Internet trading sites;

41.  Accordingly, invites the Commission to bring forward its action to support initiatives for on-line out of court redress and for the Green Paper on access to justice and redress for consumers and the dialogue for consumers as part of the framework for e-commerce, and also to give urgent consideration to the introduction of a Community-wide small-claims procedure and a quality labelling system for Internet trading sites;

42.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council and the governments of the Member States.

(1) Texts Adopted of that date, Item 7. (2) OJ C 219, 30.7.1999, p. 91.