(Consultation procedure)

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(2006)0162)(1),

–   having regard to the first sentence of Article 181a(2) of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C6-0170/2006),

–   having regard to Rule 51 of its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the opinion of the Committee on Budgetary Control (A6-0285/2006),

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 if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

4.  Asks the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to amend the Commission proposal substantially;

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

Text proposed by the Commission   Amendments by Parliament Amendment 1 RECITAL 5 A (new) (5a) In order to maintain the high level of EU involvement in the region, the Commission should ensure that relevant expertise gained by the Agency in providing technical and financial assistance to the countries concerned is not lost during the transfer of responsibilities and that the necessary continuity of work is guaranteed. Amendment 2 ARTICLE 1 A (new) Article 1a Reports 1.  In the interests of clarity and transparency, the Commission shall provide quarterly reports to the European Parliament and the Council, setting out the ongoing operational details of the transfer plan, including the distribution of tasks between the Agency and the relevant Commission delegations and details concerning cooperation between them during the transitional period. The reports shall also refer to the envisaged timetable for the hand-over process, the objectives achieved since the previous report and new goals to be set, in addition to providing an overview of the way in which the transfer will work in practice for all the countries concerned and, in particular, for the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, in light of its status as a candidate country. 2.  In the context of the reports referred to in paragraph 1, the Commission shall specify in detail: (a) the measures it intends to take to promote regional projects, such as projects involving cooperation between countries and cross-border infrastructure projects, once the Agency has ceased to exist; (b) plans for the upgrading of the Commission delegations and/or offices following the separation of the Republics of Serbia and Montenegro. The report shall also include proposals for upgrading the delegations and/or offices dealing with the future status of Kosovo.

(1) Not yet published in OJ.