Louise Weiss Building, Room R1.1

PV CPG 23.11.2016

PE-8/CPG/PV/2016-22

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

       

CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS MINUTES

of the ordinary meeting of Wednesday 23 November 2016

Louise Weiss Building, Room R1.1

Strasbourg

PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS

MINUTES

of the ordinary meeting of

Wednesday, 23 November 2016

from 13:30 to 15:00 hours

Louise Weiss Building, Room R1.1

Strasbourg

CONTENTS Page

PE 590.396/CPG 2/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS

MINUTES

of the meeting of Wednesday 23 November 2016

from 13:30 to 15:00 hours

Strasbourg

The meeting opened at 13.41 hours with Mr Martin SCHULZ,

President of the European Parliament, in the chair

Present

Mr SCHULZ, President

Political Group Chairs Mr WEBER (EPP) Mr GUERRERO SALOM (Acting) (S&D) Mr KAMALL (ECR) Mr VERHOFSTADT (ALDE) Ms ZIMMER (GUE/NGL) Ms HARMS (Co-Chair) (Greens/EFA) Mr BORRELLI (Co-Chair) (EFDD) Ms LE PEN (Co-Chair) (ENF) Ms DODDS1 (NI)

Also Present

Mr WELLE, Secretary-General Mr WINKLER, Deputy Secretary-General Invited: Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs

Also invited - item 5 Ms HÜBNER, Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs

1 Present pursuant to Rule 26 (2) of the Rules of Regulations of Procedure

3/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 The Council2 represented by Ms TUTS Mr KERLEROUX

The Commission1 represented by Mr FORTI Mr CLEMENS Mr PINE

The Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy1 represented by Mr VISENTIN

Office of the President Mr KNUDSEN Ms BLAU Mr FASSINA Ms NOYON Mr MASUR Mr KOEKKOEK Ms PERETIE

Office of the Secretary-General Mr MANGOLD Mr SORENSEN Ms FERNANDEZ PERLES Ms KOSTIDOU

Office of the Deputy Secretary-General Ms JIMENEZ-LOZANO

Secretariat

DG Presidency (PRES) Mr LANE/Ms ROBSON/Ms GANDOLFO/Ms TARDIOLI- SCHIAVO2/Mr NATSCHERADETZ1/Ms SAILIS1/ Mr WICKER1/Mr JAVELLE3

DG Internal Policies (IPOL) Ms VANDENBOSCH/Mr CHIOCCHETTI/Ms KERR/ Ms FONTANILI1/Mr PACHECO2

DG External Policies (EXPO) Mr AGUIRIANO

DG European Parliamentary Research Services (EPRS)

21 Present for items 1-3 2 Present for items 1-5 3 Present for item 5

PE 590.396/CPG 4/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 Mr TEASDALE

DG Communication (COMM) Ms LAHOUSSE/Mr DUCH GUILLOT

DG Personnel (PERS) Mr KAISER

DG Infrastructures and Logistics Ms LINNUS

DG Interpretation and Conferences (INTE) Ms WALTER-DROP

DG Translation (TRAD) Mr MAVRIČ

DG Innovation and Technical Support (ITEC) Mr VILELLA

Legal Service (SJ) Mr DREXLER/Ms MARTINEZ IGLESIAS

Directorate for relations with political groups Mr SCHWETZ

Secretariat of the Bureau Mr TZIORKAS

______1 Present for items 1-3 2 Present for item 5

5/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016

Political groups

Mr KAMP/Mr RYNGAERT/Ms SCRIBAN/Ms LASKAVÁ (EPP) Mr MORENO SANCHEZ/Mr BURU/Ms PEREIRA (S&D) Mr BARRETT/Mr BOYD (ECR) Mr BEELS/Ms COLERA-GARZÓN/Mr RASMUSSEN/McLAUGHLIN (ALDE) Ms D’ALIMONTE/Ms LEPOLA (GUE/NGL) Ms TSETSI/Mr DENKINGER/Mr LINAZASORO (Greens/EFA) Mr CALAZZO/Ms ALBERTINI (EFDD) Mr DE DANNE/Mr HOLZFEIND (ENF) Mr BORDEZ (NI)

Ms WOLLNY, Mr ROHLJE, Ms BERTULESSI, Ms SCHADE and Mr VAUGIER acted as secretaries to the meeting.

PE 590.396/CPG 6/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 1. Adoption of the draft agenda

The Conference of Presidents

- noted and adopted the draft agenda in the form shown in these Minutes (PE 590.394/CPG).

7/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 2. Approval of the draft Minutes of the meeting of 17 November 2016

- noted and approved the draft Minutes of the ordinary meeting of 17 November 2016, held in Brussels (PE 590.374/CPG and annex).

PE 590.396/CPG 8/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 3. Adoption of the final draft agenda for the November II part-session (from 30 November to 1 December 2016) in Brussels and the draft agenda for the December part session (from 12 December to 15 December 2016) in Strasbourg - Scheduling of key debates in plenary

- noted the following documents:

 a letter dated 22 November 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, submitting a recommendation regarding the final draft agenda for the November II part-session (from 30 November to 1 December 2016) in Brussels, and the draft agenda for the December part-session (from 12 to 15 December 2016) in Strasbourg (PE 595.132/CPG and annexes);

 a letter dated 23 November 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, on co-decision files currently under negotiation (PE 595.133/CPG and annexes);

- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, Mr GUERRERO SALOM, acting Chair of the S&D Group, Mr KAMALL, Chair of the ECR Group, Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Ms ZIMMER, Chair of the GUE/NGL Group, and Ms HARMS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, and adopted the final draft agenda for the November II 2016 part-session with the following modification: Wednesday, 30 November 2016

- decided that Council and Commission statements on the revision of the Multiannual financial framework for the years 2014-2020 be included;

- noted and, following a vote, adopted the draft agenda for the December 2016 part-session with the following modification: Tuesday, 13 December 2016

- decided that the debate and vote on the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada of the one part, and the European Union and its Member States, of the other part be postponed, however, not later than until the February II 2017 part-session.

9/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 4. Communications by the President

4.1 CETA

- heard the President recall that, at its meeting on 17 November 2016, the Conference of Presidents had endorsed that, with a view to the conclusion of CETA, the INTA Committee be in charge of drafting a recommendation for the consent procedure as lead committee with a standard opinion to be delivered by AFET;

- heard him further recall that the EMPL and ENVI Committees had requested to give an opinion;

- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, Mr GUERRERO SALOM, acting Chair of the S&D Group, Mr KAMALL, Chair of the ECR Group, Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Ms HARMS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, and Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs;

- agreed with the President’s proposal that the EMPL and ENVI Committees could give an opinion to the recommendation drafted by INTA as lead committee with the standard opinion delivered by AFET.

4.2 EU-Turkey Relations

- heard the President propose that, in view of Parliament’s resolution on EU-Turkey relations scheduled to be voted in plenary on 24 November 2016, the planned mission of the INTA Committee to Turkey, from 19 to 21 December 2016, be postponed;

- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, Mr GUERRERO SALOM, acting Chair of the S&D Group, Ms HARMS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, and Mr BORRELLI, Co-Chair of the EFDD Group, during which, inter alia, the situation of journalists in Turkey was raised, and during which broad support for a postponement of the INTA mission was expressed;

PE 590.396/CPG 10/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 - agreed to return to the matter after the adoption of Parliament’s resolution.

4.3 Exchange of views with Commissioner OETTINGER

- heard the President recall that, under Parliament’s Rules of Procedure and in line with previous practice, Commissioner OETTINGER would be invited to appear before the responsible BUDG, CONT and JURI Committees for an exchange of views, with a view to the future change of his portfolio;

- further heard him recall that the same procedure had been followed in the case of the portfolio change of Commissioner DOMBROVSKIS;

- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, Mr GUERRERO SALOM, acting Chair of the S&D Group, Mr KAMALL, Chair of the ECR Group, Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Ms ZIMMER, Chair of the GUE/NGL Group, Ms HARMS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, and Mr BORRELLI, Co-Chair of the EFDD Group;

- heard the President propose also that the Conference of Presidents take a decision on the appearance of Commissioner OETTINGER and the hearing for the new Bulgarian Commissioner-designate as a package, at a subsequent meeting, following Commission President JUNCKER’s decision on possible further portfolio changes in the Commission;

- heard him note that it would be for the Conference of Presidents to consider the outcome of the procedures in the committees;

- endorsed the President’s approach.

4.4 Date of the meeting during the December 2016 part-session

- heard the President propose that, in view of the meeting of the European Council in December, the meeting of the Conference of Presidents during the December 2016 part- session be held on Wednesday, 14 December 2016 in the afternoon;

11/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 - agreed with the President’s proposal.

4.5 Transparency register

- heard the President recall that, at its meeting on 27 October 2016, the Conference of Presidents had decided that Ms GUILLAUME, Vice-President responsible for the Transparency register, and Ms HÜBNER, Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs, be nominated as Parliament's lead negotiators for an Inter-institutional Agreement establishing a mandatory transparency register covering Parliament, Council and Commission, and that each political group nominate one Member to a contact group chaired by the lead negotiators;

- heard the President note that the political groups had nominated Mr WIELAND, EPP Group, Mr LEINEN, S&D Group, Ms RUOHONEN-LERNER, ECR Group, Ms PAGAZAURTUNDÚA RUIZ, ALDE Group, Mr DE JONG, GUE/NGL Group, Mr GIEGOLD, Greens/EFA Group, Ms ADINOLFI, EFDD Group, and Mr FERRAND, ENF Group, as their representatives in that contact group;

- further heard the President report that Ms GUILLAUME and Ms HÜBNER had informed him that the contact group would meet in the following weeks and that a draft mandate for the negotiations would be presented to the Conference of Presidents for adoption within the first months of 2017;

- endorsed the approach.

PE 590.396/CPG 12/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 5. United Kingdom withdrawal from the EU – Preparation of the exchange of views with Mr Michel BARNIER

- took note of the following documents:

 a letter dated 12 October 2016 from the President to Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, on the organisation of Parliament’s work on the process of the UK withdrawal from the EU (PE 590.481/CPG);

 Parliament’s resolution of 28 June 2016 on the decision to leave the EU resulting from the UK referendum (P8_TA-PROV(2016)0294);

- heard Mr VERHOFSTADT, coordinator for the negotiations on the UK withdrawal from the EU, report on his meetings with various interlocutors, inter alia, authorities of Northern Ireland, Scotland, Gibraltar and Malta, Members of the Finnish and French parliaments, and with Mr DAVIS, UK Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, adhering strictly to the principle of no negotiations before notification;

- heard Mr VERHOFSTADT recall that the Conference of Presidents would hold an exchange of views with Mr BARNIER, chief negotiator for the preparation and conduct of the negotiations with the United Kingdom under Article 50 TEU, at its extraordinary meeting on 30 November 2016; and heard him propose that Mr BARNIER be invited to report on his contacts with politicians and experts from the 27 Members States and from the UK, on the exchanges of views within the Commission, on the preparation of the Commission’s recommendations under Article 218 (3) TFEU, and on his reflections on the future of the EU;

- further heard Mr VERHOFSTADT propose that the Conference of Presidents inform Mr BARNIER that:

 the Conference of Presidents was the lead body within Parliament on the UK withdrawal from the EU;

13/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016  the Group Chairs were the contact persons for their groups, and that each Group Chair could appoint one Member to assist them in that role;

 Parliament’s committees had been asked to undertake fact-finding work, and that the Commission services should provide technical assistance for the committees’ work, if so requested;

 while the main interlocutor for Mr BARNIER was the Conference of Presidents and Mr VERHOFSTADT, in his role as its coordinator for the negotiations on the UK withdrawal from the EU, Mr BARNIER could also be invited to meetings of the Conference of Committee Chairs for an exchange of views;

 Parliament intended to adopt a resolution as input to the European Council guidelines under Article 50 TEU;

- heard Mr VERHOFSTADT further propose that the Conference of Presidents convey to Mr BARNIER, inter alia, that:

 Parliament strongly supported the European Commission’s role as negotiator on behalf of the EU;

 Parliament had to be closely involved from day one of the negotiations, on equal footing with the Council, and with a view to its role under the Treaties;

 the four fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Treaties and their integrity were non-negotiable and must not be prejudged by any future relationship between the EU and the UK;

 negotiations should be concluded within the two-year timeframe set out in the Treaty, and before the next European elections take place;

 negotiations had to be based on a comprehensive proposal and any transitional arrangements, if deemed necessary, should have an unambiguous sunset clause;

- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, and Mr GUERRERO SALOM, acting Chair of the S&D Group;

PE 590.396/CPG 14/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 - endorsed Mr VERHOFSTADT’s approach.

6. Request from the Committee on Constitutional Affairs to draw up a non-legislative initiative report under Rule 45 on the “Composition of the European Parliament”

 a letter dated 18 October 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, on the above-mentioned subject (PE 590.342/CPG and annex);

 a letter dated 25 October 2016 from Ms HÜBNER, Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs, on the request for authorisation to draft a non-legislative initiative report on the “Composition of the European Parliament” (PE 590.423/CPG);

- heard the President propose that the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO) be authorised to begin preparatory work on a non-legislative initiative report on Parliament’s composition, whereas the authorisation to draw up the report be withheld until the UK triggered Article 50 TEU, and the appointment of two co-rapporteurs be authorised, on the understanding that the co-rapporteurs liaised closely with Mr VERHOFSTADT, in his capacity as coordinator for the negotiations on the UK withdrawal from the EU;

- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, Mr GUERRERO SALOM, acting Chair of the S&D Group, Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Mr BORRELLI, Co-Chair of the EFDD Group, and Ms HÜBNER, Chair of the AFCO Committee;

- endorsed the President’s proposal;

- heard the President undertake to inform the Council of that decision.

15/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016

PE 590.396/CPG 16/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 7. Calendar of Parliamentary activities for 2018

 a calendar dated 23 November 2016 on the activities and sessions of the European Parliament for 2018 (PE 590.314/CPG);

 a letter dated 21 November 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, on the draft calendar of the European Parliament for 2018 (PE 595.126/CPG);

- took note of the calendar for Parliament’s activities (other than the plenary sessions) in 2018, dated 23 November 2016;

- recalled that, at its meeting on 27 October 2016, it had endorsed the draft calendar of Parliament's part-sessions in 2018, and submitted it to plenary for adoption; noted that the vote in plenary had taken place on Wednesday 23 November 2016;

- recalled that, at its meeting on 16 December 2015, it had agreed that the calendar of activities for 2017 should follow the pattern of the 2016 calendar, thereby ensuring enough days for meetings of the standing committees;

- recalled that, when adopting the 2016 draft calendar of activities on 4 June 2015, it had taken note that the 2016 calendar had foreseen that the Thursdays of weeks set aside for political groups would be proposed as mixed days for activities both of political groups and parliamentary committees, but that for this to work, extra meeting rooms for committees would be required;

- recalled that, as a result, it had agreed that each of the EPP, S&D, ECR and ALDE Groups would be willing to let committees use one of their meeting rooms, so that parliamentary committees would be able to have the use of at least eight large meeting rooms on those Thursdays;

- recalled that, at its meeting on 21 January 2016, it had approved the draft calendar for Parliament's activities (other than the plenary sessions) in 2017, on the above-mentioned condition regarding committee meeting rooms, on the understanding that the decision would

17/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 be reviewed before the summer break, in the light of the experience of the operation of the 2016 calendar;

- recalled that, at its meeting on 7 July 2016, it had confirmed the 2017 calendar as adopted on 21 January 2016 for Parliament's activities (other than the plenary sessions) in 2017, insisting that the political groups honour their commitment to make meeting rooms available for committee meetings, and had noted that that also implied that committees might meet on the Thursday afternoons of group weeks and on Fridays, and had requested the services concerned to continue exploring possibilities to optimise the use of rooms and interpretation facilities and report to the Conference of Presidents by the end of the year;

- noted that the calendar of activities for 2018 should follow, in principle, the pattern of the 2017 calendar, thereby ensuring sufficient days for meetings of the standing committees;

- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, Mr GUERRERO SALOM, acting Chair of the S&D Group, and Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs;

- agreed that during week 38, which had been set aside for external parliamentary activities, committees could meet exceptionally if necessary in view of their workload;

- adopted the calendar for Parliament's activities (other than the plenary sessions) in 2018, inviting the political groups to honour their commitment to make meeting rooms available for committee meetings, and noted that that also implied that committees might meet on the Thursday afternoons of group weeks and on Fridays.

PE 590.396/CPG 18/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 8. Draft programme of inter-parliamentary activities with National Parliaments for the first half of 2017

The Conference of Presidents, without debate

- took note of a letter dated 14 November 2016 from Mr VALCÁRCEL SISO and Ms JȀȀTTEENMȀKI, Vice-Presidents with responsibility for relations with National Parliaments, submitting a draft calendar of inter-parliamentary activities with national parliaments for the first half of 2017 (PE 590.468/CPG, annex and financial statement);

- noted that the inter-parliamentary meetings (IPMs) in Brussels were scheduled to take place during days set aside for parliamentary committee activities, with two IPMs also coinciding with a day set aside for political group activities, while some IPM dates had still to be confirmed;

- approved the meetings in principle, while noting that committee missions to national parliaments included in the programme would need to be authorised in the context of the programme for travel by parliamentary committee missions outside the three places of work during the first half of 2017;

- further noted that the delegations to the CFSP/CSDP Conference in Valletta, Malta, from 26 to 28 April 2017, and to the COSAC meetings in Valletta, Malta, from 22 to 23 January 2017 and from 28 to 30 May 2017, would each have to be authorised on an individual basis.

19/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 9. Request from the Committee on Foreign Affairs to send an ad hoc delegation to Israel, Palestine and Jordan from 2 to 6 January 2017

 a letter dated 13 October 2016 from Mr BROK, Chair of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, requesting authorisation to send an ad hoc delegation to Jerusalem, Israel, and possibly to Ramallah, Palestine, from 19 to 23 December 2016 (PE 590.364/CPG and financial statement);

 a letter dated 10 November 2016 from Mr BROK, Chair of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, requesting authorisation send an ad hoc delegation to Jerusalem, Israel, to Ramallah, Palestine, and to Amman, Jordan, from 19 to 23 December 2016, including travel time (PE 590.463/CPG and financial statement);

 a letter dated 22 November 2016 from Mr BROK, Chair of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, requesting authorisation to send an ad hoc delegation to Jerusalem, Israel, to Ramallah, Palestine, and to Amman, Jordan, from 2 to 6 January 2017, including travel time (PE 595.128/CPG and financial statement);

- noted that the ad hoc delegation had not been included in the draft programme for ad hoc delegations by parliamentary committees outside the territory of the European Union for the first half of 2017;

- noted that the proposed dates coincided with a week set aside for external parliamentary activities;

- recalled that, in principle, the duration of the missions might not exceed five days, including travel time;

- authorised the sending of an eight Member ad hoc delegation, including the Chair of AFET, to be appointed by the political groups in accordance with the AFET Committee’s rolling d'Hondt system, which should also apply to the non-attached Members, that approval being subject to the security situation on the ground not precluding the sending of such a mission.

PE 590.396/CPG 20/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 10. Request from the Delegation for relations with Iran to reschedule the 6th EU-Iran inter parliamentary meeting in Tehran, Iran, from 10 to 11 December 2016

- took note of a letter dated 10 November 2016 from Mr LEWANDOWSKI, Chair of the Delegation for relations with Iran, requesting authorisation to reschedule the 6th EU-Iran inter-parliamentary meeting in Teheran, Iran, to take place from 10 to 11 December 2016 (plus two days travel time) (PE 590.476/CPG and financial statement);

- recalled that, at its meeting on 19 November 2015, the Conference of Presidents had authorised the 6th EU-Iran inter-parliamentary meeting to take place in Teheran, Iran, from 17 to 19 May 2016, but that the meeting had to be postponed at that time due to general elections in Iran;

- noted that the new dates proposed for the mission coincided with three days without parliamentary activities (Friday 9 December to Sunday 11 December 2016) and half a day for travel to Strasbourg for the December part-session (Monday 12 December 2016 a.m.);

- nevertheless, exceptionally authorised the request, on the understanding that Members would arrive on time for the December part-session in Strasbourg.

21/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 11. Requests from the Delegation to the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee to reschedule the 77th meeting in Ankara, Turkey, to 10 and 11 January 2017, to hold a Bureau meeting in Brussels or Ankara in Spring 2017 and to hold the 78th EU-Turkey JPC in Ankara, Turkey, from 19 to 21 April 2017

 a letter dated 15 November 2016 from Mr KEFALOGIANNIS, Chair of the Delegation to the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), requesting to reschedule the 77th meeting in Ankara, Turkey, to 10 and 11 January 2017 (PE 590.485/CPG and financial statement);

 a letter dated 14 October 2016 from Mr PANZERI, Chair of the Conference of Delegation Chairs, on the activities of standing inter-parliamentary delegations for the first half of 2017, including a request from the Delegation to the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee to hold a Bureau meeting in Brussels or Ankara in spring 2017 and to hold the 78th EU-Turkey JPC in Ankara, Turkey, from 19 to 21 April 2017 (PE 590.365/CPG, annexes and financial statements).

- recalled that, at its meeting on 10 March 2016, it had authorised the 77th EU-Turkey JPC to take place on 18 and 19 April 2016 in Brussels, but that for political reasons the meeting had been postponed several times;

- recalled its decision of 15 September 2016, that Parliament’s Delegation to the EU-Turkey JPC should resume its usual activities and further recalled that, at its meeting on 17 November 2016, it had decided to consider all requests for delegation missions to Turkey at the subsequent meeting;

- recalled that under the Rules of Procedure of the JPC, the Delegation to the EU-Turkey JPC might hold up to three joint inter-parliamentary meetings per year, which should, in principle, be held alternately in Turkey and in one of the workplaces of the European Parliament;

- noted that the 76th EU-Turkey JPC had taken place on 19 and 20 March 2015 in Ankara, Turkey, and that it was now being proposed also to hold the 77th and 78th EU-Turkey JPC in Turkey; noted that under the rule of alternating meetings, the next JPC meeting should

PE 590.396/CPG 22/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 take place in Brussels or Strasbourg and that the invitation of the Turkish counterparts to the European Parliament would also constitute a political signal;

- further noted that the new dates proposed for the mission to the 77th EU-Turkey JPC in Ankara in January 2017 coincided with one day set aside for parliamentary committee activities (Monday 9 January), with two days set aside for political group activities (Tuesday and Wednesday 10 and 11 January), and with one day set aside for both, parliamentary committee and political group activities (Thursday 12 January 2017); therefore, de clined to authorise the 77th EU-Turkey JPC in January and invited the Delegation to submit a new request for a meeting in Brussels or Strasbourg in line with Parliament’s calendar;

- declined to authorise the Delegation’s request for a Bureau meeting in spring 2017 due to the lack of information on the date and place of the meeting, recalling that under the revised Implementing provisions bureau meetings were considered as ordinary inter-parliamentary meetings;

- authorised the request for the 78th EU-Turkey JPC meeting in Ankara, Turkey, during the April green week, from 19 to 21 April 2017 (plus travel time), on the strict condition that the Rapporteur on Turkey, Ms PIRI, be allowed to travel to Turkey and provided that the security situation on the ground would allow for the mission to go ahead, and that the 77th meeting would take place in one of Parliament’s three places of work.

23/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 12. STOA delegations outside the EU during 2017

- took note of a letter dated 11 November 2016 from Mr RÜBIG, Chair of the Science and Technology Options Assessment (STOA) Panel (STOA), requesting authorisation for seven STOA missions to destinations outside the European Union in 2017 (PE 590.475/CPG, and financial statement);

- noted that, in accordance with the relevant rules, the Conference of Presidents was the body responsible, by analogy, for the authorisation of STOA missions outside the territory of the European Union, the candidate countries, and the countries of the European Economic Area;

- World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, (up to two Members), Davos, Switzerland, from 17 to 20 January 2017: recalled that under the STOA rules, STOA should carry out ‘visits to scientific and technical institutions’ and ‘for the purposes of technology option assessments’; noted that the requested mission coincided with three days set aside for the January 2017 part-session in Strasbourg and one day without parliamentary activities; declined authorisation;

- Annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and visit to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, two Members, Boston, USA, from 17 to 21 February 2017: authorised, provided that the mission did not exceed five days including travel time;

- Visit to science-innovation-SMEs in India, up to two Members, from 18 to 22 September 2017: noted that the five-day mission requested for up to two Members to India from 18 to 22 September 2017 did not indicate a specific destination nor was it linked to a specific event or visit to a specific scientific and technical institution; declined authorisation;

- 14th meeting of the Science and Technology in Society (STS) Forum, one Member, Kyoto, Japan, from 30 September to 3 October 2017: noted that the mission coincided with two days without parliamentary activities (Saturday and Sunday) and two days reserved for Parliament's part-session in Strasbourg (Monday and Tuesday); stressed that, as a general rule, since the plenary sitting was the major forum for the business of Parliament, no other meeting might be held simultaneously; noted that the STOA Chair was a member of the STS

PE 590.396/CPG 24/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 Forum Council and as such, was involved in the preparations of the STS Forum (attending the preparatory STS Forum Council meetings on 5 May 2017 in London); recalled the decisions of 12 March 2015 and 21 January 2016 to authorise the Chair to attend the 2015 and 2016 meetings of the Science and Technology in Society Forum in Kyoto, Japan, despite the overlap with Parliament’s part-session; exceptionally authorised the mission to Kyoto, Japan, as requested, and invited the President to excuse the absence of the Member travelling to Kyoto, Japan from the part-session on 2 and 3 October 2017, in line with Article 31(3) of the Implementing measures for the Statute of Members of the European Parliament;

- Council meeting and Conference of the European Parliamentary Technology Assessment network (EPTA), up to three Members, Bern, Switzerland, from 2 to 3 November 2017: authorised;

- World Science Forum, up to two Members, Jordan, November 2017, date and place to be confirmed, and 2017 Internet Governance Forum, one Member, date and place to be confirmed: took note of these requests, noting that the dates and the meeting venues of these forums have yet to be determined; therefore invited STOA to submit requests for authorisation once all relevant information could be provided.

25/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 13. Urgent matters and any other business

13.1 Departure of Ms HARMS as Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group

- heard Ms HARMS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, note that she would not seek another term as Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, and that it was therefore her last Conference of Presidents meeting;

- further heard Ms HARMS thank the President and the other Group Chairs for the good and respectful cooperation in the Conference of Presidents, and underline the importance of a mutually respectful public dialogue between the political groups;

- heard the President express his appreciation for the work and steadfastness of Ms HARMS, and thank her for the good cooperation.

PE 590.396/CPG 26/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 13.2. Request from the Committee of Inquiry into Money Laundering, Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion to send a delegation to Valetta, Malta

- heard Mr WEBER, Chair of the EPP Group, recall that, at its meeting on 17 November 2016, the Conference of Presidents had declined authorisation for a number of committee missions to Member States taking over the rotating Council Presidency or holding the Council Presidency;

- further heard Mr WEBER propose that the decision to decline authorisation for the request from the Committee of Inquiry into Money Laundering, Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion to send a delegation to Valetta, Malta, be reconsidered as the mission fell within the specific remit of that committee and was duly justified by its mandate;

- agreed to return to the matter at a subsequent meeting.

27/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 14. Items for information

14.1 Internal correspondence

 a letter dated 14 November 2016 from Mr RÜBIG, Chair of STOA, on the STOA missions within the European Union during 2017 (PE 590.482/CPG and financial statement);

 Parliament’s mandate for the inter-institutional negotiations on the joint declaration following the exchange of views at the meeting of the Conference of Presidents on 17 November 2016 (PE 590.494/CPG);

 a letter dated 22 November 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, on the screening of current files for the December 2016 part- session with a view to delegated and implementing acts (PE 595.138/CPG);

 a letter dated 23 November 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, on the use of delegated and implementing acts (PE 595.143/CPG);

 a draft programme for the Conference of Presidents meeting with the incoming Maltese Presidency of the Council that will be held on 8 December 2016, in Valletta, Malta (PE 590.355/CPG).

14.2 Inter-institutional correspondence

 a letter dated 21 November 2016 from Mr MUSCAT, Prime Minister of Malta, inviting the Conference of Presidents to a meeting with the incoming Maltese Council Presidency, in Malta, on 8 December 2016 (PE 595.134/CPG).

PE 590.396/CPG 28/30 EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 14.3 External correspondence

There was none.

29/30 PE 590.396/CPG EN PV CPG 23.11.2016 15. Date and place of next meetings

- noted that there would be an extraordinary meeting on Wednesday, 30 November 2016 from 15:30 to 17:00 in room 06B 01 in the Paul-Henri SPAAK Building, Brussels.

- noted that the next ordinary meeting would be held on Thursday 8 December 2016 from 16:45 to 17:30 hours, in the House of Representatives of Malta, in Valletta, Malta.

The meeting closed at 15.12 hours

PE 590.396/CPG 30/30 EN