Ec Budget 2007

House of Lords London European Union Committee SW1A 0PW www.parliament.uk/hleu The primary purpose of the House of Lords European Union Select Committee is to scrutinise EU law in draft before the Government take a position on it in the EU Council of Ministers. This scrutiny is frequently carried out through correspondence with Ministers. Such correspondence, including Ministerial replies and other materials, is published where appropriate. This edition includes correspondence from 4 June 2014 – 30 March 2015 EUROPEAN UNION SELECT COMMITTEE CONTENTS ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT(S) WITH ANDORRA, MONACO AND SAN MARINO: ADOPTION OF NEGOTIATING MANDATE (UNNUMBERED) ............................................................................................ 2 ADOPTING THE LIST OF THE OTHER PERSONS WHOM THE COUNCIL PROPOSES FOR APPOINTMENT AS MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION (12777/14, 14163/14) .......................................... 3 BALANCE OF COMPETENCES REVIEW (UNNUMBERED) ............................................................................ 5 COMITOLOGY - ADAPTATION OF THE REGULATORY PROCEDURE WITH SCRUTINY (12539/13, 15882/13) ..................................................................................................................................................... 8 CROATIA’S ACCESSIAON (UNNUMBERED) ..................................................................................................... 9 DEVELOPMENT FOREIGN AFFAIRS COUNCIL, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COUNCIL, AND GENERAL AFFAIRS COUNCIL: 12-16 DECEMBER (UNNUMBERED) ............................................................................10 DOUBLE MAJORITY VOTING (UNNUMBERED) .............................................................................................14 ENLARGEMENT STRATEGY AND MAIN CHALLENGES 2014-2015 (14152/14, 14153/14, 14154/14, 14155/14, 14156/14, 14157/14, 14159/14, 14159/14) .........................................................................................16 EU ENLARGEMENT: ALBANIA (UNNUMBERED) ...........................................................................................18 EU ENLARGEMENT: POST-ACCESSION MONITORING: BULGARIA AND ROMANIA (5711/15, 5712/15) ..........................................................................................................................................................................19 EU JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS MEASURES (PROTOCOL 36) ..............................................................20 EUROPEAN COUNCIL DECISION PROPOSING TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT A CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION (EUCO 131/14) ........................22 EUROPEAN CITIZENS' INITIATIVE: WATER AND SANITATION (8177/14) .........................................22 EUROPEAN UNION COMMITTEE REPORT ON 2013 – 14 (UNNUMBERED) .....................................27 EU-RUSSIA DEBATE (UNNUMUMBERED) .........................................................................................................27 1 FOREIGN AFFAIRS COUNCIL, DEFENCE FOREIGN AFFAIRS COUNCIL AND GENERAL AFFAIRS COUNCIL: 17- 19 NOVEMBER 2014 (UNNUMBERED) .................................................................................28 FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE LED EU BUSINESS DURING ELECTION PERIOD (UNNUMBERED) .........................................................................................................................................................30 HANDLING OF TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS TO THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA (EEA) AGREEMENT (UNNUMBERED) .............................................................................................................................32 INTERIM COMMISSIONER (UNNUMBERED) ....................................................................................................33 ITALIAN EU PRESIDENCY 1 JULY TO 31 DECEMBER 2014 (UNNUMBERED) .....................................34 LATVIAN EU PRESIDENCY 1 JANUARY TO 30 JUNE 2015 (UNNUMBERED) ......................................34 LI COSAC IN ATHENS 15-17 JUNE 2014 (UNNUMBERED) .........................................................................35 NOTIFYING EUHR OF SCRUTINY TIMETABLE (UNNUMBERED)............................................................36 PRE-COUNCIL EVIDENCE SESSIONS (UNNUMBERED) ...............................................................................36 PROTOCOL 36 AND THE UK’S 2014 OPT-OUT DECISION (UNNUMBERED) ..................................38 SCRUTINY PERFORMANCE (1264214, 12859/14, 13257/14, 13281/14) ....................................................43 SCRUTINY RESERVE OVERRIDES: JULY-DECEMBER 2013 (UNNUMBERED) ........................................47 SCRUTINY OVERRIDES REPORT: JANUARY-JUNE 2014 (UNNUMBERED) ..........................................48 SCRUTINY RESERVE OVERRIDES: JULY-DECEMBER 2013 (UNNUMBERED) ........................................49 THE UK’S OPT-IN AND INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS (UNNUMBERED) .....................................50 WITHDRAWALS AND THE COMMISSION WORK PROGRAMME 2015 (5080/15) ...........................51 ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT(S) WITH ANDORRA, MONACO AND SAN MARINO: ADOPTION OF NEGOTIATING MANDATE (UNNUMBERED) Letter from David Lidington MP, Minister for Europe, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, to the Chairman I am writing to update the EU Scrutiny Select Committee on the matter of proposed EU Association Agreements with Andorra, Monaco and San Marino. At the General Affairs Council of 16 December 2014, the Council adopted a mandate authorising the Commission to negotiate, on behalf of the Union and its member states, one or several Association Agreement(s) with these states. EU relations with Andorra, Monaco and San Marino are currently governed by a number of agreements, covering selective areas of the EU acquis and policies. In December 2010, the Council concluded that EU relations with these three states were “extensive but fragmented”, and there were still obstacles to an unimpeded movement of persons, goods and services. Following an EEAS 2 exploration, in early 2014 the Commission produced a draft Council Decision and negotiating Mandate for one or several Association Agreements. The UK is supportive of the principle of improving the framework for relations between the EU and these three states, including integrating them more closely into the internal market. This would represent a small but positive widening of the single market. On my instruction, officials in Brussels ensured that the UK’s policy positions on legal base, mixity, and Justice and Home Affairs were reflected in the negotiating mandate. This means that the mandate contains recitals confirming: — That the legal nature of the Agreement(s) shall be decided at the end of negotiations; — That the agreement does not confer on the Commission any additional powers over matters falling within Member State competence; — That the United Kingdom’s established Justice and Home Affairs provisions are to be reflected in the final association agreement(s). 31 December 2014 ADOPTING THE LIST OF THE OTHER PERSONS WHOM THE COUNCIL PROPOSES FOR APPOINTMENT AS MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION (12777/14, 14163/14) Letter from the Chairman to David Lidington MP, Minister for Europe, Foreign and Commonwealth Office These documents and their explanatory memoranda were considered by the EU Select Committee at its meeting on 21 October 2014. On the substance of the nominations, there is little we can say now that the Decisions have been adopted. We welcome the commitment of President-elect Juncker and his Commissioners to establishing a new relationship with national parliaments. We also look forward to working closely with President Juncker, First Vice-President Timmermans, Lord Hill of Oareford and the rest of the College in pursuance of the recommendations made in our report on the role of national parliaments in the EU. On process, we are concerned that there was no opportunity to consider the appointment of the remaining members of the Commission ahead of the adoption of the first Council Decision on 5 September, given that the EM was not received until 25 September. Following the replacement of the Slovenian nomination for Commissioner, the second Council Decision was adopted on 15 October; the EM was received on 17 October. We were thus not able to scrutinise either Decision. We are aware that there is likely to be a third Council Decision this Friday (24 October) endorsing the Commissioners, along with their assigned portfolios. We would like to know whether you have any plans to enable us to scrutinise the latest proposed Decision ahead of the Council meeting? While we acknowledge that the Council’s consideration of the Decisions in question may have been substantially formal, the documents themselves remain subject to the normal scrutiny process, and Cabinet Office Guidance is clear that the Government should be flexible to ensure that the spirit of the scrutiny reserve resolution is respected (see paragraph 1.4). The Guidance also specifies that an EM can be sent to the scrutiny Committees where a document cannot be deposited (paragraph 1.5), which is what should have happened here. Yet, despite considerable notice of the deadline for the appointment of the new Commission, nothing was done to keep the Committee informed prior to adoption. We find it surprising that there is no reflection, let alone consideration, of this fact in your EMs. We look forward to your response. The adoption of the Decisions having taken place, we see little purpose in holding them under scrutiny and so clear them. 22 October

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