COMMISSION WITHDRAWS DRAFT ENDOCRINE DISRUPTORS: OMBUDSMAN DEMANDS MORE MEASURE ON ROAMING STATE OF PLAY TRILOGUE TRANSPARENCY Brexit: the genie is out of the bottle Newsletter Three months on from 23 June, we are seeing incredible and enduring improvisation. We are barely starting to realise the huge complexity presented by the three phases of GUIDING YOU THROUGH THE LABYRINTH Brexit. WITH THE LATEST NEWS The first phase, involving the triggering of Article 50, poses www.comitology.eu #30, September 2016 countless questions: does the UK Parliament need to vote? Would this vote be binding or advisory? Could there be a general election? How and when will the assemblies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland give their opinion? And what about the DIGITAL SINGLE MARKET negotiating framework, which the UK Public backlash forces Commission into climbdown on must propose since it is the departing Member State? roaming implementing act Once triggered, Article 50 will give When it comes to roaming, the EU cannot the new four-week consultation tool, with rise to a tapestry of preliminary be accused of phoning it in. Last November the aim of afterwards tabling it for a vote in talks: the European Council (Heads the Institutions reached a landmark deal the competent comitology committee. of State or Government) will have that will see the abolition, from 15 June to set down ‘guidelines’, on which 2017, of all tariffs for EU residents making But straight away, the proposal provoked basis the Commission will draw up or receiving mobile calls while in another a flood of condemnation from civil society ‘recommendations’, while it is up Member State. and decision-makers, who saw it as a to the Council of Ministers to open betrayal of the commitment to phase out negotiations and select the chief The agreement was hailed as a major roaming charges completely. In just four negotiator and his team. triumph for the digital single market days, the online consultation tool received This leaves the real negotiations which agenda and more widely as a vindication 140 critical contributions. of the EU’s value to ordinary citizens. Much we imagine will not begin before the Enter Commission President Jean- end of 2017. We may call it a ‘technical like in a subscription contract however, the small print contained a surprise. Claude Juncker: completely over-riding hell’. How will the UK leave the CAP, and Vice-President Ansip and Commissioner what will it be replaced with? How will The Roaming Regulation allows the Oettinger who had both come out and it re-negotiate every trade agreement, Commission to adopt an implementing defended the initiative, he ordered DG whether WTO or bilateral? Within the act determining a ‘fair use’ policy, i.e. a CONNECT on 8 September to shelve the Commission, nobody wants to give an safeguard to prevent mobile users from draft and prepare a new version more in answer to these questions – on orders, abusing the absence of roaming surcharges. line with the public’s expectations. obviously – but equally, nobody would be able to give a pertinent answer. Thus, on 5 September, the Commission’s Aside from exposing faulty lines of Directorate-General for Communications communication within the EU executive, In the same way that a big country Networks, Content & Technology (DG the episode shows the importance of cannot leave the Euro, a big country CONNECT) published a draft implementing the 4-week feedback mechanism, which cannot leave the European Union. act setting down an annual free roaming undoubtedly played a role in pressuring the That is our conviction. limit of 90 days per customer. DG CONNECT Commission to backtrack on this key piece DG submitted the draft for public comment via of secondary legislation. Editorial support from Comitology Newsletter Editorial Team: PACT European Affairs Vicky Marissen, Editor-in-chief, [email protected] www.pacteurope.eu Steven Corcoran, Deputy editor, [email protected] Newsletter GUIDING YOU THROUGH THE LABYRINTH WITH THE LATEST NEWS #30, September 2016 CHEMICALS Endocrine disruptors: uneasy discussions continue at expert level Arguably the most explosive comitology file of 2016, the Both bodies met on 22 June for a preliminary discussion of Commission’s proposals on criteria for endocrine disruptors the texts and broadly speaking the reception was not positive, have begun their arduous journey through the labyrinth of EU whether on the content or the procedure. Talks will continue secondary legislation. when the committee and expert group convene once again on 21 September. Published on 15 June, the criteria consist of two drafts tabled under two different decision-making procedures: a delegated The Commission’s intention is to have the comitology committee act under the Biocides Regulation and a Regulatory Procedure vote on the RPS measure (date unclear), before sending it and with Scrutiny (RPS) measure under the Plant Protection the delegated act to the European Parliament (EP) and Council Products Regulation. for the required scrutiny. DG SANTE’s first hurdle is to get the views of Member States’ Then things should get really interesting: attempted vetoes in technical experts in the competent comitology committee the Parliament are a near-certainty, while some ministers have and expert group. Only the comitology committee will take a already aired “strong concerns” within the Environment Council binding vote. regarding the criteria. LEGISLATIVE PROCESS FINANCIAL SERVICES Ombudsman calls for more trilogue Parliament casts first veto against transparency PRIPs technical standard On 12 July European Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly continued Refreshed from their summer break, MEPs hit the ground her crusade against EU procedural opacity, bringing out running at the September plenary session by rejecting a her recommendations for enhancing the transparency of draft measure setting regulatory technical standards (RTS) informal inter-institutional talks held during the legislative under the 2014 Regulation on packaged retail investment process (known as ‘trilogues’). products (PRIPs). Ms O’Reilly wants the public to have easy access to several Led by Rapporteur Pervenche Berès (S&D, FR), nearly all aspects of trilogues, including dates of meetings, summary political groups united within the Committee on Economic agendas, list of participants, initial positions and – once and Monetary Affairs (ECON) to block the RTS, adopting a negotiations are concluded – the famous ‘four-column motion that was in turn endorsed overwhelmingly by the documents’. plenary on 14 September. The Commission, Council and European Parliament (EP) This is the first time secondary legislation has been vetoed are requested to respond to these recommendations by 15 under the unique system of implementation introduced for December 2016. EU financial services back in 2011. NEWS IN BRIEF IN THE PREMIUM NEWSLETTER THIS MONTH: • 5 July: MEP Dennis De Jong publishes draft report on Commission Expert Groups, criticises early publication of new Horizontal Rules • More intelligence and analysis on Brexit • Endocrine disruptors: in-depth state of play • 2 August: two new Expert Groups set up to prepare delegated and implementing acts under fourth railway • Reaction to new Horizontal Rules on Expert Groups: a return to bad habits? package • Detailed reports: roaming volte-face, EP veto on PRIPs, • 8 September: MEP Richard Corbett presents draft revision Ombudsman on trilogues and much more! of EP Rules of Procedure Subscribe to the Premium Newsletter here • Commission to present proposal for mandatory Transparency Register by end of September or contact [email protected].