Intergovernmental Conference (Hansard, 18 December 1996)

§ Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will support within the intergovernmental conference the presidency's proposal for a new article 3d in respect of environmental protection and sustainable development. [9404]

§ Mr. David Davis
The Government support the objectives of environmental protection and sustainable development. There is already a treaty basis for EC environmental action. The Government are considering how this might be developed without extending Community competence or majority voting.

§ Mr. Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will support the Irish proposal to strengthen the nuclear safety provisions of the Euratom treaty at the intergovernmental conference. [9406]
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§ Mr. Davis
No. The proposal can be more appropriately dealt with in the context of wider international agreements in the nuclear area.

§ Mr. Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what environmental proposals the United Kingdom Government plan to put forward at the intergovernmental conference. [9408]

§ Mr. Davis
The Government are still considering what, if any, environmental proposals to put to the intergovernmental conference.

§ Mr. Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will support within the intergovernmental conference the proposal that the Committee of the Regions should be allowed to bring actions before the Court of Justice for the purpose of protecting its own prerogatives. [9402]

§ Mr. Davis
The Committee of the Regions has a valuable role to play, but the Government do not agree that giving an advisory body of this kind direct access to the European Court of Justice would be appropriate.

§ Mr. Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the environmental issues in respect of which the United Kingdom Government will be supporting an extension of qualified majority voting at the intergovernmental conference. [9405]

§ Mr. Davis
None. As explained in the "Partnership of Nations" White Paper, at a time when there is serious public concern about the centralisation of decision making, the case has not been made for making it easier to override the objections of member states in matters of particular sensitivity. The Government therefore oppose the further extension of qualified majority voting.

§ Mr. Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the Danish proposals of 6 September to the intergovernmental conference concerning the environment. [9407]

§ Mr. Davis
The Government support effective environmental action at the European level which takes full account of the principle of subsidiarity. The Government do not, however, support the Danish suggestion that qualified majority voting should be used for decisions on environmental taxes.

§ Mr. Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will support within the intergovernmental conference the proposal to amend article 3b in respect of the application of the principle of subsidiarity to regional and local levels. [9409]

§ Mr. Davis
No. As Heads of Government agreed in 1992 at the Birmingham European Council,It is for each Member State to decide how its powers should be exercised domestically".