§ Lord Wallace of Saltaireasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many measures were adopted in the last five years under the co-operation procedure provided for under Article 189c of the EC Treaty; and to what extent these measures would have been subject to the co-decision procedure set out in Article 189b of the EC Treaty if the changes outlined in the Treaty of Amsterdam had applied.
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanAccording to the Commission's CELEX database, 104 measures have been adopted since June 1992 under the co-operation procedure. Forty-two of these would have been subject to co-decision under the terms of the Maastricht Treaty, which came into force in November 1993. A further 59 would have been subject to co-decision under the terms of the provisional draft Treaty of Amsterdam.
§ Lord Wallace of Saltaireasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether under the Treaty of Amsterdam the transfer of matters currently subject to the co-operation procedure provided for under Article 189c of the EC Treaty to the co-decision procedure set out in Article 189b of the EC Treaty (as amended by the Treaty of Amsterdam) will significantly increase the powers of the European Parliament under the Community's legislative procedures.
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanThe provisional draft Treaty of Amsterdam lists 11 Treaty provisions currently subject to the co-operation procedure under Article 189c to which the co-decision procedure will be extended. Copies of this document have been placed in the Libraries of the House. In these areas the agreement of the European Parliament (EP) as well as of the Council would be needed for the adoption of legislative proposals. Under co-operation if the EP opposes a proposal the Council can still approve it by unanimity.
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§ Lord Wallace of Saltaireasked Her Majesty's Government:
What are the principal changes to the co-decision procedure set out in Article 189b of the EC Treaty resulting from the Treaty of Amsterdam and whether this has changed the institutional balance between the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers in favour of the European Parliament in the formulation of legislation under this procedure.
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanThe provisional draft Treaty of Amsterdam includes a revised text of Article 189b. Copies of the document have been placed in the Libraries of the House. The main changes are to allow immediate adoption of a proposal where the Council and the European Parliament (EP) agree; to set a deadline to convene the Conciliation Committee, and to limit the scope of its discussions; and to simplify the existing procedure for the EP to block a proposal. These changes do not affect the existing requirement for both the Council and EP to give agreement to proposals under co-decision.