§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether Article K7(7) of the draft Treaty of Amsterdam will give the European Court of Justice the jurisdiction to interpret conventions in a way that is binding on all member states, including the United Kingdom; and, if so, whether Article K7(7) will apply to the Europol Convention.
§ Lord Williams of MostynArticle K7(7) of the draft Treaty of Amsterdam provides that the European Court of Justice shall have jurisdiction to rule on any dispute between member states regarding the interpretation or the application of acts adopted under the new Article K6(2) whenever such dispute cannot be settled by the European Council within six months of its being referred to the Council by one of its members. The Court will also have jurisdiction to rule on any dispute between member states and the European Commission regarding the interpretation or application of conventions established under the new Article K6(2)(d). Such rulings will be binding on the parties concerned.
These provisions do not apply to instruments, such as the Europol Convention, which were concluded under Article K3 of the Treaty on European Union.