§ Mr. CaplinTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the outcome of the ECOFIN Council held in Brussels on 12 July; and if he will make a statement. [91824]
§ Mr. Jim MarshallTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the outcome of the ECOFIN Council held in Brussels on 14 July; and if he will make a statement. [91849]
§ Ms HewittThe programme for the Finnish Presidency was discussed in open debate and given a broad welcome.
There was discussion of economic and financial issues arising in the draft common strategy for Ukraine.
There was a discussion of the economic and financial aspects of the crises in Kosovo and the Western Balkans. A mandate for the Presidency for the 13 July High Level group was agreed.
There was general endorsement of the key elements of a Presidency proposal on the guarantee from the Community Budget for EIB loans to third countries.
A technical report on the provision of statistics in the euro area was agreed and published.
Two presidency reports on the implementation of OLAF (the European Anti-Fraud Office) and the appointment of a supervisory Committee were considered. Following slight amendment, the Reports were approved.
The Commission made a brief presentation of the draft decision on Own Resources, adopted by the Commission last week. The Presidency said it would proceed swiftly to a more detailed examination by the Council.
With regard to VAT on labour intensive services, Coreper was asked to reach agreement on a list of such services in time for agreement on the proposal at ECOFIN on 8 October.