§ 38. Rachel SquireTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had on national Parliament scrutiny of European common foreign and security policy. [8824]
§ Peter HainThe current position on national parliamentary scrutiny of the European Union's foreign and security policy is set out in the Government's White Paper of November 1998 on the Scrutiny of European Union Business. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has proposed that representatives of national Parliaments be more involved in European matters through a second chamber of the European Parliament. The role of national Parliaments in the European architecture is one of the agenda items for the next Inter-Governmental Conference in 2004. Ministers and officials have regular discussions with a wide range of contacts on this as well as on other Inter-Governmental Conference issues.