PV CPG 29.09.2016
PE-8/CPG/PV/2016-17
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS
MINUTES
of the ordinary meeting of Thursday
29 September 2016
Paul-Henri Spaak Building, Room 06B 01
Brussels
CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS
MINUTES
of the ordinary meeting of
Thursday,29 September 2016
from11:00 to 13:00 hours
Paul-Henry SPAAK, Room 06B01
Brussels
CONTENTS
Page
1.Adoption of the draft agenda
2.Approval of the draft Minutes of the meeting of 15 September 2016
3.Adoption of the final draft agenda for the October I part-session (from 3 to 6 October 2016) – Scheduling of key debates in plenary
4.1Transparency register
4.2Election leave of Ms GEORGIEVA, Vice-President of the Commission
4.3Security situation in the Central African Republic
5.UK withdrawal from the EU – state of play
6.Request from parliamentary committees to draw-up own-initiative reports under Rule 52, requests for the application of Rule 54, and related requests
7.Attribution of competence for the legislative report entitled “Laying down rules on the making available on the market of CE marked fertilising products”
8.Proposal by the Committee of Inquiry into Money Laundering, Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion to appoint co-rapporteurs
9.Delegated and Implementing acts - Screening of current files
10.Overview of delegated acts and draft RPS measures currently under EP scrutiny
11.First reading agreements - Overview and state of play
12.Request from the Committee on Development to send a delegation to Lebanon from 31 October to 4 November 2016
13.Request from the Delegation for relations with the countries of Southeast Asia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to increase the size of its delegation to Myanmar and Singapore from 31 October to 4 November 2016
14.Request from the Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group to send an election observation delegation to observe the presidential and parliamentary elections in Ghana, taking place on 7December, with a possible second round on 28 December 2016
15.Urgent matters and any other business
16.Items for information
16.1Internal correspondence
16.2Inter-institutional correspondence
16.3External correspondence
17.Date and place of next meeting
CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS
MINUTES
of the meeting of Thursday29 September2016
from 11:00 to 13:00 hours
Brussels
The meeting opened at 11.08 hours with Mr Martin SCHULZ,
President of the European Parliament, in the chair
Present
Mr SCHULZ, President
Political Group Chairs
MrRANGEL (Acting)(EPP)
MrPITTELLA(S&D)
Mr KAMALL(ECR)
MrVERHOFSTADT(ALDE)
MsZIMMER(GUE/NGL)
MrLAMBERTS (Co-Chair)(Greens/EFA)
MrBORRELLI(Co-Chair)(EFDD)
MrDE GRAAFF (Co-Chair)(ENF)
Also Present
MrWELLE, Secretary-General
MsRATTI, Deputy Secretary-General
Invited:
MsMIHAYLOVA, replacing Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs
Also invited
Ms HÜBNER, Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs
The Council[1]
represented byMs TUTS
MrKERLEROUX
The Commission1
represented byMrFORTI
MrPINE
The Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy1
represented byMr GONZATO
MrSPANIER
The Economic and Social Committee[2]
represented byMsBLASZAUER
Office of the President
MrKNUDSEN
MsWOLLNY
MrFASSINA
MrDIRRIG
Ms NOYON
MrKOEKKOEK
MrSCHRANZ
Office of the Secretary-General
Mr MANGOLD
Mr SORENSEN
Ms FREDSGAARD
MsFERNANDEZ PERLES
MsKOSTIDOU
Office of the Deputy Secretary-General
MrLANE
MsJIMENEZ LOZANO
MsTARDIOLI-SCHIAVO
MsVLASTARA1
Secretariat
DG Presidency (PRES)
Mr WINKLER/Ms ROBSON/Ms GANDOLFO/Mr WICKER1/
Ms SAILIS1
DG Internal Policies (IPOL)
Mr RIBERA/Ms VANDENBOSCH/Mr CHIOCCHETTI/
Ms FONTANILI1/Mr PACHECO2/Ms BLAU
DG External Policies (EXPO)
Mr AGUIRIANO
DG European Parliamentary Research Services (EPRS)
Mr TEASDALE
DG Communication (COMM)
Ms LAHOUSSE/Mr DUCH GUILLOT
DG Infrastructures and Logistics
Ms LINNUS
DG Translation (TRAD)
Mr MAVRIČ
DG Interpretation and Conferences (INTE)
Ms WALTER-DROP
DG Finance (FINS)
Mr MANNELLI
DG Innovation and Technical Support (ITEC)
Mr PETRUCCI
Legal Service (SJ)
Mr DREXLER/Ms MARTINEZ IGLESIAS
Directorate for relations with political groups
Mr SCHWETZ
Secretariat of the Bureau
Mr TZIORKAS
______
1Present for items 1-3
2Present for item 5
Political groups
Mr RYNGAERT/Ms SCRIBAN/Ms LASKAVA(EPP)
Mr MORENO SANCHEZ/Mr BURU/Ms PEREIRA/Mr CARDELLA(S&D)
Mr BARRETT/Mr WOODARD/Mr BOYD(ECR)
Mr BEELS/Ms COLERA GARZON/Mr RASMUSSEN/Mr McLAUGHLIN(ALDE)
Ms D'ALIMONTE/Ms LEPOLA(GUE/NGL)
Ms TSETSI/Mr LINAZASORO(Greens/EFA)
Mr VAUGIER/Ms ALBERTINI(EFDD)
Mr DE DANNE/Mr HOLZFEIND(ENF)
Mr BORDEZ(NI)
Mr ISAACS, Mr ROHLJE, Ms SCHADE and Ms BERTULESSI acted as secretariesto the meeting.
1.Adoption of the draft agenda
The Conference of Presidents
-noted and adopted the draft agenda in the form shown in these Minutes (PE 586.529/CPG).
2.Approval of the draft Minutes of the meeting of 15 September 2016
The Conference of Presidents
-notedand approved the draft Minutes of the meetingof 15 September2016 held in Strasbourg(PE586.490/CPG and annex).
3.Adoption of the final draft agenda for the October I part-session (from 3 to 6 October 2016) – Scheduling of key debates in plenary
The Conference of Presidents
-noted the following documents:
- the draft agenda for the October I part-session (from 3 to 6 October 2016) in Strasbourg;
- a provisional table dated 29 September 2016 summarising committee and delegation meetings planned for the October I part-session (from 3 to 6 October 2016)
in Strasbourg (PE590.305/CPG);
-held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr RANGEL, acting Chair of the EPP Group, Mr PITTELLA, Chair of the S&D Group, Mr KAMALL, Chair of the ECR Group, Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Ms ZIMMER, Chair of the GUE/NGL Group, Mr LAMBERTS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, and, after votes on a number of items,adopted the final draft agenda for the October I 2016 part-session in Strasbourg with the following modifications:
Tuesday 4October 2016
-heardthe President propose that, following the Council decision on the conclusion of the Paris
Agreement adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change,
a round of group speakers be included before the vote on the agreement, and that Mr BAN
KI-MOON, Secretary-General of the United Nations, be given the opportunity to address the plenary on that occasion;
-further heardthe President propose that he sign a letter submitting the result of Parliament’svote to Council and Commission in a signature ceremony, in the presence ofMr BAN KI-MOON, Mr JUNCKER, President of the Commission, Ms ROYAL, French Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy,in her capacity as Chair of the 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(COP21), Mr ARIAS CAÑETE, Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy,Mr LA VIA, the Chair of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, and Parliament’s rapporteur;
-agreed with the President’s proposals;
Wednesday 5 October 2016
-decided that the statement by the Vice-President of the Commission/ High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on the situation in Syria be taken with a short resolution.
4.Communications by the President
4.1Transparency register
The Conference of Presidents
- heardthe President report that, on 28 September 2016, the European Commission had proposed an Inter-institutional Agreement establishing a mandatory transparency register covering Parliament, Council and Commission, with a view to ensuring the transparency of lobbying activities across the three institutions, and building on the existing transparency register of Parliament and Commission;
-heard the President propose that the procedure and structure for Parliament’s representation in the up-coming inter-institutional negotiations be considered at a subsequent meeting;
-agreed with the President’s proposal.
4.2Election leave of Ms GEORGIEVA, Vice-President of the Commission
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President report that, following the nomination of Ms GEORGIEVA,
Vice-President of the Commission responsible for Budget and Human Resources, as a candidate for the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations, she had been grantedone month of unpaid electoral leave, and that Mr JUNCKER, President of the Commission, had decided temporarilyto transfer her portfolio to Mr OETTINGER, Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society;
-heard the President recommend that Commissioner OETTINGER meet relevant committees chairs for his new areas of responsibilities;
-agreed with the President’s proposal.
4.3Security situation in the Central African Republic
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President report that the 13th ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly Regional meeting was scheduled to take place from 19 to 21 October 2016, in Bangui, Central African Republic, and that he had received a security analysis from Parliament’s crisis cell on the high-risk security situation on the ground;
-heard the President note that,under the current circumstances, the security of Members and staff could not be sufficiently guaranteed;
-further heard him note that he would forward the security analysis under separate and confidential cover to the Group Chairs for their consideration, and propose to return to the issue at the following meeting.
5.UK withdrawal from the EU – state of play
The Conference of Presidents
-noted the following documents:
- ‘The Bratislava Declaration’ adopted on 16 September 2016 bythe Heads of State or Government of 27 Members States (PE 586.568/CPG);
- a statement of the Heads of State or Government of 27 Members States, following their informal meeting on 29 June 2016 (PE 586.520/CPG);
- Parliament’s resolution of 28 June 2016 on the decision to leave the EU resulting from the UK referendum (P8_TA-PROV(2016)0294);
-heard the President introduce the item by reporting on his recent visit to London, United Kingdom, and on his meetings with Ms MAY, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Mr KHAN, Mayor of London, and Mr CORBYN, Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party;
-further heard the President report thathe had conveyed Parliament’s approach to the negotiations on the UK withdrawal from the EU, and thathe had raised institutional issues such as possiblearrangements for European elections in 2019;
-heard him recall that, at its meeting on 8 September 2016, the Conference of Presidents had appointed Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group,as coordinator for the negotiations on the UK withdrawal from the EU at the level of the Conference of Presidents;
-heard Mr VERHOFSTADT report that he had met Mr BARNIER, chief negotiator in charge of leading the Commission taskforce for the preparation and conduct of the negotiations with the United Kingdom under Article 50 TEU, and Mr JUNCKER, President of the European Commission;
-further heardMr VERHOFSTADT note that those meetings had offered the opportunity to express Parliament’s support for the Commission to be the EU negotiator in all negotiations with the UK, and to discuss Parliament’scooperation with the Commission and Parliament’s full involvement in all stages of the negotiations, and heard him propose that Mr BARNIER be invited to a subsequent meeting of the Conference of Presidents;
-heard Mr VERHOFSTADT recall that the process was divided in three phases: the period until the UK invokes Article 50 TEU and the adoption by the Council of negotiations guidelines (phase 1), the subsequent period of substantive negotiations (phase 2), and the consent procedure for the conclusion of an agreement (phase 3), and heard him note that during the first two phases the Conference of Presidents was the parliamentary body fully responsible for the process, while liaising closely with Ms HÜBNER, Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO) during phase 2, as well as with various relevant committees in order to ensure the channelling of expertise, and that AFCO and other committees responsible would steer the processin phase 3;
-heard him note that, in principle, the Group Chairs were the groups’ representatives for the coordination of Parliament’swork on the UK withdrawal from the EU, but that it should be possible to appoint a second contact person from each group to follow the process, who should be invited to the meetings of the Conference of Presidents each time the itemwas on the agenda, also for possible incamera meetings as appropriate;
-further heard Mr VERHOFSTADT propose that the Conference of Presidents prepare Parliament’s input for the guidelines to be provided by the European Council, under Article 50 TEU, in the form of aresolution to be adopted before the European Council finalised its position;
-heard him propose that Parliament’s committees consider the impact of the UK withdrawal on the policy areas and legislation in their respective field of responsibility, and prepare analytical material based on their fact-finding work,which could inform the resolution to be tabled by the Conference of Presidents and the negotiations during phase 2;
-heard him specify that committees fact finding work should be extremely focused and could, in no way, give the ground to speculations about on-going negotiations;
-heard Mr VERHOFSTADT propose that he set out the agreed approach of the Conference of Presidents at a meeting of the Conference of Committee Chairsand he discuss the organisation of the committees’ work during the three phases, and that, at a later stage, he attend a meeting of the Conference of Committee Chairs together with Mr BARNIER;
-heard Mr VERHOFSTADT express his satisfaction concerning the administrative structure which supported him during the negotiation of the inter-institutional agreement on Better Law Making and welcome the fact thatthe same structure was to be used;
-held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr RANGEL, acting Chair of the EPP Group, Mr PITTELLA, Chair of the S&D Group, Mr KAMALL, Chair of the ECR Group, Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Ms ZIMMER, Chair of the GUE/NGL Group, Mr LAMBERTS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, Mr BORRELLI, Co-Chair of the EFDD Group, Mr DE GRAAFF, Co-Chair of the ENF Group,Ms MIHAYLOVA,replacing Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, and Ms HÜBNER, Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs, during which broad support was expressedfor the approach set out by the President and by Mr VERHOFSTADT;
-heard the President restatethe EU’s position of no negotiation without notification and the importance of a coherent and coordinated approach by Parliament;
-endorsed the President’s and Mr VERHOFSTADT’s approach.
6.Request from parliamentary committees to draw-up own-initiative reports under Rule 52, requests for the application of Rule 54, and related requests
The Conference of Presidents, without debate
-took note of a letter dated 23 September 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, submitting requests from parliamentary committees for authorisation to draw up own-initiative reports under Rule 52 of the Rules of Procedure(PE 586.562/CPG and annexes);
-took note of a letter dated 21 September 2016 from Mr BUZEK, Chair of the Conference of Committee Chairs, submitting two requests from parliamentary committees for the application of Rules 54 and 55 of the Rules of Procedure to two legislative proposals (PE 586.561/CPG and annexes);
-took note of the request for authorisation for nine non-legislative own-initiative reports under heading C and authorised them to be drawn up;
-noted and endorsed the drawing up of three annual activity and monitoring reports under heading D (two of which subject to the quota and one out of quota);
-noted and endorsed the drawing up of two implementation reports (one of which under Article 349 of the TFEU);
-noted and endorsed the drawing up of one report under Rule 198 by Committee of inquiry into Emission Measurements in the Automotive Sector;
-noted and endorsed the agreement reached between the Committees on Foreign Affairs and on Culture and Education on the application of Rule 55 with regard to the proposed
own-initiative report on “Towards an EU strategy for international cultural relations”;
-noted and endorsed the following agreements on the application of Rule 54 for own-initiative reports reached between:
-the Committees on Legal Affairs (JURI) and Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) on the association of EMPL to the proposed JURI own-initiative report entitled “Statute for social and solidarity-based enterprises”;
-the Committees on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) and on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) on the association of ECON to the proposed IMCO own-initiative report entitled “The functioning of franchising in the retail sector”;
-the Committees on Legal Affairs (JURI) and Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) on the association of ENVI to the JURI implementation report on the “Application of Directive 2004/35/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on environmental liability with regard to the prevention and remedying of environmental damage (the ‘ELD’)”;
-noted and endorsed the agreement reached between the Committees on Economic and Monetary Affairs and on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs on the application of Rule 55 with regard to the legislative proposal for a “Directive amending Directive (EU) 2015/849 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing and amending Directive 2009/101/EC (COM(2016)0450 - 2016/0208(COD))”;
-noted and endorsed the agreements on the application of Rule 54 reached between the Committees on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) and Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) on the association of IMCO to the ECON legislative report on the “Regulation on establishing a Union programme to support specific activities enhancing the involvement of consumers and other financial services end-users in Union policy making in the field of financial services for the period of 2017-2020 (COM(2016)0388 - 2016/0182(COD))”, according to the division of competence set out in the relevant joint letter;
-noted and endorsed the requests for the modification of the titles of the following own-initiative reports of:
-the Committees on Agriculture and Rural Development, authorised by the Conference of Presidents on 4 May 2016, from “Responsible ownership and care of equines” into “Responsible ownership and care of equidae”,
-the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, authorised by the Conference of Presidents on 14 April 2016, from “Women’s Rights in the Eastern Partnership States and other Neighbouring Countries” into “Rights of Women in the Eastern Partnership States”.
7.Attribution of competence for the legislative report entitled “Laying down rules on the making available on the market of CE marked fertilising products”
The item waspostponed.
8.Proposal by the Committee of Inquiry into Money Laundering, Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion to appoint co-rapporteurs
The Conference of Presidents, without debate
-took note of a letter dated 8 September 2016 from Mr LANGEN, Chair of the Conference of Committee of Inquiry into Money Laundering, Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion (PANA), submitting a request for authorisation to appoint two co-rapporteurs for the PANA interim and final reports(PE586.522/CPG);
-recalled that, in line with Rule 198(4) of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure and the European Parliament decision of 8 June 2016 on the setting up of a Committee of Inquiry into Money Laundering, Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion, the PANA Committee should submit its final report within 12 months of the adoption of the decision;