PV CPG 9.03.2017
PE-8/CPG/PV/2017-05
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS
MINUTES
of the ordinary meeting of Thursday
9 March 2017
Paul-Henri SPAAK, Room 06B01
Brussels
CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS
MINUTES
of the ordinary meeting of
Thursday, 9 March 2017
from 9:30 to 11:00 hours
Paul-Henri SPAAK, Room 06B01
Brussels
CONTENTS
Page
1. Adoption of the draft agenda 7
2. Approval of the draft Minutes of the meeting of 16 February 2017 8
3. Adoption of the final draft agenda for the March II part-session (from 13 to 16 March 2017) – Scheduling of key debates in plenary 9
4. Communications by the President 11
4.1 Visit to Germany 11
4.2 Visit to Slovenia 11
4.3 Conference of Presidents meeting with the incoming Estonian Presidency of the Council 11
4.4 Statement of Mr KORWIN-MIKKE 11
4.5 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome event in Brussels, on 21 March 2017 12
4.6 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, meetings in Italy, from 24 to 25 March 2017 12
5. Preparation of the European Council meeting of 9 and 10 March 2017 14
6. Commission proposal to amend the Framework Agreement on relations between the European Parliament and the European Commission 15
7. Request from parliamentary committees to draw-up own-initiative reports under Rule 52, requests for the application of Rule 54, and related requests 16
8. Agreement on the arrangements for the exchange of information between the European Parliament and the European Investment Bank under the European Fund for Strategic Investment Regulation 17
9. Agreement between the Committees on Legal Affairs and on Culture and Education with respect to four legislative reports on the Copyright Package 18
10. Request from the Committee on Legal Affairs to hold an extraordinary meeting in Luxembourg, on 25 April 2017 19
11. Request from the Committee on Constitutional Affairs to authorise a fact-finding mission to Athens, Greece, from 21 to 22 March 2017, within the framework of the implementation report on the implementation of the Treaty provisions concerning national parliaments 20
12. Request from the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality to increase the number of Members participating in the 61st session of the United Nations on the Status of Women, in New York, USA, from 20 to 24 March 2017 22
13. Request from the SINEEA Delegation to authorise the Chair to attend the meeting of the XVIII International Environmental Forum "Baltic Sea Day" in St. Petersburg, Russia, from 22 to 23 March 2017 23
14. Request from the Delegation for relations with Australia and New Zealand to hold the 21st EU-New Zealand Inter-parliamentary meeting (IPM) on 23 March 2017 in Brussels and to postpone the 22nd IPM to week 44 24
15. Request from the Delegation to the EU-Kazakhstan, EU-Kyrgyzstan, EU-Uzbekistan and EU-Tajikistan Parliamentary Cooperation Committees, and for relations with Turkmenistan and Mongolia to reschedule the 14th EU-Kazakhstan PCC to 27 April 2017 in Brussels 26
16. Request from the Delegation for relations with Belarus to send a delegation to Minsk, Belarus, from 23 to 24 May 2017 27
17. Request from the Delegation to the EU-Montenegro Stabilisation and Association Parliamentary Committee to postpone the 13th meeting in Strasbourg to 14 and 15 June 2017 28
18. Request to send an election observation delegation to observe the parliamentary elections in Gambia, to be held on 6 April 2017 29
19. Regular items for the scrutiny of the Conference of Presidents 30
19.1 Delegated and implementing acts - Screening of current files 30
19.2 Overview of delegated acts and draft RPS measures currently under SP scrutiny 31
19.3 First reading agreements - Committee decisions to enter into negotiations and state of play of files currently under negotiation 32
20. Urgent matters and any other business 33
20.1 Request from the Committee on Legal Affairs to appoint two co-rapporteurs on its own initiative report entitled “Legitimate measures to protect whistle-blowers acting in the public interest when disclosing the confidential information of companies and public bodies” 33
21.1 Internal correspondence 34
21.2 Inter-institutional correspondence 34
21.3 External correspondence 34
22. Date and place of next meetings 35
CONFERENCE OF PRESIDENTS
MINUTES
of the meeting of Thursday 9 March 2017
from 9:30 to 11:00 hours
Brussels
The meeting opened at 9.40 hours with Mr Antonio TAJANI,
President of the European Parliament, in the chair
Present
Mr TAJANI, President
Political Group Chairs
Mr GONZÁLEZ PONS (Acting) (EPP)
Mr PITTELLA (S&D)
Mr LEGUTKO (Acting) (ECR)
Mr VERHOFSTADT (ALDE)
Ms ZIMMER (GUE/NGL)
Mr LAMBERTS (Co-Chair) (Greens/EFA)
Mr LUNDGREN (Acting) (EFDD)
Mr ANNEMANS (Acting) (ENF)
Also Present
Mr WELLE, Secretary-General
Mr WINKLER, Deputy Secretary-General
The Council[1]
represented by Ms TUTS
Mr KERLEROUX
The Commission1
represented by Mr PINE
The Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy1
represented by Mr VISENTIN
The Economic and Social Committee1
represented by Mr DELEANU
Ms BLASZAUER
The Committee of the Regions1
represented by Ms TAULEGNE
Office of the President
Mr CANGA FANO
Mr CHIOCCHETTI
Mr CORAZZA
Ms SAVELLI
Mr WEISS
Office of the Secretary-General
Mr MANGOLD
Ms FERNANDEZ PERLES
Ms SOCHACKA
Mr DE FINANCE
Office of the Deputy Secretary-General
Mr JAVELLE
Secretariat
DG Presidency (PRES)
Mr LANE/Ms ROBSON/Ms GANDOLFO/Ms FERGER1/Ms SAILIS1
Mr NATSCHERADETZ1
DG Internal Policies (IPOL)
Mr RIBERA D’ALCALA/Ms VANDENBOSCH/Ms FONTANILI1
DG External Policies (EXPO)
Mr AGUIRIANO
DG European Parliamentary Research Services (EPRS)
Mr TEASDALE
DG Communication (COMM)
Mr DUCH GUILLOT/Ms VAN DEN BROEKE
DG Personnel (PERS)
Mr KNUDSEN
DG Infrastructures and Logistics (INLO)
Ms LINNUS
DG Interpretation and Conferences (INTE)
Ms WALTER-DROP
DG Finance (FINS)
Mr KLETHI
DG Innovation and Technical Support (ITEC)
Mr PETRUCCI
DG Security and Safety (SAFE)
Mr CAROZZA
Legal Service (SJ)
Mr DREXLER/Ms MARTINEZ IGLESIAS
Directorate for relations with political groups
Mr SCHWETZ
Secretariat of the Bureau
Mr TZIORKAS
Political groups
Mr RYNGAERT/Ms SCRIBAN/Ms LASKAVÁ (EPP)
Mr MORENO SANCHEZ/Mr BURU/Ms PEREIRA/Mr CARDELLA (S&D)
Mr BARRETT/Mr BOYD (ECR)
Mr BEELS/Ms COLERA-GARZÓN/Mr RASMUSSEN/McLAUGHLIN (ALDE)
Ms D’ALIMONTE/Ms LEPOLA (GUE/NGL)
Ms TSETSI/Mr LINAZASORO/Mr BROUWER (Greens/EFA)
Ms LALOUX/Ms RUCYTE (EFDD)
Mr HOLZFEIND (ENF)
Mr BORDEZ (NI)
Ms WOLLNY, Mr VAUGIER, Ms BERTULESSI, Ms KOSTIDOU and Mr ROHLJE acted as secretaries to 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 599.086/CPG).
2. Approval of the draft Minutes of the meeting of 16 February 2017
The Conference of Presidents
- noted and approved the draft Minutes of the ordinary meeting of 16 February 2017 (PE599.057/CPG and annex).
3. Adoption of the final draft agenda for the March II part-session (from 13 to 16 March 2017) – Scheduling of key debates in plenary
The Conference of Presidents
- noted the following documents:
· the draft agenda for the March II part-session (from 13 to 16 March 2017) in Strasbourg, as adopted by the Conference of Presidents on 16 February 2017 in Strasbourg;
· a final table dated 8 March 2017 summarising committee and delegation meetings planned for the March II part-session (from 13 to 16 March 2017) in Strasbourg (PE599.169/CPG/DEF).
- heard the President note that he had received a letter dated 7 March 2017 from Mr PITTELA, Chair of the S&D Group, on behalf of the coordination of the political groups, on the agreement of the political groups on the implementation of the new Rule 153a ‘Topical debates requested by a political group’ (PE 599.172/CPG and annex), and that he would ensure it was followed from now on;
- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr GONZALEZ PONS, acting Chair of the EPP Group, Mr PITTELLA, Chair of the S&D Group, Mr VERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Mr LAMBERTS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, Ms ZIMMER, Chair of the GUE/NGL Group, and Mr ANNEMANS, acting Chair of the ENF Group, and following a series of votes:
- adopted the final draft agenda for the March II 2017 part-session, with the following modification:
Tuesday, 14 March 2017
- decided to add as first point of the afternoon a statement by the Vice-President of the Commission/High representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on Global Gag Rule, without resolution;
- decided to include on the draft agenda for the April I 2017 part-session a statement by the Vice-President of the Commission/High representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on the situation in Turkey with a view to the upcoming referendum on constitutional reform.
4. Communications by the President
4.1 Visit to Germany
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President report on his visit to Berlin, on 23 and 24 February 2017, and his meetings with Mr GAUCK, Federal President of Germany, and Ms MERKEL, Federal Chancellor of Germany, to discuss, inter alia, the role of the European Parliament, trade defence instruments and the market economy status of China, as well as his meetings with women entrepreneurs and students, stressing the importance he gave to the dialogue with civil society, the young generation, and small and medium-sized enterprises.
4.2 Visit to Slovenia
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President report on his visit to Ljubljana, on 3 March 2017, and his meetings with Mr PAHOR, President of Slovenia, Mr CERAR, Prime Minister of Slovenia, and Mr BRGLEZ, President of the Slovenian Parliament, during which he had stressed the importance of keeping European unity and stability in the Balkans; further heard the President report that he had attended the inauguration ceremony of the new European Union House in Ljubljana with Prime Minister CERAR, European Commission President JUNCKER and Commissioner BULC, before concluding his visit with a debate with students on the future of Europe.
4.3 Conference of Presidents meeting with the incoming Estonian Presidency of the Council
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President report that he had met Mr RATAS, Prime Minister of Estonia, and that the meeting of the Conference of Presidents with the incoming Estonian Presidency of the Council would take place from 29 to 30 May 2017, in Tallinn, and propose that it be a political event based on a concept to be discussed at a subsequent meeting.
4.4 Statement of Mr KORWIN-MIKKE
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President note that the misogynistic statement of MrKORWIN-MIKKE during the previous March I 2017 part-session was unacceptable and that his decision on the sanctions to be imposed, proportionate to the gravity of that statement, would be announced at the opening of the subsequent part-session on Monday, making use of all disciplinary measures foreseen by the Rules.
4.5 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome event in Brussels, on 21 March 2017
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President report that the event would take place in the Hemicycle, starting in the morning (from 11:00 to 12:30), with a musical introduction by Ms HENDRICKS, Goodwill Ambassador of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), that
Mr MENASSE and Ms EMCKE had been confirmed as guest speakers, and that the President would close the morning session with remarks;
- noted the draft programme of the afternoon event with citizens.
4.6 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, meetings in Italy, from 24 to 25 March 2017
The Conference of Presidents
- heard the President confirm that the preliminary programme would include, in the morning of the first day, a joint Conference of Presidents and Bureau meeting with Italian representatives, in Norcia, and that the presence of Mr GENTILONI, Prime Minister of the Italian Republic, was expected, and that, in the afternoon a meeting with Mr MATTARELLA, President of the Italian Republic, would take place in Rome at the Quirinal Presidential Palace; further heard the President note that the day would be concluded with a working dinner with Mr GRASSO, President of the Senate of the Italian Republic;
- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr GONZALEZ PONS, acting Chair of the EPP Group, Mr PITTELLA, Chair of the S&D Group, MrVERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, and Ms ZIMMER, Chair of the GUE/NGL Group, and endorsed the President’s approach to the signing of the Declaration of Rome.
5. Preparation of the European Council meeting of 9 and 10 March 2017
The Conference of Presidents
- took note of the following document:
· a note dated 30 January 2017 from the General Secretariat of the Council on the annotated draft agenda of the European Council for 9 and 10 March 2017 (PE599.135/CPG);
- heard the President report that he intended to deliver a concise speech, at the opening of the European Council meeting, following his pledge to act as the spokesman of Parliament, but that his speech would also reflect that minority views had been voiced in Parliament on some issues, and that he would emphasise Parliament’s position on the following issues:
· a European defence industry and market;
· relations with China;
· migration;
· relations with Africa and development cooperation;
· support for SMEs, with a view to growth and employment;
· the fight against climate change;
- held an exchange of views with the participation of Mr GONZÁLEZ PONS, acting Chair of the EPP Group, MrPITTELLA, Chair of the S&D Group, MrVERHOFSTADT, Chair of the ALDE Group, Ms ZIMMER, Chair of the GUE/NGL Group, Mr LAMBERTS, Co-Chair of the Greens/EFA Group, and Mr ANNEMANS, acting Chair of the ENF Group, during which, inter alia, a broad majority of Group Chairs endorsed the President’s approach and underlined that the views expressed by Parliament in its three resolutions (i) on improving the functioning of the European Union building on the potential of the Lisbon Treaty, (ii) on possible evolutions of and adjustments to the current institutional set-up of the European Union, and (iii) on a budgetary capacity for the euro area, as a significant contribution to the process of reflection on the future set-up of the EU, adopted on 16 February 2017, constituted a solid basis for the message to be conveyed to the European Council;
- heard the President conclude by thanking the Group Chairs for their input and by noting that the points raised had already been covered in his draft speech; and heard him note that he would further adapt his speech, in light of the exchange of views, and circulate it to all Members of Parliament.