2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COUNCIL DECISION
of 5 June 2000
adopting the Council's Rules of Procedure
(2000/396/EC, ECSC, Euratom)
(OJ L 149, 23.6.2000, p. 21)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Decision 2001/216/EC of 19 March 2001 L 81 30 21.3.2001
►M2Council Decision 2001/840/EC of 29 November 2001 L 313 40 30.11.2001
Correctedby:
►C1Corrigendum, OJ L 33, 2.2.2002, p. 40 (2000/396/EC)
▼B
COUNCIL DECISION
of 5 June 2000
adopting the Council's Rules of Procedure
(2000/396/EC, ECSC, Euratom)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regardto the Treaty establishing the European Community, and
in particular Article 207(3), first subparagraph,
Having regardto the Treaty establishing the European Coal andSteel
Community, andin particular Article 30(3) thereof,
Having regardto the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy
Community, andin particular Article 121(3) thereof,
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:
Sole Article
The Rules of Procedure of the Council of 31 May 1999 (1999/385/EC,
ECSC, Euratom)(1) shall be replacedby the following, which shall enter
into force on 6 June 2000.
‘RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE COUNCIL
Article 1
Notice and venue of meetings
1. The Council shall meet when convenedby its Presid ent on his own
initiative or at the request of one of its members or of theCommission(
2).
2. Seven months before the beginning of its term of office, the
Presidency shall make known the dates which it envisages for meetings
that the Council will have to holdin ord er to complete its legislativework or take operational decisions.
At the latest one week before the beginning of its term of office, the
Presidency shall establish a six-month programme in the form of
indicative provisional agendas for Council meetings, showing the
legislative work and operational decisions envisaged. This programmemay, where necessary, provide for extra Council meetings, in addition tothose previously planned. If during the Presidency any of the meetingsin the six-monthly programme proves to be no longer warranted, the
Presidency shall not convene it.
3. The Council shall have its seat in Brussels. During the months of
April, June andOctober the Council shall holdits meetings inLuxembourg(
3).
In exceptional circumstances andfor d uly substantiatedreasons, the
Council or the Permanent Representatives Committee (Coreper), actingunanimously, may decide that a Council meeting will be held elsewhere.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 2
(1) OJ L 147, 12.6.1999, p. 13.
(2) This paragraph reproduces Article 204 of the EC Treaty.
(3) This paragraph reproduces paragraph (b) of the sole article of the Protocol on
the location of the seats of the institutions andof certain bod ies and
departments of the European Communities and of Europol annexed to the
Treaties.
▼B
Article 2
Configurations of the Council
1. The Council may meet in different configurations according to the
subject matter dealt with. The Council, meeting in its General Affairsconfiguration, shall fix the list of these configurations(
1).
No Council configuration not included in the list may be convened
unless the Council in its General Affairs configuration so decides.
2.►C1The Council in its General Affairs configuration shall be
responsible for the overall coordination of policies and preparatory work
for European Council meetings. ◄
Article 3 (2)
Agenda
1. The President shall draw up the provisional agenda for each
meeting. The agenda shall be sent to the other members of the Council
andto the Commission at least 14 d ays before the beginning of the
meeting.
2. The provisional agenda shall contain the items in respect of which
a request for inclusion on the agenda, together with any documentsrelating thereto, has been receivedby the General Secretariat from amember of the Council or from the Commission at least 16 days beforethe beginning of that meeting. The provisional agenda shall also indicate
the items on which the Presidency, a member of the Council or the
Commission may request a vote.
3. Items relating to the adoption of an act or a common position on a
legislative proposal or a proposal for a measure to be adopted underTitle VI of the Treaty on European Union shall not be placedon theprovisional agenda for a decision until the six-week period provided forin point 3 of the Protocol on the role of national parliaments in theEuropean Union has elapsed.
The Council may unanimously derogate from the six-week period where
the entry of an item is subject to the exception on grounds of urgency
provided for in point 3 of that Protocol.
4. Only items in respect of which the documents have been sent to the
members of the Council andto the Commission at the latest by the d ateon which the provisional agenda is sent may be placed on that agenda.
5. The General Secretariat shall transmit to the members of the
Council andto the Commission requests for the inclusion of items in theagenda, documents and indications concerning voting relating thereto inrespect of which the time limits specifiedabove were not respected .
6. The agenda shall be adopted by the Council at the beginning of
each meeting. The inclusion in the agenda of an item other than those2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 3
(1) See statement (a) set out below.
(a)Article 2
‘The list of configurations is currently set out in OJ C 174, 23 June 2000,
p. 1.’
(2) See statements (b) and(c) set out below:
(b)Article 3(1) and (2)
‘The President will endeavour to ensure that, in principle, the provisional
agenda for each meeting of the Council dealing with implementation of
Title IV of Part Three of the EC Treaty andTitle VI of the Treaty on
European Union andany d ocuments relating to the items involvedreach
members of the Council at least 21 days before the beginning of the
meeting.’
(c)Articles 1 and 3
‘Without prejudice to Article 22(2) of the Treaty on European Union,which specifies that an extraordinary Council meeting may be convened
at very short notice in cases requiring a rapidd ecision, the Council is
aware of the needfor matters relating to the common foreign andsecurity
policy to be dealt with swiftly and efficiently. The arrangements in
Article 3 shall not prevent this needfrom being met.’
▼B
appearing on the provisional agenda shall require unanimity in the
Council. Items enteredin this way may be put to the vote.
If, by the endof the week preced ing the week prior to a Council
meeting, Coreper has not completedits examination of legislative itemswithin the meaning of Article 7, the Presidency shall, unlessconsiderations of urgency require otherwise and without prejudice to
paragraph 2, remove them from the provisional agenda.
7. The provisional agenda shall be divided into Part A and Part B.
Items for which approval by the Council is possible without discussion
shall be included in Part A, but this does not exclude the possibility of
any member of the Council or of the Commission expressing an opinionat the time of the approval of these items andhaving statements includ edin the minutes.
8. However, an “A” item shall be withdrawn from the agenda, unless
the Council decides otherwise, if a position on an “A” item might lead tofurther discussion thereof or if a member of the Council or theCommission so requests.
9. Any request for the inclusion of an “other business” item shall, in
principle, be accompaniedby an explanatory d ocument.
Article 4
Representation of a Council member unable to attend
Subject to the provisions of Article 11 on the delegation of voting rights,
a member of the Council who is preventedfrom attend ing a meetingmay arrange to be represented.
Article 5
Meetings
1. Meetings of the Council shall not be public except in the cases
referredto in Article 8.
2. The Commission shall be invitedto take part in meetings of the
Council. The same applies to the European Central Bank in cases whereit exercises its right of initiative. The Council may, however, decide todeliberate without the presence of the Commission or of the European
Central Bank.
3. The members of the Council andof the Commission may be
accompaniedby officials who assist them. The number of such officials
may be laidd own by the Council. Their names andfunctions shall be
notifiedin ad vance to the Secretary-General/High Representative for theCommon Foreign andSecurity Policy (hereinafter referredto as “theSecretary-General”) or the Deputy Secretary-General.
4. Admission to meetings of the Council shall be subject to the
production of a pass.
Article 6
Professional secrecy and production of documents in legal proceed-
ings
1. Without prejudice to Articles 8 and 9 and to other applicable
provisions, the deliberations of the Council shall be covered by theobligation of professional secrecy, except in so far as the Councildecides otherwise.
2. The Council or Coreper may authorise the production for use in
legal proceedings of a copy of or an extract from Council documentswhich have not already been released to the public pursuant to theseRules or the Council's rules on public access to its documents.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 4
▼B
Article 7
Cases where the Council acts in its legislative capacity
The Council acts in its legislative capacity within the meaning of the
secondsubparagraph of Article 207(3) of the EC Treaty when it ad optsrules which are legally binding in or for the Member States, by means of
regulations, directives, framework decisions or decisions, on the basis of
the relevant provisions of the Treaties, with the exception of discussionsleading to the adoption of internal measures, administrative or budgetaryacts, acts concerning interinstitutional or international relations or non-binding acts (such as conclusions, recommendations or resolutions).
Where legislative proposals or initiatives are submittedto it the Council
shall refrain from adopting acts which are not provided for by theTreaties, such as resolutions or declarations other than those referred toin Article 9.
Article 8
Public debates
1. The Council in its General Affairs andEconomic andFinancial
Affairs configurations shall holda public policy d ebate every six monthson the work programme of the current Presidency and, if appropriate, onthe Commission's annual work programme.
2. On a decision taken by the Council or by Coreper, acting by a
qualifiedmajority, the Council shall holdat least one public d ebate onimportant new legislative proposals.
The Council or Coreper may decide by a qualified majority on a case-
by-case basis that other public debates are to be held on important issuesaffecting the interests of the Union.
It shall be for the Presidency, any member of the Council, or the
Commission to propose issues or specific subjects for such debates.
3. Public debates shall be the subject of public transmission by
audiovisual means.
Article 9
Making deliberations public
1. Where the Council acts in its legislative capacity within the
meaning of Article 7, the results of votes andexplanations of votes byCouncil members, as well as the statements in the Council minutes andthe items in those minutes relating to the adoption of legislative acts,shall be made public.
The results of votes andexplanations of votes shall also be mad e public
when the Council adopts a common position pursuant to Article 251 or252 of the EC Treaty. The same rule shall apply for votes andexplanations of votes by members of the Council or their representativeson the Conciliation Committee set up by Article 251 of the EC Treaty.
2. The results of votes andexplanations of votes shall also be mad e
public when the Council establishes a convention on the basis of TitleVI of the Treaty on European Union. The statements enteredin theCouncil minutes andthe items in those minutes relating to ad option of
such conventions shall be made public by decision of the Council or
Coreper, taken at the request of one of their members.
3. The results of votes shall be made public:
(a) when the Council acts pursuant to Title V of the Treaty on European
Union, by a unanimous Council or Coreper decision taken at therequest of one of their members;
(b) when the Council adopts a common position within the meaning of
Title VI of the Treaty on European Union, by a unanimous Councilor Coreper decision taken at the request of one of their members;
(c) in other cases, by Council or Coreper decision taken at the request of
one of their members.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 5
▼B
When the result of a vote in the Council is made public in accordance
with subparagraphs (a), (b) and(c), the explanations of votes mad e whenthe vote was taken shall also be made public at the request of the
Council members concerned, with due regard for these Rules of
Procedure, legal certainty and the interests of the Council.
Statements enteredin the Council minutes anditems in those minutes
relating to the adoption of the acts referred to in subparagraphs (a), (b)and (c) shall be made public by Council or Coreper decision taken at therequest of one of their members.
4. Votes shall not be made public in the case of discussions leading to
indicative votes or the adoption of preparatory acts.
Article 10
Public access to Council documents
The specific provisions regarding public access to Council documents
are set out in Annex III.
Article 11
Voting arrangements and quorum
1. The Council shall vote on the initiative of its President.The President shall, furthermore, be required to open a voting procedure
on the initiative of a member of the Council or of the Commission,
provided that a majority of the Council's members so decides.
2. The members of the Council shall vote in the order of the Member
States laidd own in Article 203 of the EC Treaty andin thecorresponding Articles of the other two Community Treaties, beginningwith the member who, according to that order, follows the memberholding the office of President.
3. Where a vote is taken, any member of the Council may also act on
behalf of not more than one other member(
1).
4. The presence of a majority of the members of the Council who are,
under the Treaties, entitled to vote is required to enable the Council tovote. When the vote is taken, the President, assisted by the GeneralSecretariat, shall check that there is a quorum.
Article 12 (
2)
Written procedure
1. Acts of the Council on an urgent matter may be adopted by a
written vote where the Council or Coreper unanimously decides to use
that procedure. In special circumstances, the President may also propose
the use of that procedure; in such a case, written votes may be usedwhere all members of the Council agree to that procedure.
2. Agreement by the Commission to the use of the written procedure
shall be requiredwhere the written vote is on a matter which theCommission has brought before the Council.
3. A summary of acts adopted by the written procedure shall be
drawn up every month by the General Secretariat.
4. Onthe initiative ofthe Presidency, the Council may also act for the
purpose of implementing the common foreign andsecurity policy bymeans of the simplifiedwritten proced ure (CORFU). In that case the2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 6
(1) This paragraph reproduces Article 206 of the EC Treaty.
(2) See statement (e) set out below:
(e)Article 12
‘The Council agrees to consider the advisability of including in the Rules
of Procedure the option of using a simplified written procedure when the
Council is acting pursuant to Title VI of the Treaty on European Union.’▼M2
▼B
▼B
proposal shall be deemed to be adopted at the end of the period laid
down by the Presidency depending on the urgency of the matter, exceptwhere a member of the Council objects(
1).
5. Onthe initiative ofthe Presidency, the Council may also act for the
purpose of deciding to consult other institutions or bodies by means of a
streamlinedwritten proced ure wherever such consultation is requiredbyCommunity law. In that case the decision to consult shall be deemed tobe adopted at the end of the period laid down by the Presidencydepending on the urgency of the matter, except where a member of the
Council objects(
2).
6. The General Secretariat shall establish that the written procedures
have been completed.
Article 13
Minutes
1. Minutes of each meeting shall be drawn up and, when approved,
shall be signedby the Presid ent in Office at the time of such approval
andby the Secretary-General or the Deputy Secretary-General.
The minutes shall as a general rule indicate in respect of each item on
the agenda:
— the documents submitted to the Council,
— the decisions taken or the conclusions reached by the Council,— the statements made by the Council and those whose entry has been
requestedby a member of the Council or the Commission.
2. The draft minutes shall be drawn up by the General Secretariat
within 15 days and submitted to the Council or to Coreper for approval.
3. Prior to such approval any member of the Council, or the
Commission, may request that more details be inserted in the minutesregarding any item on the agenda. These requests may be made inCoreper.
Article 14
Deliberations and decisions on the basis of documents and drafts
drawn up in the languages provided for by the language rules in
force
1. Except as otherwise decided unanimously by the Council on
grounds of urgency, the Council shall deliberate and take decisions only
on the basis of documents and drafts drawn up in the languages specifiedin the rules in force governing languages.
2. Any member of the Council may oppose discussion if the texts of
any proposed amendments are not drawn up in such of the languagesreferredto in paragraph 1 as he or she may specify.
Article 15
Signing of acts
The text of the acts adopted by the Council and that of the acts adopted
jointly by the European Parliament andthe Council shall be signedbythe President-in-Office at the time of their adoption and by theSecretary-General or the Deputy Secretary-General. The Secretary-2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 7
(1) See statement (f) set out below:
(f)Article 12(4)
‘The Council wouldpoint out that the COREU network must be usedin
accordance with the Council conclusions of 12 June 1995 concerning theCouncil's working methods.’
(
2) See statement (g) set out below:
(g)Article 12(5)
‘In accordance with the Council's regular practice, the time limit fixed
will normally be one week.’
▼B
General andthe Deputy Secretary-General may d elegate their signatures
to Directors-General of the General Secretariat.
Article 16 (1)
Absence of the possibility to participate in the vote
For the purposes of application of these Rules of Procedure, due account
will be taken, in accordance with Annex I, of cases in which, under the
Treaties, one or more members of the Council may not participate in thevote.
Article 17
Publication of acts in the Official Journal
1. The following shall be publishedin the Official Journal by the
Secretary-General or the Deputy Secretary-General:
(a) the acts referredto in Article 254(1) and(2) of the EC Treaty;
(b) the acts referredto in the first paragraph of Article 163 of the
Euratom Treaty;
(c) the common positions adopted by the Council in accordance with
the procedures referred to in Articles 251 and 252 of the EC Treaty,
andthe reasons und erlying those common positions;
(d) the framework decisions and decisions referred to in Article 34(2) of
the Treaty on European Union;
(e) the conventions establishedby the Council in accord ance with
Article 34(2) of the Treaty on European Union.
Reference shall be made in the Official Journal to the entry into
force of such conventions;
(f) the conventions signedbetween Member States on the basis of
Article 293 of the EC Treaty.
Reference shall be made in the Official Journal to the entry into
force of such conventions;
(g) international agreements concluded by the Community.
Reference shall be made in the Official Journal to the entry into
force of such agreements;
(h) international agreements concluded in accordance with Article 24 of
the Treaty on European Union, unless the Council decides otherwiseon the grounds of Articles 4 and 9 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001of the European Parliament andof the Council of 30 May 2001regarding public access to European Parliament, Council andCommission documents(
2).
Reference shall be made in the Official Journal to the entry into
force of such agreements.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 8
(1) See statement (h) set out below:
(h)Article 16 and Annex I
‘The Council agrees that the provisions of Article 16 andAnnex I apply
to acts for the adoption of which some members of the Council are, under
the Treaties, not entitledto vote. However, application of Article 7 of the
Treaty on European Union is not coveredby those provisions.In the firstapplication of Articles 43 and44 of the Treaty on European Union, the
Council will, in the light of experience acquired in other fields, consider
any adaptations necessary to Article 16 of and Annex I to these Rules of
Procedure.’
(
2) OJ L 145, 31.5.2001, p. 43.▼M2
▼B
2. Unless the Council or Coreper decides otherwise, the following
shall be publishedin the Official Journal by the Secretary-General or theDeputy Secretary-General:
(a) initiatives presentedto the Council by a Member State pursuant to
Article 67(1) of the EC Treaty;
(b) initiatives presentedto the Council by a Member State pursuant to
Article 34(2) of the Treaty on European Union;
(c) the common positions referredto in Article 34(2) of the Treaty on
European Union;
(d) directives other than those referred to in Article 254(1) and (2) of the
EC Treaty, decisions other than those referred to in Article 254(1) ofthe EC Treaty, recommendations and opinions.
3. The Council or Coreper shall decide unanimously, on a case-by-
case basis, whether there shouldbe publication in the Official Journal bythe Secretary-General or the Deputy Secretary-General of the commonstrategies, the joint actions andthe common positions referredto in
Article 12 of the Treaty on European Union.
4. The Council or Coreper shall decide, on a case-by-case basis and
taking account of possible publication of the basic act, whether thefollowing shouldbe publishedin the Official Journal by the Secretary-
General or the Deputy Secretary-General:
(a) the measures implementing the joint actions referredto in Article 12
of the Treaty on European Union;
(b) the joint actions, the common positions or any other decision
adopted on the basis of a common strategy, as provided for in thefirst indent of Article 23(2) of the Treaty on European Union;
(c) any measures implementing the decisions referred to in Article 34(2)
of the Treaty on European Union andany measures implementingconventions drawn up by the Council in accordance with Article
34(2) of the Treaty on European Union.
5. Where an agreement concluded between the Communities and one
or more States or international organisations sets up a body vested withpowers of decision, the Council shall decide, when such an agreement isconcluded, whether decisions to be taken by that body should be
publishedin the Official Journal.
Article 18
Notification of acts
1. Directives other than those referredto in Article 254(1) and(2) of
the EC Treaty andd ecisions other than those referredto in Article254(1) of the EC Treaty shall be notified to their addressees by theSecretary-General, the Deputy Secretary-General or a director-generalacting on their behalf.
2. When they are not publishedin the Official Journal, the following
acts shall be notified to their addressees by the Secretary-General, theDeputy Secretary-General or a director-general acting on their behalf
(a) recommendations;
(b) the common strategies, joint actions andcommon positions referred
to in Article 12 of the Treaty on European Union;
(c) the common positions referredto in Article 34(2) of the Treaty on
European Union;
(d) measures implementing the acts adopted on the basis of Articles 12
and34 of the Treaty on European Union;
3. The Secretary-General, the Deputy Secretary-General or a
director-general acting on their behalf shall send to the Governmentsof the Member States andto the Commission authentic copies ofCouncil directives other than those referred to in Article 254(1) and (2)of the EC Treaty and Council decisions and recommendations.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 9
▼B
Article 19 (1)
Coreper, committees and working parties
1. Coreper shall be responsible for preparing the work of the Council
andfor carrying out the tasks assignedto it by the Council. It shall in
any case(2) ensure consistency of the Union's policies andactions and
see to it that the following principles andrules are observed :
(a) the principles of legality, subsidiarity, proportionality and providing
reasons for acts;
(b) rules establishing the powers of Union institutions andbod ies;
(c) budgetary provisions;
(d) rules on procedure, transparency and the quality of drafting.
2. All items on the agenda for a Council meeting shall be examined
in advance by Coreper unless the Council decides otherwise. Coreper
shall endeavour to reach agreement at its level to be submitted to theCouncil for adoption. It shall ensure adequate presentation of thedossiers to the Council and, where appropriate, shall present guidelines,options or suggestedsolutions. In the event of an emergency, the
Council, acting unanimously, may decide to settle the matter without
prior examination.
3. Committees or working parties may be set up by, or with the
approval of, Coreper with a view to carrying out certain preparatorywork or studies defined in advance.
The General Secretariat shall update and publish the list of preparatory
bodies. Only the committees and working parties on this list may meet
as Council preparatory bodies.
4. Coreper shall be chaired, depending on the items on the agenda, by
the Permanent Representative or the Deputy Permanent Representativeof the Member State which holds the Presidency of the Council. Unlessthe Council decides otherwise, the various committees provided for inthe Treaties shall also be chairedby a d elegate of that Member State.
The same shall apply to the committees andworking parties referredto
in paragraph 2, unless Coreper decides otherwise. For the preparation ofmeetings of Council configurations meeting once every six months,where held during the first half of this period, the meetings ofcommittees other than Coreper andthose of working parties heldd uringthe preceding six months may be chaired by a delegate of the Member
State whose turn it is to chair the saidCouncil meetings.
5. Coreper may adopt the following procedural decisions, provided
that the items relating thereto have been included on its provisionalagenda at least three working days before the meeting. Unanimity on thepart of Coreper shall be requiredfor any d erogation from that period(
3):
(a) decision to hold a Council meeting in a place other than Brussels or
Luxembourg (Article 1(3));2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 10
(1) These provisions are without prejudice to the role of the Economic and
Financial Committee as laidd own in Article 114 of the EC Treaty andto
existing Council Decisions thereon (OJ L 358, 31.12.1998, p. 109 andOJL 5,
1.1.1999, p. 71).
(2) See statement (i) set out below:
(i)Article 19(1)
‘Coreper will ensure consistency andobservance of the principles set out
in paragraph 1, in particular for matters where substantive preparation is
undertaken in other forums.’
(3) See statement (j) set out below:
(j)Article 19(5)
‘If a member of the Council considers that a draft procedural decision
submitted to Coreper for adoption in accordance with Article 19(5) raises
a question of substance, the draft decision will be submitted to the
Council.’
▼B
(b) authorisation to produce a copy of or an extract from a Council
document for use in legal proceedings (Article 6(2));
(c) decision to hold a public debate in the Council (Article 8(2));
(d) decision to make the results of votes public in the cases laid down in
Article 9(2) and(3);
(e) decision to use the written procedure (Article 12(1));
(f) approval or amendment of Council minutes (Article 13(2) and (3));
(g) decision to publish a text or an act in the Official Journal (Article
17(2), (3) and(4));
(h) decision to consult an institution or body;
(i) decision setting or extending a time limit for consultation of an
institution or body;
(j) decision to extend the periods laid down in Article 251(7) of the EC
Treaty;
(k) approval of the wording of a letter to be sent to an institution or
body.
Article 20
The Presidency and the businesslike conduct of discussions
1. The Presidency shall be responsible for the application of these
Rules of Procedure and for ensuring that discussions are conducted in abusinesslike manner. It may, unless a decision is taken to the contrary,take any appropriate measure andin particular:
(a) restrict the numbers per delegation present in the meeting room for
discussion of a particular item, and decide whether to authorise theopening of an overflow room;
(b) set the order in which items are to be taken and determine the
duration of discussions on them;
(c) organise the time allottedfor d iscussion of a particular item.
2. Without prejudice to its powers and its overall political
responsibility, the Presidency shall be assisted by the representative of
the Member State next holding the Presidency. At the Presidency'srequest andacting on its instructions, the latter shall replace it as andwhen required, shall relieve it, where necessary, of certain adminis-trative tasks andshall ensure the continuity of the Council's proceed ings.
Article 21 (
1)(2)
Reports from committees and working parties
Notwithstanding the other provisions of these Rules of Procedure, the
Presidency shall organise the meetings of the various committees andworking parties so that their reports are available before the Corepermeetings at which they are to be examined.
Unless considerations of urgency require otherwise, the Presidency shall
postpone to a subsequent Coreper meeting any legislative items withinthe meaning of Article 7 on which the committee or working party hasnot completed its discussions at least five working days prior toCoreper's meeting.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 11
(1) These provisions are without prejudice to the role of the Economic and
Financial Committee as laidd own in Article 114 of the EC Treaty andto
existing Council Decisions thereon (OJ L 358, 31.12.1998, p. 109 andOJ L 5,
1.1.1999, p. 71).
(2) See statement (k) set out below:
(k)Article 21
‘Reports from working parties andany other d ocuments usedas a basis
for Coreper's discussions should be sent to delegations in time to allow
for their examination.’
▼B
Article 22
Quality of drafting (1)
1. In order to assist the Council in its task of ensuring the drafting
quality of the legislative acts which it adopts, the Legal Service shall beresponsible for checking the drafting quality of proposals and draft actsat the appropriate stage, as well as for bringing drafting suggestions tothe attention of the Council andits bod ies, pursuant to the Interinstitu-tional Agreement of 22 December 1998.
Throughout the legislative process, those who submit texts in connection
with the Council's proceedings shall pay special attention to the quality
of the drafting.
Article 23
The Secretary-General and the General Secretariat
1. The Council shall be assistedby a General Secretariat, und er the
responsibility of a Secretary-General, who shall be assistedby a DeputySecretary-General responsible for the running of the General Secretariat.The Secretary-General andthe Deputy Secretary-General shall beappointedby the Council acting unanimously.
2. The Council shall decide on the organisation of the General
Secretariat(
2).
Under its authority the Secretary-General and the Deputy Secretary-
General shall take all the measures necessary to ensure the smoothrunning of the General Secretariat.
3. The General Secretariat shall be closely andcontinually involved
in organising, coordinating and ensuring the coherence of the Council'swork. Under the responsibility and guidance of the Presidency, it shallassist the latter in seeking solutions.
In accordance with the provisions of the Treaty on European Union, the
Secretary-General shall assist the Council andthe Presid ency in matters
concerning the common foreign andsecurity policy, includ ing
coordination of the work of the Special Representatives.
If appropriate, the Secretary-General may ask the Presidency to convene
a committee or working party, in particular in relation to matters
concerning the common foreign andsecurity policy, or to place an itemon the agenda for a committee or working party.
4. The Secretary-General or the Deputy Secretary-General shall
submit to the Council the draft estimate of the expenditure of theCouncil in sufficient time to ensure that the time limits laidd own by thefinancial provisions are met.
5. The Secretary-General, assistedby the Deputy Secretary-General,
shall have full responsibility for administering the appropriations enteredin Section II — Council of the budget and shall take all measuresnecessary to ensure that they are properly managed. He shall implement2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 12
(1) See statement (l) set out below:
(l)Article 22
‘The Council Legal Service has also been instructedto provid e assistance
to a Member State responsible for an initiative within the meaning of
Article 67(1) of the EC Treaty or Article 34(2) of the Treaty on European
Union for the purpose, inter alia , of checking the quality of drafting of
such initiatives if that assistance is requestedby the Member State
concerned.’See statement (m) set out below:
(m)Article 22
‘Members of the Council will comment on proposals for official
codification of legislative texts within 30 days of the circulation of such
proposals by the General Secretariat.Members of the Council will ensurethat those provisions of a proposal for the recasting of legislative texts
which have been taken from the preceding act without subtantive
amendment are examined in accordance with the principles established
for examination of codification proposals.’
(
2) Paragraphs 1 and2 reprod uce Article 207(2) of the EC Treaty.
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the appropriations in question in accordance with the provisions of the
Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the EuropeanCommunities.
Article 24
Security
The rules on security shall be adopted by the Council acting by a
qualifiedmajority.
Article 25
Duties as depositary of agreements and conventions
In the event of the Secretary-General of the Council being designated as
depositary of an agreement concluded in accordance with Article 24 ofthe Treaty on European Union or concluded by the Community and oneor more States or international organisations, of a convention concluded
between Member States or of a convention establishedpursuant to
Article 34 of the Treaty on European Union, the acts of ratification,acceptance or approval of those agreements or conventions shall bedeposited at the address of the Council.
In such instances the Secretary-General shall perform the duties of a
depositary and shall also ensure that the dates of entry into force of suchagreements or conventions are publishedin the Official Journal.
Article 26
Representation before the European Parliament
Subject to special procedures, the Council may be represented by the
Presidency or by any other of its members before the European
Parliament or its committees. The Council may also be represented
before those committees by its Secretary-General, its Deputy Secretary-General or senior officials of the General Secretariat, acting oninstructions from the Presidency.
The Council may also present its views to the European Parliament by
means of a written statement.
Article 27
Provisions concerning the form of acts
The provisions concerning the form of acts are set out in Annex II.
Article 28
Correspondence addressed to the Council
Correspondence to the Council shall be sent to the President at the
following address of the Council:
Council of the European Union
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat 175
B-1048 Brussels2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 13
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ANNEX I
1. In application of the following provisions of these Rules of Procedure
and for decisions in respect of which, under the Treaties, members ofthe Council or of Coreper may not participate in the vote, account is
not to be taken of votes by such members:
(a) Article 1(3), secondsubparagraph (hold ing of a meeting in a
place other than Brussels or Luxembourg);
(b) Article 3(6) (inclusion on the agenda of an item other than those
appearing on the provisional agenda);
(c) Article 3(8) (maintaining as a “B” item on the agenda an “A”
item which wouldotherwise have hadto be withd rawn from theagenda);
(d) Article 5(2), as regards the presence of the European Central
Bank only (deliberation without the presence of the European
Central Bank);
(e) Article 9(2) and(3), first subparagraph, points (b) and(c), second
andthirdsubparagraphs (making public the statements in theCouncil minutes anditems in those minutes relating to theadoption of conventions established on the basis of Title VI of theTreaty on European Union; making public the results of votes,
explanations of votes, statements in the Council minutes and
items in those minutes relating to the adoption of a commonposition under Title VI of the Treaty on European Union; makingpublic the results of votes, explanations of votes, statements inthe Council minutes anditems in those minutes relating to casesother than those referredto in paragraph 3);
(f) Article 11(1), secondsubparagraph (opening of a voting
procedure);
(g) Article 12(1) (use of the written procedure);(h) Article 14(1) (decision to deliberate and take decisions
exceptionally on the basis of documents and drafts not drawnup in all the languages)(
1);
(i) Article 17(2)(a) and(b) (non-publication in the Official Journal
of an initiative presentedby a Member State pursuant to Article
67(1) of the EC Treaty or Article 34(2) of the Treaty on EuropeanUnion);
(j) Article 17(2)(c) and(d ) (non-publication in the Official Journal
of a common position adopted on the basis of Article 34 of theTreaty on European Union or certain directives, decisions,
recommendations and opinions);
(k) Article 17(4)(c) (publication in the Official Journal of any
measures implementing decisions or conventions referred to inArticle 34(2) of the Treaty on European Union);
(l) Article 17(5) (whether to publish in the Official Journal decisions
taken by a body set up under an international agreement).
2. A member of the Council or of Coreper may not make use of the
following provisions of these Rules of Procedure in connection with
decisions on which, under the Treaties, that member may notparticipate in the vote:
(a) Article 3(8) (possibility of a member of the Council requesting
withdrawal of an “A” item from the agenda);2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 14
(1) See statement (n) set out below:
(n)Article 14 in Annex I
‘The Council confirms that present practice whereby the texts serving as a basis for
its deliberations are drawn up in all the languages will continue to apply.’
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(b) Article 11(1), secondsubparagraph (possibility of a member of the
Council requesting the opening of a voting procedure);
(c) Article 11(3) (possibility of a member of the Council acting on behalf of
another in a vote);
(d) Article 14(2) (possibility for any member of the Council to oppose
discussion if the texts of any proposed amendments are not drawn up in
the language he or she has specified).2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 15
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ANNEX II
PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE FORM OF ACTS
A.Form of regulations
1. Regulations adopted jointly by the European Parliament and the Council,
andCouncil regulations shall includ e:
(a) in their title the word“Regulation”, followedby a serial number, the
date of their adoption and an indication of their subject matter;
(b) the words “The European Parliament and the Council of the European
Union” or “The Council of the European Union”, as appropriate;
(c) a reference to the provisions under which the regulation is adopted,
preceded by the words “Having regard to”;
(d) a citation containing a reference to proposals submitted and to
opinions obtainedandconsultations held ;
(e) a statement of the reasons on which the regulation is based, preceded
by the word“Whereas:”, the recitals being numbered ;
(f) the words “have adopted this Regulation” or “has adopted this
Regulation”, as appropriate, followedby the enacting terms of the
regulation.
2. Regulations shall be divided into Articles, if appropriate, grouped into
chapters andsections.
3. The final article of a regulation shall fix the date of entry into force, where
that date is before or after the 20th day following publication.
4. The final article of a regulation shall be followedby:
(a) (i) the worlds “This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and
directly applicable in all Member States.”
or
(ii) the words “This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and
directly applicable in the Member States in accordance with the
Treaty establishing the European Community”, in any cases in
which an act is not applicable to, andin, all Member States(1),
(b) the words “Done at,” followed by the date on which the regulation was
adopted,
and
(c) in the case of
(i) a regulation adopted jointly by the European Parliament and the
Council, the formula:
“For the European Parliament
The PresidentFor the Council
The President”
followedby the name of the Presid ent of the European Parliament
andof the Presid ent-in-Office of the Council at the time when the
Regulation is adopted;
(ii) a Council regulation, the formula:
“For the Council
The President”
followedby the name of the Presid ent-in-Office of the Council at
the time when the regulation is adopted.
B.Form of directives, decisions, recommendations and opinions(EC Treaty)
1. Directives and decisions adopted jointly by the European Parliament and
the Council, and directives and decisions of the Council, shall include in
their titles the word“Directive” or “Decision”.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 16
(1) See statement (o) set out below:
(o)Annex II A
‘The Council wouldpoint out that, in the cases provid edfor in the Treaties where anact is not applicable to or in all Member States, it is necessary to make clear its
territorial application in the reasons given for andcontent of the act concerned .’
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2. Recommendations and opinions issued by the Council shall include in their
titles the word“Recommend ation” or “Opinion”.
3. The provisions relating to regulations set out in A above shall apply
mutatis mutandis, subject to the relevant provisions of the EC Treaty, to
directives and decisions.
C.Form of common strategies of the European Council, joint actions and
common positions referred to in Article 12of the Treaty on European
Union
Common strategies, joint actions andcommon positions within the meaning
of Article 12 of the Treaty on European Union shall bear one of the following
headings, as appropriate:
(a) “European Council Common Strategy”, a serial number (year/number/
CFSP), the date of adoption and the subject matter;
(b) “Council Joint Action”, a serial number (year/number/CFSP), the date of
adoption and the subject matter;
(c) “Council Common Position”, a serial number (year/number/CFSP), the
date of adoption and the subject matter.
D.Form of common positions, framework decisions, decisions and conven-
tions referred to in Article 34(2) of the Treaty on European Union
Common positions, framework decisions, decisions and conventions within
the meaning of Article 34(2) of the Treaty on European Union shall bear one
of the following headings, as appropriate
(a) “Council Common Position”, a serial number (year/number/JHA), the
date of adoption and the subject matter;
(b) “Council framework Decision”, a serial number (year/number/JHA), the
date of adoption and the subject matter;
(c) “Council Decision”, a serial number (year/number/JHA), the date of
adoption and the subject matter;
(d) “Convention established by the Council in accordance with Article 34 of
the Treaty on European Union” andthe subject matter.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 17
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ANNEX III
SPECIFIC PROVISIONS REGARDING PUBLIC ACCESS TO COUNCIL
DOCUMENTS
Article 1
Scope
Any natural or legal person shall have access to Council documents
subject to the principles, conditions and limits laid down in Regulation(EC) No 1049/2001 andthe specific provisions laidd own in this Annex.
Article 2
Consultation as regards third-party documents
1. For the purpose of applying Article 4(5) andArticle 9(3) of
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 andunless it is clear, upon examinationof the document in the light of Article 4(1), (2) and (3) of Regulation(EC) No 1049/2001, that it shall not be disclosed, the third party
concernedshall be consultedif:
(a) the document is a sensitive document as defined in Article 9(1) of
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001;
(b) the document originates from a Member State and
— was submittedto the Council before 3 December 2001; or
— the Member State concernedrequestedthat it not be d isclosed
without its prior agreement.
2. In all other cases, where the Council receives an application for a
third-party document in its possession, the General Secretariat, for the
purpose of applying Article 4(4) of Regulation (EC) No1049/2001, shall
consult the thirdparty concernedunless it is clear, upon examination ofthe document in the light of Article 4(1), (2) and (3) of Regulation (EC)No 1049/2001, that it shall or shall not be disclosed.
3. The thirdparty shall be consultedin writing (includ ing by e-mail)
andbe given a reasonable time limit for its reply, taking into account the
time limit laidd own in Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001. Inthe cases referredto in paragraph 1, the thirdparty shall be askedto giveits opinion in writing.
4. Where the document does not fall within paragraph 1(a) or (b) and
the General Secretariat, in the light of the thirdparty's negative opinion,
is not satisfiedthat Article 4(1) or (2) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001is applicable, the Council shall be seizedof the matter.
If the Council envisages the release of the document, the third party
shall be informedimmed iately in writing of the Council's intention to
release the document after a time period of at least 10 working days. At
the same time, the thirdparty's attention shall be d rawn to Article 243 ofthe Treaty establishing the European Community.
Article 3
Requests for consultation received from other institutions or from
Member States
Requests for consultations with the Council made by another institution
or a Member State concerning an application for a Council documentshall be sent via e-mail to access@consilium.eu.int or by fax to +32(0)2
285 6361.
The General Secretariat shall give its opinion on behalf of the Council
promptly, taking into account any time limit requiredfor a d ecision to bemade by the institution or the Member State concerned, and at the latestwithin five working days.2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 18
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Article 4
Documents originating from Member States
Any request by a Member State under Article 4(5) of Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 shall be made in writing to the General Secretariat.
Article 5
Referral of requests by Member States
When a Member States refers to a request to the Council, it shall be
handled in accordance with Articles 7 and 8 of Regulation (EC) No1049/2001 andthe relevant provisions of this Annex. In the event of a
total or partial refusal of access, the applicant shall be informedthat any
confirmatory application must be addressed directly to the Council.
Article 6
Address for applications
Applications for access to a document shall be addressed in writing to
the Secretary-General of the Council/High Representative, rue de la Loi/Wetstraat 175, B-1048 Brussels, by e-mail to access@consilium.eu.intor by fax to +32(0)2 285 6361.
Article 7
Processing of initial applications
Subject to Article 9(2) and(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, any
application for access to a Council document shall be handled by theGeneral Secretariat.
Article 8
Processing of confirmatory applications
Subject to Article 9(2) and(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, any
confirmatory application shall be decided upon by the Council.
Article 9
Charges
The charges for producing and sending copies of Council documents
shall be set by the Secretary-General.
Article 10
Public register of Council documents
1. The General Secretariat shall be responsible for providing public
access to the register of Council documents.
2. In addition to the references to documents, it shall be indicated in
the register which documents drawn up after 1 July 2000 have alreadybeen releasedto the public. Subject to Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 ofthe European Parliament andof the Council of 18 December 2000 on theprotection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data
by the Community institutions andbod ies andon the free movement of
such data(
1) andArticle 16 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, their
content shall be made available on the Internet.
Article 11
Documents directly accessible to the public
1. This Article shall apply to all Council documents, provided that
they are not classifiedandwithout prejud ice to the possibility of making2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 19
(1) OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1.
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a written application in accordance with Article 6 of Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001.
2. For the purpose of this Article:
— “circulation” shall mean distribution of the final version of a document to the
members of the Council, their representatives or delegates;
— “legislative document” shall mean any document concerning the examination
andad option of a legislative act within the meaning of Article 7 of the
Council's Rules of Procedure.
3. The General Secretariat shall make the following documents available to the
public as soon as they have been circulated:
(a) documents of which neither the Council nor a Member State is the author,
which have been made public by their author or with his agreement;
(b) provisional agenda of meetings of the Council in its various formations;
(c) any text adopted by the Council and intended to be published in the Official
Journal ofthe European Communities .
4. Provided that they are clearly not covered by any of the exceptions laid
down in Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, the General Secretariat may
also make the following documents available to the public as soon as they have
been circulated:
(a) provisional agenda of committees and working parties;
(b) other documents, such as information notes, reports, progress reports and
reports on the state of discussions in the Council or one of its preparatory
bodies which do not reflect individual positions of delegations, excluding
Legal Service opinions andcontributions.
5. The General Secretariat shall make the following legislative documents
available to the public, in addition to the documents referred to in paragraphs 3
and4, as soon as they have been circulated :
(a) cover notes and copies of letters concerning legislative acts addressed to the
Council by other institutions or bodies of the European Union or, subject to
Article 4(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, by a Member State;
(b) notes submittedto Coreper and /or to the Council for approval (“I/A” and“A”
Item notes), as well as the draft legislative acts to which they refer;
(c) decisions adopted by the Council during the procedure referred to in Article
251 of the EC Treaty andjoint texts approvedbythe Conciliation Committee.
6. After adoption of one of the decisions referred to in paragraph 5(c) or final
adoption of the act concerned, the General Secretariat shall make available to the
public any legislative documents relating to this act which were drawn up before
one of such decisions and which are not covered by any of the exceptions laid
down in Article 4(1), (2) and (3), second subparagraph, of Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001, such as information notes, reports, progress reports andreports on the
state of discussions in the Council or in one of its preparatory bodies (“outcomes
of proceedings”), excluding Legal Service opinions and contributions.
At the request of a Member State, documents which are covered by the first
subparagraph and reflect the individual position of that Member State's delegation
in the Council shall not be made available to the public under these provisions.’2000D0396 — EN — 03.12.2001 — 002.002 — 20