EN Official Journal of the European Union L 116/1

RULES OF PROCEDURE

7th parliamentary term

March 2011

Note to the reader:

In accordance with Parliament’s decisions on the use of gender-neutral language in its documents, the Rules of Procedure have been adapted to take account of the guidelines on that subject approved by the High Level Group on Gender Equality and Diversity on 13 February 2008 and endorsed by the Bureau on 19 May 2008.

Interpretations of the Rules (pursuant to Rule 211) are in italic script.

CONTENTS

TITLE I MEMBERS, PARLIAMENT BODIES AND POLITICAL GROUPS

CHAPTER 1 MEMBERS OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

Rule 1 The European Parliament

Rule 2 The independent mandate

Rule 3 Verification of credentials

Rule 4 Term of office of Members

Rule 5 Privileges and immunities

Rule 6 Waiver of immunity

Rule 7 Procedures on immunity

Rule 8 Implementation of the Statute for Members

Rule 9 Members’ financial interests, standards of conduct and access to Parliament

Rule 10 Internal investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)

Rule 11 Observers

CHAPTER 2 OFFICERS OF PARLIAMENT

Rule 12 Provisional Chair

Rule 13 Nominations and general provisions

Rule 14 Election of President - opening address

Rule 15 Election of Vice-Presidents

Rule 16 Election of Quaestors

Rule 17 Term of office of Officers

Rule 18 Vacancies

Rule 19 Early termination of an office

CHAPTER 3 BODIES AND DUTIES

Rule 20 Duties of the President

Rule 21 Duties of the Vice-Presidents

Rule 22 Composition of the Bureau

Rule 23 Duties of the Bureau

Rule 24 Composition of the Conference of Presidents

Rule 25 Duties of the Conference of Presidents

Rule 26 Duties of the Quaestors

Rule 27 Conference of Committee Chairs

Rule 28 Conference of Delegation Chairs

Rule 29 Accountability of the Bureau and the Conference of Presidents

CHAPTER 4 POLITICAL GROUPS

Rule 30 Formation of political groups

Rule 31 Activities and legal situation of the political groups

Rule 32 Intergroups

Rule 33 Non-attached Members

Rule 34 Allocation of seats in the Chamber

TITLE II LEGISLATIVE, BUDGETARY AND OTHER PROCEDURES

CHAPTER 1 LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURES - GENERAL PROVISIONS

Rule 35 The Commission Work Programme

Rule 36 Respect for the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union

Rule 37 Verification of legal basis

Rule 37a Delegation of legislative powers

Rule 38 Verification of financial compatibility

Rule 38a Examination of respect for the principle of subsidiarity

Rule 39 Access to documents and provision of information to Parliament

Rule 40 Representation of Parliament in Council meetings

Rule 41 Rights of initiative conferred on Parliament by the Treaties

Rule 42 Initiative pursuant to Article 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union

Rule 43 Consideration of legislative documents

Rule 44 Legislative procedures on initiatives originating from Member States

CHAPTER 2 PROCEDURE IN COMMITTEE

Rule 45 Legislative reports

Rule 46 Simplified procedure

Rule 47 Non-legislative reports

Rule 48 Own-initiative reports

Rule 49 Opinions of committees

Rule 50 Procedure with associated committees

Rule 51 Procedure with joint committee meetings

Rule 52 Drafting of reports

CHAPTER 3 FIRST READING

Committee stage

Rule 53 Modification of a proposal for a legislative act

Rule 54 Commission and Council position on amendments

Plenary stage

Rule 55 Conclusion of first reading

Rule 56 Rejection of a Commission proposal

Rule 57 Adoption of amendments to a Commission proposal

Follow-up procedure

Rule 58 Follow-up to Parliament’s position

Rule 59 Renewed referral to Parliament

Rule 60 Deleted

CHAPTER 4 SECOND READING

Committee stage

Rule 61 Communication of the Council’s position

Rule 62 Extension of time limits

Rule 63 Referral to and procedure in the committee responsible

Plenary stage

Rule 64 Conclusion of second reading

Rule 65 Rejection of the Council’s position

Rule 66 Amendments to the Council’s position

CHAPTER 5 THIRD READING

Conciliation

Rule 67 Convening of the Conciliation Committee

Rule 68 Delegation to the Conciliation Committee

Plenary stage

Rule 69 Joint text

CHAPTER 6 CONCLUSION OF THE LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURE

Rule 70 Interinstitutional negotiations in legislative procedures

Rule 71 First-reading agreement

Rule 72 Second-reading agreement

Rule 73 Requirements for the drafting of legislative acts

Rule 74 Signing of adopted acts

CHAPTER 6a CONSTITUTIONAL MATTERS

Rule 74a Ordinary Treaty revision

Rule 74b Simplified Treaty revision

Rule 74c Accession treaties

Rule 74d Withdrawal from the Union

Rule 74e Breach by a Member State of fundamental principles

Rule 74f Composition of Parliament

Rule 74g Enhanced cooperation between Member States

CHAPTER 7 BUDGETARY PROCEDURES

Rule 75 Multiannual financial framework

Rule 75a Working documents

Rule 75b Consideration of the draft budget - first stage

Rule 75c Financial trialogue

Rule 75d Budgetary conciliation

Rule 75e Definitive adoption of the budget

Rule 75f Provisional twelfths system

Rule 76 Discharge to the Commission in respect of implementation of the budget

Rule 77 Other discharge procedures

Rule 78 Parliamentary control over implementation of the budget

CHAPTER 8 INTERNAL BUDGETARY PROCEDURES

Rule 79 Estimates of Parliament

Rule 79a Procedure to be applied when drawing up Parliament’s estimates

Rule 80 Power to incur and settle expenditure

CHAPTER 9 CONSENT PROCEDURE

Rule 81 Consent procedure

CHAPTER 10 DELETED

Rule 82 Deleted

CHAPTER 11 OTHER PROCEDURES

Rule 83 Procedure for delivering opinions pursuant to Article 140 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union

Rule 84 Procedures relating to dialogue between management and labour

Rule 85 Procedures for scrutiny of voluntary agreements

Rule 86 Codification

Rule 87 Recasting

Rule 87a Delegated acts

Rule 88 Implementing measures

TITLE IIA EXTERNAL RELATIONS

CHAPTER 12 INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS

Rule 89 Deleted

Rule 90 International agreements

Rule 91 Procedures based on Article 218 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union in the case of the provisional application or suspension of international agreements or the establishment of the Union’s position in a body set up by an international agreement

CHAPTER 13 EXTERNAL REPRESENTATION OF THE UNION AND THE COMMON FOREIGN AND SECURITY POLICY

Rule 92 Deleted

Rule 93 Special representatives

Rule 94 Deleted

Rule 95 International representation

Rule 96 Consultation of, and provision of information to, Parliament within the framework of the common foreign and security policy

Rule 97 Recommendations within the framework of the common foreign and security policy

Rule 98 Breach of human rights

CHAPTER 14 DELETED

Rule 99 Deleted

Rule 100 Deleted

Rule 101 Deleted

CHAPTER 15 DELETED

Rule 102 Deleted

TITLE III TRANSPARENCY OF BUSINESS

Rule 103 Transparency of Parliament’s activities

Rule 104 Public access to documents

TITLE IV RELATIONS WITH OTHER BODIES

CHAPTER 1 APPOINTMENTS

Rule 105 Election of the President of the Commission

Rule 106 Election of the Commission

Rule 107 Motion of censure on the Commission

Rule 107a Nomination of Judges and Advocates-General at the Court of Justice of the European Union

Rule 108 Appointment of the Members of the Court of Auditors

Rule 109 Appointment of the Members of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank

CHAPTER 2 STATEMENTS

Rule 110 Statements by the Commission, Council and European Council

Rule 111 Statements explaining Commission decisions

Rule 112 Statements by the Court of Auditors

Rule 113 Statements by the European Central Bank

Rule 114 Recommendation on the broad guidelines of economic policies

CHAPTER 3 PARLIAMENTARY QUESTIONS

Rule 115 Questions for oral answer with debate

Rule 116 Question Time

Rule 117 Questions for written answer

Rule 118 Questions for written answer to the European Central Bank

CHAPTER 4 REPORTS OF OTHER INSTITUTIONS

Rule 119 Annual and other reports of other institutions

CHAPTER 5 RESOLUTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Rule 120 Motions for resolutions

Rule 121 Recommendations to the Council

Rule 122 Debates on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law

Rule 123 Written declarations

Rule 124 Consultation of the European Economic and Social Committee

Rule 125 Consultation of the Committee of the Regions

Rule 126 Requests to European Agencies

CHAPTER 6 INTERINSTITUTIONAL AGREEMENTS

Rule 127 Interinstitutional agreements

CHAPTER 7 REFERRALS TO THE COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

Rule 128 Proceedings before the Court of Justice of the European Union

Rule 129 Deleted

TITLE V RELATIONS WITH NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS

Rule 130 Exchange of information, contacts and reciprocal facilities

Rule 131 Conference of European Affairs Committees (COSAC)

Rule 132 Conferences of parliaments

TITLE VI SESSIONS

CHAPTER 1 SESSIONS OF PARLIAMENT

Rule 133 Parliamentary term, sessions, part-sessions, sittings

Rule 134 Convening of Parliament

Rule 135 Venue of sittings and meetings

Rule 136 Attendance of Members at sittings

CHAPTER 2 ORDER OF BUSINESS OF PARLIAMENT

Rule 137 Draft agenda

Rule 138 Procedure in plenary without amendment and debate

Rule 139 Short presentation

Rule 140 Adopting and amending the agenda

Rule 141 Extraordinary debate

Rule 142 Urgent procedure

Rule 143 Joint debate

Rule 144 Time limits

CHAPTER 3 GENERAL RULES FOR THE CONDUCT OF SITTINGS

Rule 145 Access to the Chamber

Rule 146 Languages

Rule 147 Transitional arrangement

Rule 148 Distribution of documents

Rule 149 Allocation of speaking time and list of speakers

Rule 150 One-minute speeches

Rule 151 Personal statements

CHAPTER 4 MEASURES TO BE TAKEN IN THE EVENT OF NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE STANDARDS OF CONDUCT OF MEMBERS

Rule 152 Immediate measures

Rule 153 Penalties

Rule 154 Internal appeal procedures

CHAPTER 5 QUORUM AND VOTING

Rule 155 Quorum

Rule 156 Tabling and moving amendments

Rule 157 Admissibility of amendments

Rule 158 Voting procedure

Rule 159 Tied votes

Rule 160 Principles governing voting

Rule 161 Order of voting on amendments

Rule 162 Committee consideration of plenary amendments

Rule 163 Split voting

Rule 164 Right to vote

Rule 165 Voting

Rule 166 Final vote

Rule 167 Voting by roll call

Rule 168 Electronic voting

Rule 169 Voting by secret ballot

Rule 170 Explanations of vote

Rule 171 Disputes on voting

CHAPTER 6 INTERRUPTIVE AND PROCEDURAL MOTIONS

Rule 172 Procedural motions

Rule 173 Points of order

Rule 174 Moving the inadmissibility of a matter

Rule 175 Referral back to committee

Rule 176 Closure of a debate

Rule 177 Adjournment of a debate and vote

Rule 178 Suspension or closure of the sitting

CHAPTER 7 PUBLIC RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS

Rule 179 Minutes

Rule 180 Texts adopted

Rule 181 Verbatim reports

Rule 182 Audiovisual record of proceedings

TITLE VII COMMITTEES AND DELEGATIONS

CHAPTER 1 COMMITTEES - SETTING-UP AND POWERS

Rule 183 Setting-up of standing committees

Rule 184 Setting-up of special committees

Rule 185 Committees of inquiry

Rule 186 Composition of committees

Rule 187 Substitutes

Rule 188 Duties of committees

Rule 189 Committee responsible for the verification of credentials

Rule 190 Subcommittees

Rule 191 Committee bureaux

Rule 192 Committee coordinators and shadow rapporteurs

CHAPTER 2 COMMITTEES - FUNCTIONING

Rule 193 Committee meetings

Rule 194 Minutes of committee meetings

Rule 195 Voting in committee

Rule 196 Provisions concerning plenary sittings applicable in committee

Rule 197 Question Time in committee

CHAPTER 3 INTERPARLIAMENTARY DELEGATIONS

Rule 198 Setting-up and duties of interparliamentary delegations

Rule 199 Cooperation with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

Rule 200 Joint parliamentary committees

TITLE VIII PETITIONS

Rule 201 Right of petition

Rule 202 Examination of petitions

Rule 203 Notice of petitions

TITLE IX OMBUDSMAN

Rule 204 Election of the Ombudsman

Rule 205 Activities of the Ombudsman

Rule 206 Dismissal of the Ombudsman

TITLE X PARLIAMENT’S SECRETARIAT

Rule 207 Secretariat

TITLE XI POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES RELATING TO POLITICAL PARTIES AT EUROPEAN LEVEL

Rule 208 Powers and responsibilities of the President

Rule 209 Powers and responsibilities of the Bureau

Rule 210 Powers and responsibilities of the committee responsible and of Parliament’s plenary

TITLE XII APPLICATION AND AMENDMENT OF THE RULES OF PROCEDURE

Rule 211 Application of the Rules of Procedure

Rule 212 Amendment of the Rules of Procedure

TITLE XIII MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Rule 213 The symbols of the Union

Rule 214 Unfinished business

Rule 215 Arrangement of annexes

Rule 216 Corrigenda

ANNEX I Provisions governing the application of Rule 9(1) - Transparency and Members’ financial interests

ANNEX II Conduct of Question Time under Rule 116

ANNEX III Guidelines for questions for written answer under Rules 117 and 118

ANNEX IV Guidelines and general principles to be followed when choosing the subjects to be included on the agenda for the debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law provided for under Rule 122

ANNEX V Deleted

ANNEX VI Procedure for the consideration and adoption of decisions on the granting of discharge

ANNEX VII Powers and responsibilities of standing committees

ANNEX VIII Confidential and sensitive documents and information

ANNEX IX Detailed provisions governing the exercise of the European Parliament’s right of inquiry

ANNEX X Provisions governing the application of Rule 9(4) - Lobbying in Parliament

ANNEX XI Performance of the Ombudsman’s duties

ANNEX XII Prevention of fraud, corruption and any illegal activity detrimental to the Communities’ interests

ANNEX XIII Agreement between the European Parliament and the Commission on procedures for implementing Council Decision 1999/468/EC laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission, as amended by Decision 2006/512/EC

ANNEX XIV Framework Agreement on relations between the European Parliament and the European Commission

ANNEX XV Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 on public access to documents

ANNEX XVI Guidelines for the interpretation of the standards of conduct of Members

ANNEX XVII Guidelines for the approval of the Commission

ANNEX XVIII Procedure for granting authorisation to draw up own-initiative reports

ANNEX XIX Communicating Europe in partnership

ANNEX XX Joint Declaration of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission of 13 June 2007 on practical arrangements for the codecision procedure (Article 251 of the EC Treaty)

ANNEX XXI Code of conduct for negotiating in the context of the ordinary legislative procedures

TITLE I

MEMBERS, PARLIAMENT BODIES AND POLITICAL GROUPS

CHAPTER 1

Members of the European Parliament

Rule 1

The European Parliament

1. The European Parliament is the assembly elected pursuant to the Treaties, the Act of 20 September 1976 concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage and national legislation deriving from the Treaties.

2. Persons elected to the European Parliament shall be referred to as: ‘Членове на Европейския парламент’ in Bulgarian, ‘Diputados al Parlamento Europeo’ in Spanish, ‘Poslanci Evropského parlamentu’ in Czech, ‘Medlemmer af Europa-Parlamentet’ in Danish, ‘Mitglieder des Europäischen Parlaments’ in German, ‘Euroopa Parlamendi liikmed’ in Estonian, ‘Βoυλευτές τoυ Ευρωπαϊκoύ Κoιvoβoυλίoυ’ in Greek, ‘Members of the European Parliament’ in English, ‘Députés au Parlement européen’ in French, ‘Feisirí de Pharlaimint na hEorpa’ in Irish, ‘Deputati al Parlamento europeo’ in Italian, ‘Eiropas Parlamenta deputāti’ in Latvian, ‘Europos Parlamento nariai’ in Lithuanian, ‘Európai Parlamenti Képviselők’ in Hungarian, ‘Membri tal-Parlament Ewropew’ in Maltese, ‘Leden van het Europees Parlement’ in Dutch, ‘Posłowie do Parlamentu Europejskiego’ in Polish, ‘Deputados ao Parlamento Europeu’ in Portuguese, ‘Deputați în Parlamentul European’ in Romanian, ‘Poslanci Európskeho parlamentu’ in Slovak, ‘Poslanci Evropskega parlamenta’ in Slovenian, ‘Euroopan parlamentin jäsenet’ in Finnish, ‘Ledamöter av Europaparlamentet’ in Swedish.

Rule 2

The independent mandate

Members of the European Parliament shall exercise their mandate independently. They shall not be bound by any instructions and shall not receive a binding mandate.

Rule 3

Verification of credentials

1. Following elections to the European Parliament, the President shall invite the competent authorities of the Member States to notify Parliament without delay of the names of the elected Members so that all Members may take their seats in Parliament with effect from the opening of the first sitting following the elections. At the same time, the President shall draw the attention of those authorities to the relevant provisions of the Act of 20 September 1976 and invite them to take the necessary measures to avoid any incompatibility with the office of Member of the European Parliament.

2. Members whose election has been notified to Parliament shall declare in writing, before taking their seat in Parliament, that they do not hold any office incompatible with that of Member of the European Parliament within the meaning of Article 7(1) or (2) of the Act of 20 September 1976. Following general elections, the declaration shall be made, where possible, no later than 6 days prior to Parliament’s constitutive sitting. Until such time as Members’ credentials have been verified or a ruling has been given on any dispute, and provided that they have previously signed the abovementioned written declaration, they shall take their seat in Parliament and on its bodies and shall enjoy all the rights attaching thereto. Where it is established from facts verifiable from sources available to the public that a Member holds an office incompatible with that of Member of the European Parliament, within the meaning of Article 7(1) and (2) of the Act of 20 September 1976, Parliament, on the basis of the information provided by its President, shall establish that there is a vacancy.

3. On the basis of a report by the committee responsible for the verification of credentials, Parliament shall verify credentials without delay and rule on the validity of the mandate of each of its newly elected Members and also on any dispute referred to it pursuant to the provisions of the Act of 20 September 1976, except those based on national electoral laws.

4. The committee’s report shall be based on the official notification by each Member State of the full results of the election specifying the names of the candidates elected and those of any substitutes together with their ranking in accordance with the results of the vote. The validity of the mandate of a Member may not be confirmed unless the written declarations required under this Rule and Annex I to these Rules have been made. On the basis of a report by the committee, Parliament may at any time rule on any dispute as to the validity of the mandate of any of its Members.

5. Where the appointment of a Member is due to the withdrawal of candidates from the same list, the committee shall ensure that the withdrawals in question have taken place in accordance with the spirit and the letter of the Act of 20 September 1976 and Rule 4(3).

6. The committee shall ensure that any information which may affect the performance of the duties of a Member of the European Parliament or the ranking of the substitutes is forwarded to Parliament without delay by the authorities of the Member States or of the Union, with an indication of the date of effect in the case of an appointment. Should the competent authorities of the Member States initiate a procedure which might lead to the disqualification of a Member from holding office, the President shall ask them to keep him regularly informed of the stage reached in the procedure and shall refer the matter to the committee responsible. On a proposal from that committee, Parliament may adopt a position on the matter.

Rule 4

Term of office of Members

1. A Member’s term of office shall begin and end as laid down in the Act of 20 September 1976. It shall also end on death or resignation.

2. Every Member shall remain in office until the opening of the first sitting of Parliament following the elections.

3. Members who resign shall notify the President of their resignation and of the date on which that resignation is to take effect, which may not be more than 3 months after notification. This notification shall take the form of an official record drawn up in the presence of the Secretary-General or his representative, signed by the latter and by the Member concerned and immediately submitted to the committee responsible, which shall enter it on the agenda of its first meeting following receipt of the document. If the committee responsible considers that the resignation is not in accordance with the spirit or the letter of the Act of 20 September 1976 it shall inform Parliament to this effect so that Parliament can decide whether or not to establish the vacancy. Otherwise, the vacancy shall be established with effect from the date indicated by the resigning Member in the official record. There shall be no vote in Parliament on the subject. A simplified procedure has been introduced for certain exceptional circumstances, in particular where one or more part-sessions are held between the effective date of the resignation and the first meeting of the committee responsible and where, as the vacancy has not been established, the political group to which the resigning Member belongs is not able to obtain a replacement Member during those part-sessions. Under this procedure, the rapporteur of the committee responsible entrusted with these cases has the power to examine immediately any resignation duly notified and, where any delay in considering the notification would be prejudicial, to refer the matter to the committee chair, requesting, pursuant to paragraph 3: — either that the President be informed on behalf of the committee that the vacancy may be established, or — that an extraordinary meeting of the committee be convened to examine any specific difficulties noted by the rapporteur.

4. Where the competent authority of a Member State notifies the President of the end of the term of office of a Member of the European Parliament pursuant to the provisions of the law of that Member State, as a result either of incompatibilities within the meaning of Article 7(3) of the Act of 20 September 1976 or withdrawal of the mandate pursuant to Article 13(3) of that Act, the President shall inform Parliament that the mandate ended on the date communicated by the Member State and shall invite the Member State to fill the vacant seat without delay. Where the competent authorities of the Member States or of the Union or the Member concerned notify the President of an appointment or election to an office incompatible with the office of Member of the European Parliament within the meaning of Article 7(1) or (2) of the Act of 20 September 1976, the President shall inform Parliament, which shall establish that there is a vacancy.

5. The authorities of the Member States or of the Union shall inform the President of any assignment they intend to confer on a Member. The President shall refer to the committee responsible the question of the compatibility of the proposed assignment with the letter and the spirit of the Act of 20 September 1976 and shall inform Parliament, the Member and the authorities concerned of the conclusions reached by that committee.

6. The following shall be considered as the date of the end of the term of office and the effective date of a vacancy: — in the case of resignation: the date on which the vacancy is established by Parliament, in accordance with the notification of resignation, — in the case of appointment or election to an office incompatible with the office of Member of the European Parliament within the meaning of Article 7(1) or (2) of the Act of 20 September 1976: the date notified by the competent authorities of the Member States or of the Union or by the Member concerned.

7. When Parliament has established that a vacancy exists, it shall inform the Member State concerned and invite it to fill the seat without delay.

8. Any dispute concerning the validity of the appointment of a Member whose credentials have already been verified shall be referred to the committee responsible, which shall report to Parliament without delay and no later than the beginning of the next part-session.

9. Parliament shall reserve the right, where acceptance or termination of office appears to be based on material inaccuracy or vitiated consent, to declare the appointment under consideration to be invalid or refuse to establish the vacancy.

Rule 5

Privileges and immunities

1. Members shall enjoy privileges and immunities in accordance with the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union.

2. Passes allowing Members to circulate freely in the Member States shall be issued to them by the President of Parliament as soon as he has been notified of their election.

3. Members shall be entitled to inspect any files held by Parliament or a committee, other than personal files and accounts which only the Members concerned shall be allowed to inspect. Exceptions to this rule for the handling of documents to which public access may be refused pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents are laid down in Annex VIII to these Rules of Procedure.

Rule 6

Waiver of immunity

1. In the exercise of its powers in respect of privileges and immunities, Parliament shall seek primarily to uphold its integrity as a democratic legislative assembly and to secure the independence of its Members in the performance of their duties.

2. Any request addressed to the President by a competent authority of a Member State that the immunity of a Member be waived shall be announced in Parliament and referred to the committee responsible.

3. Any request addressed to the President by a Member or a former Member to defend privileges and immunities shall be announced in Parliament and referred to the committee responsible. The Member or former Member may be represented by another Member. The request may not be made by another Member without the agreement of the Member concerned.

4. As a matter of urgency, in circumstances where Members are arrested or have their freedom of movement curtailed in apparent breach of their privileges and immunities, the President, after having consulted the chair and rapporteur of the committee responsible, may take an initiative to assert the privileges and immunities of the Member concerned. The President shall notify the committee of that initiative and inform Parliament.

Rule 7

Procedures on immunity

1. The committee responsible shall consider without delay and in the order in which they have been submitted requests for the waiver of immunity or requests for the defence of immunity and privileges.

2. The committee shall make a proposal for a reasoned decision which recommends the adoption or rejection of the request for the waiver of immunity or for the defence of immunity and privileges.

3. The committee may ask the authority concerned to provide any information or explanation which the committee deems necessary in order for it to form an opinion on whether immunity should be waived or defended. The Member concerned shall be given an opportunity to be heard, may present any documents or other written evidence deemed by that Member to be relevant and may be represented by another Member.

4. Where the request seeks the waiver of immunity on several counts, each of these may be the subject of a separate decision. The committee’s report may, exceptionally, propose that the waiver of immunity should apply solely to prosecution proceedings and that, until a final sentence is passed, the Member should be immune from any form of detention or remand or any other measure which prevents that Member from performing the duties proper to the mandate.

5. Where Members are required to appear as witnesses or expert witnesses, there is no need to request a waiver of immunity, provided: — that they will not be obliged to appear on a date or at a time which prevents them from performing, or makes it difficult for them to perform, their parliamentary duties, or that they will be able to provide a statement in writing or in any other form which does not make it difficult for them to fulfil their parliamentary duties, — that they are not obliged to testify concerning information obtained confidentially in the exercise of their mandate which they do not see fit to disclose.

6. In cases concerning the defence of immunity or privileges, the committee shall state whether the circumstances constitute an administrative or other restriction imposed on the free movement of Members travelling to or from the place of meeting of Parliament or an opinion expressed or a vote cast in the performance of the mandate or fall within aspects of Article 10 of the Protocol on Privileges and Immunities which are not a matter of national law, and shall make a proposal to invite the authority concerned to draw the necessary conclusions.

7. The committee may offer a reasoned opinion as to the competence of the authority in question and the admissibility of the request, but shall not, under any circumstances, pronounce on the guilt or otherwise of the Member nor on whether or not the opinions or acts attributed to him or her justify prosecution, even if, in considering the request, it acquires detailed knowledge of the facts of the case.

8. The committee’s report shall be placed at the head of the agenda of the first sitting following the day on which it was tabled. No amendments may be tabled to the proposal(s) for a decision. Discussion shall be confined to the reasons for and against each proposal to waive or uphold immunity, or to defend immunity or a privilege. Without prejudice to Rule 151, the Member whose privileges or immunities are under consideration shall not speak in the debate. The proposal(s) for a decision contained in the report shall be put to the vote at the first voting time following the debate. After Parliament has considered the matter, a separate vote shall be taken on each of the proposals contained in the report. If a proposal is rejected, the contrary decision shall be deemed adopted.

9. The President shall immediately communicate Parliament’s decision to the Member concerned and to the competent authority of the Member State concerned, with a request that the President be informed of any developments in the relevant proceedings and of any judicial rulings made as a consequence. When the President receives this information, he shall transmit it to Parliament in the way he considers most appropriate, if necessary after consulting the committee responsible.

10. When the President makes use of the powers conferred on him by Rule 6(4), the committee responsible shall take cognisance of the President’s initiative at its next meeting. Where the committee deems it necessary it may prepare a report for submission to Parliament.

11. The committee shall treat these matters and handle any documents received with the utmost confidentiality.

12. The committee, after consulting the Member States, may draw up an indicative list of the authorities of the Member States which are competent to present a request for the waiver of a Member’s immunity.

13. Any inquiry as to the scope of Members’ privileges or immunities made by a competent authority shall be dealt with in accordance with the above rules.

Rule 8

Implementation of the Statute for Members

Parliament shall adopt the Statute for Members of the European Parliament and any modification thereof on the basis of a proposal by the committee responsible. Rule 138(1) shall apply mutatis mutandis. The Bureau shall be responsible for the application of these rules and shall decide on the financial envelopes on the basis of the annual budget.

Rule 9

Members’ financial interests, standards of conduct and access to Parliament

1. Parliament shall lay down rules governing the transparency of its Members’ financial interests, which shall be attached to these Rules of Procedure as an annex (1). Those rules shall not in any way prejudice or restrict Members in the exercise of their office or of any related political or other activity.

2. Members’ conduct shall be characterised by mutual respect, be based on the values and principles laid down in the basic texts on which the European Union is founded, respect the dignity of Parliament and not compromise the smooth conduct of parliamentary business or disturb the peace and quiet of any of Parliament’s premises. Members shall comply with Parliament’s rules on the treatment of confidential information. Failure to comply with those standards and rules may lead to application of measures in accordance with Rules 152, 153 and 154.

3. The application of this Rule shall in no way detract from the liveliness of parliamentary debates nor undermine Members’ freedom of speech. It shall be based on full respect for Members’ prerogatives, as laid down in primary law and the Statute for Members. It shall be based on the principle of transparency and be so undertaken that the relevant provisions are made clear to Members, who shall be informed individually of their rights and obligations.

4. The Quaestors shall be responsible for issuing nominative passes valid for a maximum of 1 year to persons who wish to enter Parliament’s premises frequently in order to supply information to Members within the framework of their parliamentary mandate in their own interests or those of third parties. In return, those persons shall be required to: — respect the code of conduct published as an annex to these Rules of Procedure (2), — sign a register kept by the Quaestors. That register shall be made available to the public on request in all of Parliament’s places of work and, in the form laid down by the Quaestors, in its information offices in the Member States. The provisions governing the application of this paragraph shall be laid down in an annex to these Rules of Procedure (3).

5. The code of conduct and the rights and privileges of former Members shall be laid down by a decision of the Bureau. No distinction shall be made in the treatment of former Members.

Rule 10

Internal investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)

The common rules laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 25 May 1999 concerning internal investigations by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) comprising the measures needed to facilitate the smooth running of investigations conducted by the Office shall be applicable within Parliament, pursuant to the Parliament Decision annexed to these Rules of Procedure (4).

Rule 11

Observers

1. Where a Treaty on the accession of a State to the European Union has been signed, the President, after obtaining the agreement of the Conference of Presidents, may invite the parliament of the acceding State to appoint from among its own members a number of observers equal to the number of future seats in the European Parliament allocated to that State.

2. Those observers shall take part in the proceedings of Parliament pending the entry into force of the Treaty of Accession, and shall have a right to speak in committees and political groups. They shall not have the right to vote or to stand for election to positions in Parliament. Their participation shall not have any legal effect on Parliament’s proceedings.

3. Their treatment shall be assimilated to that of a Member of Parliament as regards the use of Parliament’s facilities and the reimbursement of expenses incurred in their activities as observers.

4. Paragraph 1 shall apply mutatis mutandis pending the entry into force of the arrangement (5) whereby a number of additional seats in Parliament are allocated to certain Member States until the end of the seventh parliamentary term. The Member States concerned shall be invited to designate observers in accordance with their national law.

CHAPTER 2

Officers of Parliament

Rule 12

Provisional Chair

1. At the sitting provided for under Rule 134(2), and at any other sitting held for the purpose of electing the President and the Bureau, the outgoing President or, failing him or her, one of the outgoing Vice-Presidents in order of precedence or, in the absence of any of them, the Member having held office for the longest period shall take the chair until the President has been elected.

2. No business shall be transacted while a Member is provisionally in the chair by virtue of paragraph 1 unless it is concerned with the election of the President or the verification of credentials. The Member who is provisionally in the chair by virtue of paragraph 1 exercises the powers of the President referred to in the second subparagraph of Rule 3(2). Any other matter relating to the verification of credentials that is raised when he or she is in the chair is referred to the committee responsible for the verification of credentials.

Rule 13

Nominations and general provisions

1. The President, Vice-Presidents and Quaestors shall be elected by secret ballot, in accordance with Rule 169. Nominations shall be with consent. They may only be made by a political group or by at least 40 Members. However, if the number of nominations does not exceed the number of seats to be filled, the candidates may be elected by acclamation.

2. In the election of the President, Vice-Presidents and Quaestors, account should be taken of the need to ensure an overall fair representation of Member States and political views.

Rule 14

Election of President - opening address

1. The President shall be elected first. Nominations shall be handed before each ballot to the Member provisionally in the chair by virtue of Rule 12, who shall announce them to Parliament. If after three ballots no candidate has obtained an absolute majority of the votes cast, the fourth ballot shall be confined to the two Members who have obtained the highest number of votes in the third ballot. In the event of a tie the older candidate shall be declared elected.

2. As soon as the President has been elected, the Member who is provisionally in the chair by virtue of Rule 12 shall vacate the chair. Only the elected President may deliver an opening address.

Rule 15

Election of Vice-Presidents

1. The Vice-Presidents shall then be elected on a single ballot paper. Those who on the first ballot, up to the number of 14, secure an absolute majority of the votes cast shall be declared elected in order of the number of votes obtained. If the number of candidates elected is less than the number of seats to be filled, a second ballot shall be held under the same conditions to fill the remaining seats. Should a third ballot be necessary, a relative majority shall suffice for election to the remaining seats. In the event of a tie the oldest candidates shall be declared elected. Although this Rule, unlike Rule 14(1), does not expressly provide for new nominations to be introduced between ballots during the election of Vice-Presidents, such action is permissible because Parliament, being a sovereign body, must be able to consider all possible candidates, especially since the absence of such an option might impede the smooth running of the election.

2. Subject to the provisions of Rule 18(1), the Vice-Presidents shall take precedence in the order in which they were elected and, in the event of a tie, by age. Where they are not elected by secret ballot, the order in which their names are read out to the House by the President shall determine the order of precedence.

Rule 16

Election of Quaestors

After the election of the Vice-Presidents, Parliament shall elect five Quaestors.

The Quaestors shall be elected by the same procedure as the Vice-Presidents.

Rule 17

Term of office of Officers

1. The term of office of the President, Vice-Presidents and Quaestors shall be 2 ½ years. When Members change political groups they shall retain, for the remainder of their 2 ½-year term of office, any seat they hold in the Bureau or the College of Quaestors.

2. Should a vacancy for one of these positions occur before the expiry of this term of office, the Member elected shall serve only for the remaining period of his or her predecessor’s term of office.

Rule 18

Vacancies

1. Should it be necessary for the President, a Vice-President or a Quaestor to be replaced, the successor shall be elected in accordance with the above rules. A newly elected Vice-President shall take the place of his or her predecessor in the order of precedence.

2. Should the President’s seat become vacant, the first Vice-President shall act as President until a new President is elected.

Rule 19

Early termination of an office

The Conference of Presidents may, acting by a majority of three fifths of the votes cast, representing at least three political groups, propose to Parliament that it terminate the holding of office of the President, a Vice-President, a Quaestor, a Chair or Vice-Chair of a committee, a Chair or Vice-Chair of an interparliamentary delegation, or any other holder of an office elected within the Parliament, where it considers that the Member in question has been guilty of serious misconduct. Such a proposal shall be approved by Parliament by a majority of two thirds of the votes cast, constituting a majority of its component Members.

CHAPTER 3

Bodies and duties

Rule 20

Duties of the President

1. The President shall direct all the activities of Parliament and its bodies under the conditions laid down in these Rules and shall enjoy all the powers necessary to preside over the proceedings of Parliament and to ensure that they are properly conducted. This provision can be interpreted as meaning that the powers conferred by it include the power to put an end to the excessive use of motions such as points of order, procedural motions, explanations of vote and requests for separate, split or roll-call votes where the President is convinced that these are manifestly intended to cause and will result in, a prolonged and serious obstruction of the procedures of the House or the rights of other Members. The powers conferred by this provision include the power to put texts to the vote in an order other than that set out in the document to be voted on. By analogy with Rule 161(7), the President may seek the agreement of Parliament before doing so.

2. The duties of the President shall be to open, suspend and close sittings; to rule on the admissibility of amendments, on questions to the Council and Commission, and on the conformity of reports with these Rules; to ensure observance of these Rules, maintain order, call upon speakers, close debates, put matters to the vote and announce the results of votes; and to refer to committees any communications that concern them.

3. The President may speak in a debate only to sum up or to call speakers to order. Should he wish to take part in a debate, he shall vacate the chair and shall not reoccupy it until the debate is over.

4. Parliament shall be represented in international relations, on ceremonial occasions and in administrative, legal and financial matters by the President, who may delegate these powers.

Rule 21

Duties of the Vice-Presidents

1. If the President is absent or unable to discharge his duties, or if he wishes to take part in a debate pursuant to Rule 20(3), he shall be replaced by one of the Vice-Presidents in accordance with Rule 15(2).

2. The Vice-Presidents shall also carry out the duties conferred upon them under Rules 23, 25(3) and (5) and 68(3).

3. The President may delegate to the Vice-Presidents any duties such as representing Parliament at specific ceremonies or acts. In particular, the President may designate a Vice-President to take charge of the responsibilities conferred on the President in Rules 116(3) and 117(2).

Rule 22

Composition of the Bureau

1. The Bureau shall consist of the President and the 14 Vice-Presidents of Parliament.

2. The Quaestors shall be members of the Bureau in an advisory capacity.

3. If voting in the Bureau results in a tie, the President shall have the casting vote.

Rule 23

Duties of the Bureau

1. The Bureau shall carry out the duties assigned to it under the Rules of Procedure.

2. The Bureau shall take financial, organisational and administrative decisions on matters concerning the internal organisation of Parliament, its Secretariat and its bodies.

3. The Bureau shall take financial, organisational and administrative decisions on matters concerning Members on a proposal of the Secretary-General or of a political group.

4. The Bureau shall take decisions on matters relating to the conduct of sittings. The term ‘conduct of sittings’ includes the matter of the conduct of Members within all of Parliament’s premises.

5. The Bureau shall adopt the provisions referred to in Rule 33 concerning non-attached Members.

6. The Bureau shall decide the establishment plan of the Secretariat and lay down regulations concerning the administrative and financial situation of officials and other servants.

7. The Bureau shall draw up Parliament’s preliminary draft budget estimates.

8. The Bureau shall adopt the guidelines for the Quaestors in accordance with Rule 26.

9. The Bureau shall be the authority responsible for authorising meetings of committees away from the usual places of work, hearings and study and fact-finding journeys by rapporteurs. Where such meetings are authorised, the language arrangements shall be determined on the basis of the official languages used and requested by the members and substitutes of the committee concerned. The same shall apply in the case of the delegations, except where the members and substitutes concerned agree otherwise.

10. The Bureau shall appoint the Secretary-General in accordance with Rule 207.

11. The Bureau shall lay down the implementing rules relating to Regulation (EC) No 2004/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the regulations governing political parties at European level and the rules regarding their funding. In implementing that Regulation, it shall assume the tasks conferred upon it by these Rules of Procedure.

12. The Bureau shall lay down rules concerning the treatment of confidential information by Parliament and its bodies, office-holders and other Members, taking into account any interinstitutional agreement concluded on such matters. Those rules shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and annexed to these Rules of Procedure.

13. The President and/or the Bureau may entrust one or more members of the Bureau with general or specific tasks lying within the competence of the President and/or the Bureau. At the same time the ways and means of carrying them out shall be laid down.

14. The Bureau shall nominate two Vice-Presidents who shall be entrusted with the implementation of relations with national parliaments. They shall report back regularly to the Conference of Presidents on their activities in this regard.

15. When a new Parliament is elected, the outgoing Bureau shall remain in office until the first sitting of the new Parliament.

Rule 24

Composition of the Conference of Presidents

1. The Conference of Presidents shall consist of the President of Parliament and the Chairs of the political groups. The Chair of a political group may arrange to be represented by a member of that group.

2. The President of Parliament shall invite one of the non-attached Members to attend meetings of the Conference of Presidents, without having the right to vote.

3. The Conference of Presidents shall endeavour to reach a consensus on matters referred to it. Where a consensus cannot be reached, the matter shall be put to a vote subject to a weighting based on the number of Members in each political group.

Rule 25

Duties of the Conference of Presidents

1. The Conference of Presidents shall carry out the duties assigned to it under these Rules of Procedure.

2. The Conference of Presidents shall take decisions on the organisation of Parliament’s work and matters of legislative planning.

3. The Conference of Presidents shall be the authority responsible for matters concerning relations with the other institutions and bodies of the European Union and with the national parliaments of Member States.

4. The Conference of Presidents shall be the authority responsible for matters concerning relations with non-member countries and with non-Union institutions and organisations.

5. The Conference of Presidents shall be responsible for organising structured consultation with European civil society on major topics. This may include holding public debates, open to participation by interested citizens, on subjects of general European interest. The Bureau shall appoint a Vice-President responsible for the implementation of such consultations, who shall report back to the Conference of Presidents.

6. The Conference of Presidents shall draw up the draft agenda of Parliament’s part-sessions.

7. The Conference of Presidents shall be the authority responsible for the composition and competence of committees, committees of inquiry, joint parliamentary committees, standing delegations and ad hoc delegations.

8. The Conference of Presidents shall decide how seats in the Chamber are to be allocated pursuant to Rule 34.

9. The Conference of Presidents shall be the authority responsible for authorising the drawing up of own-initiative reports.

10. The Conference of Presidents shall submit proposals to the Bureau on administrative and budgetary matters concerning the political groups.

Rule 26

Duties of the Quaestors

The Quaestors shall be responsible for administrative and financial matters directly concerning Members, in accordance with guidelines laid down by the Bureau.

Rule 27

Conference of Committee Chairs

1. The Conference of Committee Chairs shall consist of the Chairs of all standing or special committees. It shall elect its chair. In the absence of the Chair, the meeting of the Conference shall be chaired by the oldest Member, or, in the absence of the latter, by the oldest Member present.

2. The Conference of Committee Chairs may make recommendations to the Conference of Presidents about the work of committees and the drafting of the agenda of part-sessions.

3. The Bureau and the Conference of Presidents may instruct the Conference of Committee Chairs to carry out specific tasks.

Rule 28

Conference of Delegation Chairs

1. The Conference of Delegation Chairs shall consist of the Chairs of all standing interparliamentary delegations. It shall elect its chair. In the absence of the Chair, the meeting of the Conference shall be chaired by the oldest Member, or, in the absence of the latter, by the oldest Member present.

2. The Conference of Delegation Chairs may make recommendations to the Conference of Presidents about the work of the delegations.

3. The Bureau and the Conference of Presidents may instruct the Conference of Delegation Chairs to carry out specific tasks.

Rule 29

Accountability of the Bureau and the Conference of Presidents

1. The minutes of the Bureau and the Conference of Presidents shall be translated into the official languages, printed and distributed to all Members of Parliament and shall be accessible to the public, unless the Bureau or the Conference of Presidents exceptionally, for reasons of confidentiality, as laid down in Article 4(1) to (4) of European Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, decides otherwise with regard to certain items of the minutes.

2. Any Member may ask questions concerning the work of the Bureau, the Conference of Presidents and the Quaestors. Such questions shall be submitted to the President in writing, notified to Members and published on Parliament’s website within 30 days of tabling, together with the answers given.

CHAPTER 4

Political groups

Rule 30

Formation of political groups

1. Members may form themselves into groups according to their political affinities. Parliament need not normally evaluate the political affinity of members of a group. In forming a group together under this Rule, the Members concerned accept by definition that they have political affinity. Only when this is denied by the Members concerned is it necessary for Parliament to evaluate whether the group has been constituted in accordance with the Rules.

2. A political group shall comprise Members elected in at least one quarter of the Member States. The minimum number of Members required to form a political group shall be 25.

3. If a group falls below the required threshold, the President, with the agreement of the Conference of Presidents, may allow it to continue to exist until Parliament’s next constitutive sitting, provided the following conditions are met: — the members continue to represent at least one fifth of the Member States, — the group has been in existence for a period longer than a year. The President shall not apply this derogation where there is sufficient evidence to suspect that it is being abused.

4. A Member may not belong to more than one political group.

5. The President shall be notified in a statement when a political group is set up. This statement shall specify the name of the group and the names of its members and bureau members.

6. The statement shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Rule 31

Activities and legal situation of the political groups

1. The political groups shall carry out their duties as part of the activities of the Union, including the tasks allocated to them by these Rules of Procedure. The political groups shall be provided with a secretariat on the basis of the establishment plan of the Secretariat, with administrative facilities and with the appropriations entered for that purpose in Parliament’s budget.

2. The Bureau shall lay down the rules relating to the provision, implementation and monitoring of those facilities and appropriations, as well as to the related delegations of budget implementation powers.

3. Those rules shall determine the administrative and financial consequences in the event of the dissolution of a political group.

Rule 32

Intergroups

1. Individual Members may form Intergroups or other unofficial groupings of Members, to hold informal exchanges of views on specific issues across different political groups, drawing on members of different parliamentary committees, and to promote contact between Members and civil society.

2. Such groupings may not engage in any activities which might result in confusion with the official activities of Parliament or of its bodies. Provided that the conditions laid down in the rules governing their establishment adopted by the Bureau are met, political groups may facilitate their activities by providing them with logistical support. Such groupings shall declare any external support in accordance with Annex I.

Rule 33

Non-attached Members

1. Members who do not belong to a political group shall be provided with a secretariat. The detailed arrangements shall be laid down by the Bureau on a proposal from the Secretary-General.

2. The Bureau shall determine the status and parliamentary rights of such Members.

3. The Bureau shall lay down the rules relating to the provision, implementation and auditing of appropriations entered in Parliament’s budget to cover the secretarial expenses and administrative facilities of non-attached Members.

Rule 34

Allocation of seats in the Chamber

The Conference of Presidents shall decide how seats in the Chamber are to be allocated to the political groups, the non-attached Members and the institutions of the European Union.

TITLE II

LEGISLATIVE, BUDGETARY AND OTHER PROCEDURES

CHAPTER 1

Legislative procedures - general provisions

Rule 35

The Commission Work Programme

1. Parliament shall work together with the Commission and the Council to determine the legislative planning of the European Union. Parliament and the Commission shall cooperate in preparing the Commission Work Programme – which is the Commission’s contribution to the Union’s annual and multiannual programming – in accordance with the timetable and arrangements agreed between the two institutions and annexed to these Rules of Procedure (6).

2. In urgent and unforeseen circumstances, an institution may, on its own initiative and in accordance with the procedures laid down in the Treaties, propose adding a legislative measure to those proposed in the Commission Work Programme.

3. The President shall forward the resolution adopted by Parliament to the other institutions which participate in the European Union’s legislative procedure and to the parliaments of the Member States. The President shall ask the Council to express an opinion on the Commission Work Programme and on Parliament’s resolution.

4. Where an institution is unable to comply with the timetable laid down it is required to notify the other institutions as to the reasons for the delay and to propose a new timetable.

Rule 36

Respect for the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union

1. Parliament shall in all its activities fully respect fundamental rights as laid down in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Parliament shall also fully respect the rights and principles enshrined in Article 2 and in Article 6(2) and (3) of the Treaty on European Union.

2. Where the committee responsible for the subject matter, a political group or at least 40 Members are of the opinion that a proposal for a legislative act or parts of it do not comply with rights enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the matter shall, at their request, be referred to the committee responsible for the interpretation of the Charter. The opinion of that committee shall be annexed to the report of the committee responsible for the subject matter.

Rule 37

Verification of legal basis

1. In the case of all proposals for legislative acts and other documents of a legislative nature, the committee responsible for the subject matter shall first verify the legal basis.

2. If that committee disputes the validity or the appropriateness of the legal basis, including in the context of the verification pursuant to Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union, it shall request the opinion of the committee responsible for legal affairs.

3. The committee responsible for legal affairs may also on its own initiative take up questions concerning the legal basis of the proposals for legislative acts. In such cases it shall duly inform the committee responsible for the subject matter.

4. If the committee responsible for legal affairs decides to dispute the validity or the appropriateness of the legal basis, it shall report its conclusions to Parliament. Parliament shall vote on this before voting on the substance of the proposal.

5. Amendments tabled in Parliament to change the legal basis of a proposal for a legislative act without the committee responsible for the subject matter or the committee responsible for legal affairs having disputed the validity or appropriateness of the legal basis shall be inadmissible.

6. If the Commission does not agree to modify its proposal to conform to the legal basis approved by Parliament, the rapporteur or the Chair of the committee responsible for legal affairs or of the committee responsible for the subject matter may propose that the vote on the substance of the proposal be postponed to a subsequent sitting.

Rule 37a

Delegation of legislative powers

1. When scrutinising a proposal for a legislative act which delegates powers to the Commission as provided for in Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Parliament shall pay particular attention to the objectives, content, scope and duration of the delegation, and to the conditions to which it is subject.

2. The committee responsible for the subject matter may at any time request the opinion of the committee responsible for the interpretation and application of Union law.

3. The committee responsible for the interpretation and application of Union law may also, on its own initiative, take up questions concerning the delegation of legislative powers. In such cases it shall duly inform the committee responsible for the subject matter.

Rule 38

Verification of financial compatibility

1. Where a proposal for a legislative act has financial implications, Parliament shall establish whether sufficient financial resources are provided.

2. Without prejudice to Rule 43, the committee responsible for the subject matter shall verify the financial compatibility of any proposal for a legislative act, or any other document of a legislative nature, with the multiannual financial framework.

3. When the committee responsible for the subject matter amends the financial endowment of the act it is considering, it shall request the opinion of the committee responsible for budgetary issues.

4. The committee responsible for budgetary issues may also on its own initiative take up questions concerning the financial compatibility of proposals for legislative acts. In such cases it shall duly inform the committee responsible for the subject matter.

5. If the committee responsible for budgetary issues decides to dispute the financial compatibility of the proposal, it shall report its conclusions to Parliament which shall put them to the vote.

6. An act declared incompatible may be adopted by Parliament subject to the decisions of the Budgetary Authority.

Rule 38a

Examination of respect for the principle of subsidiarity

1. During the examination of a proposal for a legislative act, Parliament shall pay particular attention to respect for the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality.

2. The committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity may decide to make recommendations for the attention of the committee responsible for the subject matter in respect of any proposal for a legislative act.

3. If a national parliament sends the President a reasoned opinion in accordance with Article 3 of the Protocol on the role of national parliaments in the European Union and Article 6 of the Protocol on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, that document shall be referred to the committee responsible for the subject-matter and forwarded for information to the committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity.

4. Except in the cases of urgency referred to in Article 4 of the Protocol on the role of national parliaments in the European Union, the committee responsible for the subject-matter shall not proceed to its final vote before the expiry of the deadline of 8 weeks laid down in Article 6 of the Protocol on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality.

5. Where reasoned opinions on the non-compliance of a proposal for a legislative act with the principle of subsidiarity represent at least one third of all the votes allocated to the national parliaments or a quarter in the case of a proposal for a legislative act submitted on the basis of Article 76 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Parliament shall not take a decision until the author of the proposal has stated how it intends to proceed.

6. Where, under the ordinary legislative procedure, reasoned opinions on the non-compliance of a proposal for a legislative act with the principle of subsidiarity represent at least a simple majority of the votes allocated to the national parliaments, the committee responsible for the subject-matter, having considered the reasoned opinions submitted by the national parliaments and the Commission, and having heard the views of the committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity, may recommend to Parliament that it reject the proposal on the grounds of infringement of the principle of subsidiarity or submit to Parliament any other recommendation, which may include suggestions for amendments related to respect of the principle of subsidiarity. The opinion given by the committee responsible for respect of the principle of subsidiarity shall be annexed to any such recommendation. The recommendation shall be submitted to Parliament for a debate and vote. If a recommendation to reject the proposal is adopted by a majority of the votes cast, the President shall declare the procedure closed. Where Parliament does not reject the proposal, the procedure shall continue, taking into account any recommendations approved by Parliament.

Rule 39

Access to documents and provision of information to Parliament

1. Throughout the legislative procedure Parliament and its committees shall request access to all documents relating to proposals for legislative acts under the same conditions as the Council and its working parties.

2. During the examination of a proposal for a legislative act, the committee responsible shall ask the Commission and the Council to keep it informed of the progress of that proposal in the Council and its working parties and in particular to inform it of any emerging compromises which will substantially amend the original proposal, or of the author’s intention to withdraw its proposal.

Rule 40

Representation of Parliament in Council meetings

When the Council invites Parliament to take part in a Council meeting in which the Council acts in a legislative capacity, the President shall ask the Chair or rapporteur of the committee responsible, or another Member designated by the committee, to represent Parliament.

Rule 41

Rights of initiative conferred on Parliament by the Treaties

In cases where the Treaties confer a right of initiative on Parliament, the committee responsible may decide to draw up an own-initiative report.

The report shall comprise:

(a) a motion for a resolution;

(b) where appropriate, a draft decision or a draft proposal;

(c) an explanatory statement including, where appropriate, a financial statement.

Where the adoption of an act by Parliament requires the approval or the consent of the Council and the opinion or the consent of the Commission, Parliament may, following the vote on the proposed act, and on a proposal by the rapporteur, decide to postpone the vote on the motion for a resolution until the Council or the Commission have stated their position.

Rule 42

Initiative pursuant to Article 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union

1. Parliament may request the Commission, pursuant to Article 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, to submit to it any appropriate proposal for the adoption of a new act or the amendment of an existing act, by adopting a resolution on the basis of an own-initiative report drawn up by the committee responsible in accordance with Rule 48. The resolution shall be adopted by a majority of the component Members of Parliament in the final vote. Parliament may, at the same time, set a deadline for the submission of such a proposal.

2. Any Member may table a proposal for a Union act on the basis of the right of initiative granted to Parliament pursuant to Article 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

3. The proposal shall be submitted to the President, who shall refer it to the committee responsible for consideration. Before such referral, the proposal shall be translated into those official languages which the Chair of that committee considers necessary in order to make summary consideration possible. The committee shall take a decision on further action within 3 months of the referral, and after having heard the author of the proposal. Where the committee decides to submit the proposal to Parliament in accordance with the procedure set out in Rule 48, the author of the proposal shall be named in the title of the report.

4. Parliament’s resolution shall indicate the appropriate legal basis and be accompanied by detailed recommendations as to the content of the required proposals, which shall respect fundamental rights and the principle of subsidiarity.

5. Where a proposal has financial implications, Parliament shall indicate how sufficient financial resources can be provided.

6. The committee responsible shall monitor the progress of preparation of any proposed legislative act drawn up following a particular request by Parliament.

Rule 43

Consideration of legislative documents

1. Proposals for legislative acts and other documents of a legislative nature shall be referred by the President to the committee responsible for consideration. In cases of doubt the President may apply Rule 188(2) before the announcement in Parliament of referral to the committee responsible. In cases where a proposal is listed in the Commission Work Programme the committee responsible may decide to appoint a rapporteur to follow the preparatory phase of the proposal. Consultations by the Council or requests from the Commission for an opinion shall be forwarded by the President to the committee responsible for consideration of the proposal concerned. The provisions for the first reading as set out in Rules 36 to 42, 53 to 59 and 71 shall apply to proposals for legislative acts whether they require one, two or three readings.

2. Council positions shall be referred for consideration to the committee responsible at the first reading. The provisions for the second reading as set out in Rules 61 to 66 and 72 shall apply to Council positions.

3. During the conciliation procedure between Parliament and the Council following the second reading, no referral back to committee shall take place. The provisions for the third reading as set out in Rules 67, 68 and 69 shall apply to the conciliation procedure.

4. Rules 45, 46, 49, 55(1) and (3), 56, 57 and 175 shall not apply during the second and third readings.

5. In the event of a conflict between a provision of the Rules of Procedure relating to the second and third readings and any other provision of the Rules, the provision relating to the second and third readings shall take precedence.

Rule 44

Legislative procedures on initiatives originating from Member States

1. Initiatives originating from Member States pursuant to Article 76 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union shall be dealt with pursuant to this Rule and Rules 36 to 39, 43 and 55.

2. The committee responsible may invite representatives of the originating Member States to present their initiative to the committee. The representatives may be accompanied by the Presidency of the Council.

3. Before the committee responsible proceeds to the vote, it shall ask the Commission whether it is preparing an opinion on the initiative. In the affirmative, the committee shall not adopt its report before receiving the Commission’s opinion.

4. When two or more proposals originating from the Commission and/or the Member States with the same legislative objective have been submitted to Parliament simultaneously or within a short period of time, Parliament shall deal with them in a single report. In its report, the committee responsible shall indicate to which text it has proposed amendments and it shall refer to all other texts in the legislative resolution.

CHAPTER 2

Procedure in committee

Rule 45

Legislative reports

1. The Chair of the committee to which a proposal for a legislative act is referred shall propose to the committee the procedure to be followed.

2. Following a decision on the procedure to be followed, and if Rule 46 does not apply, the committee shall appoint a rapporteur on the proposal for a legislative act from among its members or permanent substitutes if it has not yet done so on the basis of the Commission Work Programme agreed under Rule 35.

3. The committee’s report shall comprise: (a) amendments, if any, to the proposal, accompanied, if appropriate, by short justifications which shall be the responsibility of the rapporteur and shall not be put to the vote; (b) a draft legislative resolution, in accordance with Rule 55(2); (c) if appropriate, an explanatory statement including a financial statement which establishes the magnitude of any financial impact of the report and its compatibility with the multiannual financial framework.

Rule 46

Simplified procedure

1. Following a first discussion of a proposal for a legislative act, the Chair may propose that it be approved without amendment. Unless at least one tenth of the members of the committee object, the Chair shall present to Parliament a report approving the proposal. Rule 138(1), second subparagraph, (2) and (4) shall apply.

2. The Chair may alternatively propose that a set of amendments be drafted by the chair or by the rapporteur reflecting the committee’s discussion. If the committee so agrees, these amendments shall be sent to the members of the committee. Unless at least one tenth of the members of the committee object within a set time limit, which may not be less than 21 days from the date of dispatch, the report shall be deemed to have been adopted by the committee. In this case the draft legislative resolution and the amendments shall be submitted to Parliament without debate pursuant to Rule 138(1), second subparagraph, (2) and (4).

3. If at least one tenth of the committee’s members object, the amendments shall be put to the vote at the next meeting of the committee.

4. The first and second sentences of paragraph 1, the first, second and third sentences of paragraph 2 and paragraph 3 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to committee opinions within the meaning of Rule 49.

Rule 47

Non-legislative reports

1. Where a committee draws up a non-legislative report, it shall appoint a rapporteur from among its members or permanent substitutes.

2. The rapporteur shall be responsible for preparing the committee’s report and for presenting it to Parliament on behalf of the committee.

3. The committee’s report shall comprise: (a) a motion for a resolution; (b) an explanatory statement including a financial statement which establishes the magnitude of any financial impact of the report and its compatibility with the multiannual financial framework; (c) the texts of any motions for resolutions to be included under Rule 120(4).

Rule 48

Own-initiative reports

1. A committee intending to draw up a report and to submit to Parliament a motion for a resolution on a subject within its competence on which neither a consultation nor a request for an opinion has been referred to it under Rule 188(1) may do so only with the authorisation of the Conference of Presidents. Where such authorisation is withheld the reason must always be stated. Where the subject of the report is a proposal tabled by a Member pursuant to Rule 42(2), authorisation may be withheld only if the conditions set out in Article 5 of the Statute for Members and in Article 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union are not met. The Conference of Presidents takes a decision on requests for authorisation to draw up reports submitted pursuant to paragraph 1 on the basis of implementing provisions which it itself lays down. If a committee’s competence to draw up a report for which it has requested authorisation is challenged, the Conference of Presidents takes a decision within 6 weeks on the basis of a recommendation from the Conference of Committee Chairs, or, if no such recommendation is forthcoming, from its Chair. If the Conference of Presidents fails to take a decision within that period, the recommendation is declared to have been approved.

2. Motions for resolutions contained in own-initiative reports shall be examined by Parliament under the short presentation procedure set out in Rule 139. Amendments to such motions for resolutions shall only be admissible for consideration in plenary if tabled by the rapporteur to take account of new information or by at least one tenth of the Members of Parliament. Political groups may table alternative motions for resolutions in accordance with Rule 157(4). This paragraph shall not apply in cases where the subject of the report qualifies for a key debate in plenary, where the report is drawn up pursuant to the right of initiative referred to in Rule 41 or 42, or where the report can be considered a strategic report according to the criteria set out by the Conference of Presidents (7).

3. Where the subject of the report comes under the right of initiative referred to in Rule 41, authorisation may be withheld only on the grounds that the conditions set out in the Treaties are not met.

4. In the cases referred to in Rule 41 and Rule 42, the Conference of Presidents shall take a decision within 2 months.

Rule 49

Opinions of committees

1. If the committee to which a matter was first referred wishes to hear the views of another committee, or if another committee wishes to make known its views on the report of the committee to which a matter was first referred, such committees may ask the President in accordance with Rule 188(3), for one committee to be named as the committee responsible and the other as the committee asked for an opinion.

2. In the case of documents of a legislative nature within the meaning of Rule 43(1), the opinion shall consist of amendments to the text referred to the committee accompanied where appropriate by short justifications. Such justifications shall be the responsibility of the rapporteur for the opinion and shall not be put to the vote. If necessary the committee asked for an opinion may submit a short written justification for the opinion taken as a whole. In the case of non-legislative texts, the opinion shall consist of suggestions for parts of the motion for a resolution submitted by the committee responsible. The committee responsible shall put these amendments or suggestions to the vote. The opinions shall deal solely with those matters that fall within the areas of responsibility of the committee asked for an opinion.

3. The committee responsible shall set a deadline within which the committee asked for an opinion must deliver it if it is to be taken into account by the committee responsible. Any changes to the announced timetable shall be immediately communicated by the committee responsible to the committee(s) asked for an opinion. The committee responsible shall not reach its final conclusions before that time limit has expired.

4. All adopted opinions shall be annexed to the report of the committee responsible.

5. Only the committee responsible may table amendments in plenary.

6. The Chair and rapporteur of the committee asked for an opinion shall be invited to take part in an advisory capacity in meetings of the committee responsible, in so far as these relate to the matter of common concern.

Rule 50

Procedure with associated committees

Where a question of competence is referred to the Conference of Presidents pursuant to Rules 188(2) or 48, and the Conference of Presidents, on the basis of Annex VII, considers that the matter falls almost equally within the competence of two or more committees, or that different parts of the matter fall within the competence of two or more committees, Rule 49 shall apply with the following additional provisions:

— the timetable shall be jointly agreed by the committees concerned,

— the rapporteurs concerned shall keep each other informed and shall endeavour to agree on the texts they propose to their committees and on their position regarding amendments,

— the Chairs and rapporteurs concerned shall jointly identify areas of the text falling within their exclusive or joint competence and agree on the precise arrangements for their cooperation. In the event of disagreement about the delimitation of competences the matter shall be submitted, at the request of one of the committees involved, to the Conference of Presidents, which may decide on the question of the respective competences or decide that the procedure with joint committee meetings under Rule 51 is to apply; the second subparagraph of Rule 188(2) shall apply mutatis mutandis,

— the committee responsible shall accept without a vote amendments from an associated committee where they concern matters which fall within the exclusive competence of the associated committee. If amendments on matters which fall within the joint competence of the committee responsible and an associated committee are rejected by the former, the latter may table those amendments directly in plenary,

— in the event of a conciliation procedure taking place on the proposal, Parliament’s delegation shall include the rapporteur of any associated committee.

The wording of this Rule does not lay down any limits to its scope. Requests for application of the procedure with associated committees concerning non-legislative reports based on Rules 48(1) and 119(1) and (2) are admissible.

For the purposes of examining international agreements under Rule 90, the procedure with associated committees set out in this Rule may not be applied in relation to the consent procedure under Rule 81.

The Conference of Presidents’ decision to apply the procedure with associated committees applies at all stages of the procedure in question.

The rights attaching to the status of ‘committee responsible’ are exercised by the lead committee. In exercising those rights, the lead committee must take due account of the prerogatives of the associated committee, and in particular must comply with the obligation to observe the principle of sincere cooperation as regards the timetable and respect the right of the associated committee to determine the amendments submitted in plenary which fall within its exclusive competence.

Should the lead committee disregard the prerogatives of the associated committee, decisions taken by the former remain valid but the latter may table amendments directly in plenary, within the limits of its exclusive competence.

Rule 51

Procedure with joint committee meetings

Where the conditions set out in Rule 49(1) and Rule 50 are fulfilled, the Conference of Presidents may, if it is satisfied that the matter is of major importance, decide that a procedure with joint meetings of committees and a joint vote is to be applied. In that event, the rapporteurs concerned shall draw up a single draft report, which shall be examined and voted on by the committees involved at joint meetings held under the joint chairmanship of the committee Chairs concerned. The committees involved may set up intercommittee working groups to prepare the joint meetings and votes.

Rule 52

Drafting of reports

1. The explanatory statement shall be the responsibility of the rapporteur and shall not be put to the vote. It must, however, accord with the text of the motion for a resolution as adopted and any amendments proposed by the committee. If it fails to do so, the chair of the committee may delete the explanatory statement.

2. The report shall state the result of the vote taken on the report as a whole. In addition, if at least one third of the members present so request when the vote is taken, the report shall indicate how each member voted.

3. Where the committee’s opinion is not unanimous the report shall also give a summary of the minority opinion. Minority opinions shall be expressed when the vote on the text as a whole is taken and may, at the request of their authors, be the subject of a written declaration not exceeding 200 words in length, annexed to the explanatory statement. The Chair shall settle any disputes which may arise as a result of the application of these provisions.

4. On a proposal from its bureau, a committee may set a deadline within which the rapporteur must submit the draft report. This deadline may be extended or a new rapporteur appointed.

5. Once the deadline has expired, the committee may instruct its Chair to ask for the matter referred to it to be placed on the agenda of one of the next sittings of Parliament. The debates may then be conducted on the basis of an oral report by the committee concerned.

CHAPTER 3

First reading

Committee stage

Rule 53

Modification of a proposal for a legislative act

1. If the Commission informs Parliament or if the committee responsible becomes otherwise aware that the Commission intends to modify its proposal, the committee responsible shall postpone its examination of the matter until it has received the new proposal or the amendments of the Commission.

2. If the Council substantially modifies the proposal for a legislative act, the provisions of Rule 59 shall apply.

Rule 54

Commission and Council position on amendments

1. Before the committee responsible proceeds to the final vote on a proposal for a legislative act, it shall ask the Commission to state its position on all the amendments to the proposal adopted by the committee, and the Council to comment.

2. If the Commission is not in a position to make such a statement or declares that it is not prepared to accept all the amendments adopted by the committee, then the committee may postpone the final vote.

3. If appropriate, the position of the Commission shall be included in the report.

Plenary stage

Rule 55

Conclusion of first reading

1. Parliament shall examine the proposal for a legislative act on the basis of the report drawn up by the committee responsible pursuant to Rule 45.

2. Parliament shall first vote on the amendments to the proposal with which the report of the committee responsible is concerned, then on the proposal, amended or otherwise, then on the amendments to the draft legislative resolution, then on the draft legislative resolution as a whole, which shall contain only a statement as to whether Parliament approves, rejects or proposes amendments to the proposal for a legislative act and any procedural requests. The first reading is concluded if the draft legislative resolution is adopted. If Parliament does not adopt the legislative resolution, the proposal shall be referred back to the committee responsible. All reports tabled under the legislative procedure should comply with Rules 37, 43 and 45. Any non-legislative motion for a resolution tabled by a committee should be in accordance with the referral procedures provided for in Rule 48 or 188.

3. The text of the proposal as approved by Parliament and the accompanying resolution shall be forwarded to the Council and the Commission by the President as Parliament’s position.

Rule 56

Rejection of a Commission proposal

1. If a Commission proposal fails to secure a majority of the votes cast or if a motion for its rejection, which may be tabled by the committee responsible or by at least 40 Members, has been adopted, the President shall, before Parliament votes on the draft legislative resolution, ask the Commission to withdraw the proposal.

2. If the Commission does so, the President shall declare the procedure closed and shall inform the Council accordingly.

3. If the Commission does not withdraw its proposal, Parliament shall refer the matter back to the committee responsible without voting on the draft legislative resolution, unless Parliament, on a proposal of the Chair or rapporteur of the committee responsible or of a political group or at least 40 Members, proceeds to vote on the draft legislative resolution. In the event of referral back, the committee responsible shall decide on the procedure to be followed and shall, orally or in writing, report back to Parliament within a period decided by Parliament which may not exceed 2 months. Following a referral back to committee pursuant to paragraph 3, the lead committee must, before taking a decision on the procedure to be followed, allow an associated committee, as provided for in Rule 50, to make choices as to the amendments which fall within its exclusive competence, and in particular to choose which amendments are to be resubmitted in plenary. The time limit laid down in the second subparagraph of paragraph 3 applies to the tabling in writing, or the oral presentation, of the report of the committee responsible. It does not apply to Parliament’s decision as to the appropriate juncture at which to continue consideration of the procedure in question.

4. If the committee responsible is unable to meet the deadline, it shall request referral back to committee pursuant to Rule 175(1). If necessary, Parliament may set a new time limit pursuant to Rule 175(5). If the committee’s request is not accepted, Parliament shall proceed to the vote on the draft legislative resolution.

Rule 57

Adoption of amendments to a Commission proposal

1. Where the Commission proposal as a whole is approved, but on the basis of amendments which have also been adopted, the vote on the draft legislative resolution shall be postponed until the Commission has stated its position on each of Parliament’s amendments. If the Commission is not in a position to make such a statement at the end of Parliament’s vote on its proposal, it shall inform the President or the committee responsible as to when it will be in a position to do so; the proposal shall then be placed on the draft agenda of the first part-session thereafter.

2. If the Commission announces that it does not intend to adopt all Parliament’s amendments, the rapporteur of the committee responsible, or else the Chair of that committee, shall make a formal proposal to Parliament as to whether the vote on the draft legislative resolution should proceed. Before submitting this proposal, the rapporteur or Chair of the committee responsible may ask the President to suspend consideration of the item. If Parliament decides to postpone the vote, the matter shall be deemed to be referred back to the committee responsible for reconsideration. In this case, the committee responsible shall, orally or in writing, report to Parliament within a period decided by Parliament which may not exceed 2 months. If the committee responsible is unable to meet the deadline, the procedure provided for in Rule 56(4) shall be applied. Only amendments tabled by the committee responsible and seeking to reach a compromise with the Commission shall be admissible at this stage.

3. Application of paragraph 2 does not preclude a request for referral being tabled by other Members pursuant to Rule 175. A committee to which a matter has been referred back under paragraph 2 is principally required under the terms of that referral to report within the deadline given and, where appropriate, to table amendments seeking to reach a compromise with the Commission, but not to reconsider all the provisions approved by Parliament. However, within these terms of reference, in view of the suspensory effect of the referral, the committee enjoys a greater degree of freedom and may, where necessary in the interests of the compromise, propose reconsidering provisions which received a favourable vote in Parliament. In such cases, in view of the fact that the only admissible amendments from the committee are those seeking to reach a compromise, and with a view to preserving Parliament’s sovereignty, the report referred to in paragraph 2 must clearly state which provisions already approved would fall if the proposed amendments were adopted.

Follow-up procedure

Rule 58

Follow-up to Parliament’s position

1. In the period following the adoption by Parliament of its position on a proposal by the Commission, the Chair and the rapporteur of the committee responsible shall monitor the progress of the proposal over the course of the procedure leading to its adoption by the Council, in particular to ensure that the undertakings given by the Council or the Commission to Parliament concerning its position are properly observed.

2. The committee responsible may invite the Commission and the Council to discuss the matter with it.

3. At any stage of the follow-up procedure the committee responsible may, if it deems it necessary, table a motion for a resolution under this Rule recommending that Parliament: — call upon the Commission to withdraw its proposal, or — call upon the Commission or the Council to refer the matter to Parliament once again pursuant to Rule 59, or upon the Commission to present a new proposal, or — decide to take such other action as it deems appropriate. This motion shall be placed on the draft agenda of the part-session following the decision by the committee.

Rule 59

Renewed referral to Parliament

Ordinary legislative procedure

1. The President shall, at the request of the committee responsible, ask the Commission to refer its proposal again to Parliament in cases: — where the Commission withdraws its initial proposal after Parliament has adopted its position, in order to replace it with another text, except where this is done in order to take account of Parliament’s position, or — where the Commission substantially amends or intends to amend its initial proposal, except where this is done in order to take account of Parliament’s position, or — where, through the passage of time or changes in circumstances, the nature of the problem with which the proposal is concerned substantially changes, or — where new elections to Parliament have taken place since it adopted its position, and the Conference of Presidents considers it desirable.

2. Parliament shall, at the request of the committee responsible, ask the Council to refer again to Parliament a proposal submitted by the Commission pursuant to Article 294 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, where the Council intends to modify the legal basis of the proposal with the result that the ordinary legislative procedure will no longer apply.

Other procedures

3. At the request of the committee responsible, the President shall call on the Council to reconsult Parliament in the same circumstances and under the same conditions as those set out in paragraph 1, and also where the Council substantially amends or intends to amend the proposal on which Parliament originally delivered its opinion, except where this is done in order to incorporate Parliament’s amendments.

4. The President shall also request that a proposal for an act be referred again to Parliament in the circumstances defined in this Rule where Parliament so decides on a proposal from a political group or at least 40 Members.

Rule 60

Deleted

CHAPTER 4

Second reading

Committee stage

Rule 61

Communication of the Council’s position

1. Communication of the Council’s position pursuant to Article 294 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union takes place when it is announced by the President in Parliament. The President shall make the announcement after receiving the documents which contain the position itself, all declarations made in the Council minutes when it adopted the position, the reasons which led the Council to adopt its position, and the Commission’s position, duly translated into the official languages of the European Union. The President’s announcement shall be made during the part-session following the receipt of such documents. Before making the announcement, the President establishes, after consulting the Chair of the committee responsible and/or the rapporteur, that the text received is indeed a Council’s first reading position and that the circumstances described in Rule 59 do not apply. Failing this, the President, together with the committee responsible and, where possible, in agreement with the Council, seeks an appropriate solution.

2. A list of such communications shall be published in the minutes of the sitting together with the name of the committee responsible.

Rule 62

Extension of time limits

1. The President shall, at the request of the Chair of the committee responsible in the case of time limits for second reading, or at the request of Parliament’s conciliation delegation in the case of time limits for conciliation, extend the limits in question in accordance with Article 294(14) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

2. The President shall notify Parliament of any extension of time limits pursuant to Article 294(14) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, whether on the initiative of Parliament or of the Council.

Rule 63

Referral to and procedure in the committee responsible

1. On the day of its communication to Parliament pursuant to Rule 61(1), the Council’s position shall be deemed to have been referred automatically to the committee responsible and to the committees asked for their opinion at first reading.

2. The Council’s position shall be entered as the first item on the agenda of the first meeting of the committee responsible following the date of its communication. The Council may be invited to present its position.

3. Unless otherwise decided, the rapporteur at second reading shall be the same as at first reading.

4. The provisions for Parliament’s second reading in Rule 66(2), (3) and (5) shall apply to the proceedings in the committee responsible; only members or permanent substitutes of that committee may table proposals for rejection and amendments. The committee shall decide by a majority of the votes cast.

5. Before voting, the committee may request the Chair and rapporteur to discuss amendments that have been tabled in the committee with the President of the Council or the latter’s representative and with the Commissioner responsible present. The rapporteur may table compromise amendments following such discussion.

6. The committee responsible shall submit a recommendation for second reading proposing the approval, amendment or rejection of the position adopted by the Council. The recommendation shall include a short justification for the decision proposed.

Plenary stage

Rule 64

Conclusion of second reading

1. The Council’s position and, where available, the recommendation for second reading of the committee responsible shall automatically be placed on the draft agenda for the part-session whose Wednesday falls before and closest to the day of expiry of the period of 3 months or, if extended in accordance with Rule 62, of 4 months, unless the matter has been dealt with at an earlier part-session. The recommendations for second reading submitted by parliamentary committees are equivalent to an explanatory statement in which the committee justifies its position in relation to the Council’s position. There is no vote on these texts.

2. The second reading shall be concluded when Parliament approves, rejects or amends the Council’s position within the time limits and in accordance with the conditions laid down by Article 294 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

Rule 65

Rejection of the Council’s position

1. The committee responsible, a political group or at least 40 Members may, in writing and before a deadline set by the President, table a proposal to reject the Council’s position. Such a proposal shall require for adoption the votes of a majority of the component Members of Parliament. A proposal to reject the Council’s position shall be voted on before voting on any amendments.

2. Notwithstanding a vote by Parliament against the initial proposal to reject the Council’s position, Parliament may, on the recommendation of the rapporteu