1. 4. 74 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities No C 37/5 
travellers'  personal  luggage,  to the  amounts  which 
are imposed  within  the  framework  of the  Common 
Agricultural  Policy  as  well  as  those  under 
Regulation  (EEC)  No 1059/69. For reasons  of practical  and  legal  simplification,  the 
Committee  would  nevertheless  have  preferred  these 
provisions  to have  been  introduced  by amendment 
of the  basic  Regulation  rather  than  by  the 
preparation  of a new,  seperate  regulation. 
Done  at Strasbourg,  29 November  1973. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee 
Alfons  LAPPAS 
CONSULTATION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
on five  Commission  proposals  on the work  on economic  and  monetary  union 
A. REQUEST  FOR  AN  OPINION 
At its 263rd  meeting  held  on 22 November  1973,  the Council  decided  to exercise  its 
option  of consulting  the Economic  and  Social  Committee  on the above  proposals. 
The request  for an Opinion  was  sent  by the President  of the Council  to the Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee  on 23 November  1973. 
B. TEXT  WHICH  WAS  THE  SUBJECT  OF  THE  CONSULTATION 
The text  which  was  the subject  of the consultation  was  published  in the Official  Journal 
of the European  Communities,  No  C 114  of 27 December  1973,  pp. 33 to 46. 
C. OPINION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
At its 116th  Plenary  Session  held  in Brussels  on 12 and  13  December  1973,  the 
Committee  adopted  its Opinion  on the text  referred  to under  B, by 67 votes  to 7, with 
21 abstentions  out  of the 95 members  present  or represented. 
The text  of the Opinion  is as follows: 
THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE, 
Having  regard  to  Articles  22  and  46  of  the 
Committee's  Rules  of Procedure; 
Having  regard  to the Treaty  establishing  the European 
Economic  Community,  and  in particular  Article  198 
thereof; Having  regard  to  the  Decision  taken  by  its 
Chairman  on  26  November  1973  entrusting  the 
Section  for  Economic  and  Financial  Questions  with 
the preparation  of an Opinion  and  report  on the 
matter; Having  regard  to the letter  dated  23 November  1973 
in which  the  President  of the  Council  of the 
European  Communities  requested  the  Economic  and 
Social  Committee  to deliver  an Opinion  on 'Work 
on Economic  and  Monetary  Union'; Having  regard  to  the  Opinion  on  the 
Communication  from  the  Commission  to  the 
No C 37/6 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities 1. 4. 74 
Council  on the  progress  achieved  in the first  stage  of 
economic  and  monetary  union,  on the  allocation  of 
powers  and  responsibilities  among  the  Community 
institutions  and  the  Member  States  essential  to the 
proper  functioning  of economic  and  monetary  union 
and on the  measures  to be taken  in the  second  stage 
of economic  and  monetary  union; 
Having  regard  to the  Opinion  delivered  by  the 
Section  for  Economic  and  Financial  Questions  at its 
eighth  meeting  held  on 4 December  1973; 
Having  regard  to  the  report  submitted  by  the 
Rapporteur,  Mr  Mamert, 
Having  regard  to its discussions  of its 116th  Plenary 
Session  on  12  and  13  December,  sitting  of 
13 December  1973, 
HAS  ADOPTED  THE  FOLLOWING  OPINION: 
The draft  proposals  submitted  by the  Commission 
to the  Council  on 14 November  1973  on the  second 
stage  of economic  and  monetary  union  begin  by 
reiterating  and  spelling  out  in more  detail,  the 
proposals  formulated  by the  Commission  in April 
1973. 
In this  respect,  the  remarks  and  reservations  made 
by the  Committee  in its Opinion  on the  19 April 
1973  Commission  communication,  as regards  the 
excessive  diversity  of the  objectives  proposed,  the 
absence  of  clearly  defined  priorities,  and  the 
necessary  democratization  of Community  decisions, 
remain  valid. 
The draft  proposals  worked  out  in November  1973 
do, however,  differ  from  the  April  communication. 
The most  significant  of these  differences,  some  of 
which  raise  serious  institutional  and  political  issues, 
are analysed  below. 
1. Article  1 of the  draft  Resolution  mentions  the 
timetable  for  a 'second  stage'  of economic  and 
monetary  union.  Without  saying  so precisely,  this 
phrase  suggests  that  this  second  stage  is not  perhaps 
'the second  stage'  as originally  envisaged  in the 
Resolution  of 22 March  1971,  according  to which 
the monetary  commitments  of Member  States  would 
otiliy  become  final  after  agreement  on transition  to 
the second  stage. 
It would  undoubtedly  have  been  wiser  to have 
dispelled  any  ambiguity  on the  subject  ?ind  to have taken  the  necessary  measures  to catch  up  and 
consolidate. 
2. Detailed  provisions  are  laid  down  in proposal 
No 2 for  the  harmonization  of  instruments  of 
economic  policy  of the  various  Member  States,  and 
in proposal  No  3 on  the  coordination  of  the 
economic  and  monetary  policies  of the  Nine.  The 
Committee  stresses  that  all  Member  States  must 
have  efficient  instruments  for  influencing  short-term 
economic  development  and  that  they  must  also  be 
allowed  as  much  discretion  as  possible  in 
determining  the  action  to be taken  to attain  the 
common  objectives. 
3. The  Committee  stresses  the  necessity  for 
exercising  democratic  control  of the  use  of these 
instruments  mentioned  in Articles  6, 7 and  9 of 
proposal  No 2. 
The national  parliaments  must  vest  in  each 
government,  by a predetermined  date,  the  necessary 
powers  to decide  on all the relevant  measures. 
4. The  Committee  requests  that  the  provisions 
intended  to  facilitate  the  unification  of  capital 
markets  and  Community  control  of external  capital 
movements  be  drawn  up  immediately,  without 
waiting  for  31 December  1974  as the  Commission 
proposes. 
5. The  Committee,  which  attaches  the  greatest 
importance  to measures  to remedy  regional,  social 
and sectoral  imbalances  liable  to result  from  the 
introduction  of  economic  and  monetary  union, 
approves  the  establishment  of  the  European 
Regional  Development  Fund  and  the  Committee  for 
Regional  Policy  on 31 December  1973. 
6. The  draft  Resolution  submitted  to the  Council 
makes  no  reference  to  the  fact  that  some 
Community  currencies  are  continuing  to float  by 
themselves,  and  makes  no mention  at all of the  need 
to put  a stop  to this.  The  Committee  deplores  this 
omission  and  considers  that,  in accordance  with  the 
objectives  set  for  the  first  stage  of economic  and 
monetary  union,  it is vital  to include  all Community 
currencies  in the  process  of narrowing  fluctuation 
margins  which  is, moreover,  provided  for  in the 
Commission's  proposals. 
7. While  welcoming  the  proposal  to merge  the 
Budgetary  Policy  Committee,  the  Short-Term 
Economic  Policy  Committee  and  the  Medium-Term 
Economic  Policy  Committee  into  a single  Economic 
Policy  Committee,  the  Committee  recalls  its view 
that it is essential  to  achieve  the  increasing 
1. 4. 74 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities No C 37/7 
cooperation  of the  representatives  of economic  and 
social  activity  in the  preparation  of Community 
decisions.  The  Committee  feels  it is very  important 
that such  participation  should  occur  when  decisions 
are still  in preparation.  Therefore,  the  Committee 
considers  that  permanent  dialogue  between  itself  and 
the Economic  Policy  Committee  would  contribute  to 
achieving  the  goals  of economic  and  monetary 
union. 
8. The  innovations  the  Commission  proposes  in 
the monetary  field  prompt  the  Committee  to make 
several  comments. 
(a) As regards  the  pooling  of one-tenth  of currency 
reserves,  the Committee  would  like  to know  for 
what  purposes  the  reserve  assets  which  it is 
proposed  to hand  over  to EMCOF  will  be used. 
This  pooling  can  have  very  major  aims,  but 
these  are  not  the  aims  mentioned  in the  text 
proposed  by the Commission. 
In addition,  the  Committee  wonders  whether  it 
is realistic  to ask  the central  banks  to hand  over 
part of their  gold  assets  in the  absence  of prior 
agreement  on the  price  at which  such  reserves 
Done  at Brussels,  13 December  1973. are to be  transferred,  even  allowing  for  the 
guarantee  laid  down  in Article  4. 
(b) As regards  the  increase  in  the  monetary 
assistance  which  EMCOF  can  grant,  the 
Committee  considers  as  satisfactory  the 
provisions  laid  down  as regards  the  amount, 
duration  and  the  conditions  for  granting  credits 
and particularly  their  conditional  nature  once 
certain  limits  are exceeded.  It notes  however  that 
no new  measures  are proposed  for the repayment 
of credits  and  cannot  see  how  the  various 
monetary  proposals  made  by the  Commission 
can, as  the  explanatory  memorandum  to 
proposal  No  4 states,  eliminate  the  de facto 
blockage  in the  field  of settlements  between 
central  banks. 
To overcome  these  difficulties  it is essential  to take 
steps  to allow  the  sum  total  of the  reserve  assets  of 
the Member  States  to play,  once  again,  their  normal 
role as instruments  for settling  balances. 
The Committee  would  like  to receive  all relevant 
details  on  this  point,  which  it considers  to be 
fundamental. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee 
Alfons  LAPPAS 
CONSULTATION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
on a proposal  for a Council  Regulation  amending  Council  Regulation  (EEC)  No 1496/68 
of 27 September  1968  on the definition  of the customs  territory  of the Community 
A. REQUEST  FOR  AN  OPINION 
At its 254th  meeting  held  on 20 September  1973,  the  Council  decided  to exercise  its 
option  of consulting  the Economic  and  Social  Committee  on the  above  proposal  for a 
Regulation. 
The request  for an Opinion  was  sent  by the President  of the Council  to the Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee  on 24 September  1973. 
B. TEXT  WHICH  WAS  THE  SUBJECT  OF  THE  CONSULTATION 
The text  which  was  the subject  of the consultation  was  published  in the Official  Journal 
of the European  Communities,  No  C 92 of 31 October  1973,  pp.  9 and  10.