WRITTEN QUESTION E-3860/02 by Mogens Camre (UEN) to the Commission. Minority Commission decision to draw up a draft treaty.
Date: 2003-01-10
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European Commission, President of the Commission, Treaty on European Union, decision-making, operation of the Institutions, transparency in decision-making

21.11.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 280 E/29

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(31 January 2003)

The fact that the Commission decided to review the conditions for implementing Article 228 of the EC
Treaty in connection with the case referred to by the Honourable Member cannot be regarded as an
admission of inadequate resources but rather a demonstration of the desire to seek the most appropriate
ways under the EC Treaty of ensuring that Court of Justice judgments are implemented.

in connection with the White Paper on Governance as regards better monitoring of

the
Recently,
application of Community law (1), the Commission stressed that it intended to give priority to infringement
proceedings under Article 228. Likewise, in its contribution to the work of the Convention (2), it proposed
reinforcing the machinery at its disposal for performing its general task of ensuring that Union law is
properly implemented.

(1) COM(2002) 725 final.
(2) COM(2002) 728 final.

(2003/C 280 E/027)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3860/02

by Mogens Camre (UEN) to the Commission

(10 January 2003)

Subject: Minority Commission decision to draw up a draft treaty

As we are all aware,
takes its decisions
unanimously. This presupposes that the President and individual members do not act on their own
initiative. If, however, they do, any proposal that may be made must be regarded as void.

the Commission is a collegiate body which, outwardly,

Commissioner Vitorino referred to Montesquieu’s principles concerning a three-way division of power,
which is completely incomprehensible since the division of power into separate legislative, executive and
judicial powers does not entitle civil servants to act on their own initiative.

How can a minority of the Commission’s members decide to initiate the drafting of a treaty without the
matter having been put before the Commission as a whole?

(2003/C 280 E/028)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3902/02

by Mogens Camre (UEN) to the Commission

(14 January 2003)

Subject: Commission funding of production of an unofficial draft treaty

On 4 December 2002 the contribution of three Commissioners to a future draft treaty was published
‘Feasibility Study (cid:1) Contribution to a preliminary draft Constitution of the European
under the title:
Union’. It is clear from the working document that it was drawn up at the request of Commission
President Romano Prodi in agreement with Commissioners Barnier and Vitorino. It is also stated that the
document does not necessarily represent the Commission’s views. Nonetheless, the document is printed on
the Commission’s official headed paper with the Commission logo (cid:1) the EU flag (cid:1) on the front page.

It would therefore be of great interest to the general public to be informed of the following: what did it
cost for Commission President, Romano Prodi, to have a working party set up to draw up an unofficial
draft treaty on his own behalf and on behalf of a couple of other Commissioners, who carried out this
work and where is it entered in the Commission’s accounts?