Proposal for a Council Decision on the European Community position regarding a decision of the EC Monaco Joint Committee concerning its rules of procedure
Date: 2006-02-09
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Monaco, agreement (EU), application of EU law, joint committee (EU), rules of procedure

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 9.2.2006 
COM(2006) 47 final 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the European Community position regarding a decision of the EC-Monaco Joint 
Committee concerning its rules of procedure  

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The  Agreement,  signed  on  4 December 2003,  between  the  European  Community  and  the 
Principality of Monaco on the application of certain Community  acts on the territory  of  the 
Principality  of  Monaco  entered  into  force  on  1 May 2004.  Article 3  of  the  Agreement 
establishes  a  Joint  Committee,  which  is  responsible  for  the  management  and  proper 
application of the Agreement. 

TASKS OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE 

Within the Joint Committee the contracting parties are to exchange information and consult 
each other on for the purpose of the proper implementation of the Agreement.  

For the management and proper application of the Agreement the Joint Committee may issue 
recommendations. It may take decisions on the following subjects: 

– 

– 

amendments to the Annex to the Agreement (Article 1(1)), 

adoption of rules of procedure (Article 3(4)). 

COMMUNITY POSITION ON THE DECISION 

Article 3(2)  of  Council  Decision  2003/885/EC  concerning  the  conclusion  of  the  Agreement 
between  the  European  Community  and  the  Principality  of  Monaco  on  the  application  of 
certain  Community  acts  on  the  territory  of  the  Principality  of  Monaco  stipulates  that  the 
position  to  be  taken  by  the  Community  concerning  the  Committee’s  decisions  is  to  be 
determined  by  the  Council  on  a  proposal  by  the  Commission.  The  exception  laid  down  in 
Article 3(3) does not apply to the adoption of the rules of procedure. 

The rules of procedure contains provisions on the convening of meetings, the appointment of 
the chairman and the chairman’s term of office. The proposed rules of procedure provide for 
the office of chairman to be exercised for six months at a time, in rotation, by a representative 
of  the  Principality  of  Monaco  and  the  European  Community.  The  contracting  parties  may 
nominate their representatives. Under Council Decision 2003/885/EC, the Commission alone 
represents the European Community’s on the Joint Committee. It would, however, be helpful 
to be able to include representatives of the Member States in the Community delegation, and 
in  particular  representatives  of  France,  which  performs  a  number  of  administrative  tasks  in 
Monaco.  

The rules of procedure lay down arrangements for organising meetings and taking decisions. 
In  particular,  they  allow  decisions  to  be  taken  by  written  procedure.  The  rules  relating  to 
languages are designed to reconcile the need to treat the official languages equally with the 
need to allow smooth communication between the contracting parties. 

The  Commission  services  have  prepared  the  draft  decision  of  the  EC-Monaco  Joint 
Committee  concerning  its  rules  of  procedure  together  with  Monaco’s  administration.  It  is 
planned that the decision will be adopted at the first meeting of the Committee, scheduled for 
the start of 2006. 

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Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the European Community position regarding a decision of the EC-Monaco Joint 
Committee concerning its rules of procedure  

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, 

Having  regard  to  Council  Decision  of  17  November  2003  concerning  the  conclusion  of  the 
Agreement on the application of certain Community acts on the territory of the Principality of 
Monaco (2003/885/EC), and in particular Article 3(2) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

The Agreement, signed on 4 December 2003, between the European Community and 
the  Principality  of  Monaco  on  the  application  of  certain  Community  acts  on  the 
territory  of  the  Principality  of  Monaco  (hereinafter  “the  Agreement”)  entered  into 
force on 1 May 2004. 

(2) 

Article 3(4) requires the Joint Committee set up by the Agreement to establish its rules 
of procedure, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:  

Sole Article 

The position of the European Community in the Joint Committee established by Article 3 of 
the Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and 
the Principality of Monaco, of the other, on the application of certain Community acts on the 
territory  of  the  Principality  of  Monaco  shall  be  based  on  the  annexed  draft  decision  of  the 
Joint Committee. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 
The President 

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Draft 

Decision of the EC-Monaco Joint Committee 

adopting its Rules of Procedure 

THE JOINT COMMITTEE, 

Having  regard  to  the  Agreement,  signed  on  4  December 2003,  between  the  European 
Community and the Principality of Monaco on the application of certain Community acts on 
the  territory  of  the  Principality  of  Monaco  (hereinafter  “the  Agreement”),  and  in  particular 
Article 3 thereof, 

CONSIDERING that the Agreement entered into force on 1 May 2004, 

CONSIDERING that the Joint Committee is to establish its rules of procedure, 

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: 

The Rules of Procedure of the Joint Committee annexed to this Decision are adopted. 

Article 1 

Article 2 

The Rules of Procedure of the Joint Committee shall apply from 1 January 2006. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the Joint Committee 
The President 

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RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE EC-MONACO JOINT COMMITTEE 

ANNEX 

Article 1 

NAME 

The  Joint  Committee  created  by  the  Agreement,  signed  on  4 December 2003,  between  the 
European  Community  and  the  Principality  of  Monaco  on  the  application  of  certain 
Community  acts  on  the  territory  of  the  Principality  of  Monaco  shall  be  named  the 
“EC-Monaco  Joint  Committee”.  This  name  shall  be  used  for  the  purposes  of  all  this  Joint 
Committee’s acts and communications. 

Article 2 

COMPOSITION 

The Joint Committee shall be composed of a delegation from the European Community and a 
delegation from the Principality of Monaco. 

The  European  Community  delegation  shall  be  composed  of  representatives  of  the 
Commission of the European Communities, assisted by representatives of the Member States 
and  other  Community  institutions.  The  Principality  of  Monaco’s  delegation  shall  be 
composed of representatives of Monaco’s government. 

Each party shall appoint the head of its delegation and, if need be, a deputy head. 

Article 3 

THE CHAIRMAN 

The Joint Committee shall be chaired by the European Community for the first six months of 
the year and by the Principality of Monaco for the other sixth months. The office of chairman 
of  the  Joint  Committee  shall  be  held  by  the  head  of  the  delegation  of  the  party  holding  the 
chair.  

Article 4 

SECRETARIAT 

A  representative  of  the  Community  and  a  representative  of  Monaco  shall  act  jointly  as 
secretaries of the Joint Committee.  

The secretaries must ensure the proper working of the Joint Committee. The secretaries shall 
be responsible for communication between the delegations, including forwarding documents, 
drafting the agenda and minutes for meetings and following up decision-making procedures. 

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Each secretary shall be appointed by the head of their delegation and remain in office until a 
new secretary is appointed. Each delegation shall submit the name and contact details of its 
secretary.  

Article 5 

CONVENING AND ORGANISING MEETINGS 

The Joint Committee shall meet as and when necessary. Meetings shall take place in Brussels 
or another place agreed by the heads of the delegations.  

A meeting shall be convened by the chairman at the request of a head of delegation at least 
two  months  before  the  meeting.  The  invitation  shall  be  addressed  to  the  head  of  the  other 
delegation.  It  must  be  accompanied  by  a  draft  agenda.  In  urgent  cases,  invitations  for 
meetings may be sent out at shorter notice. 

The  secretaries  shall  exchange  in  good  time  all  the  documents  necessary  for  the  proper 
preparation of meetings, if possible four weeks before the meeting. 

The delegations shall notify each other before the meeting of their planned composition.  

The  party  hosting  the  meeting  shall  arrange  logistical  matters.  By  agreement  with  the  other 
delegation, telephone and video conferences may also be used. The organisation of telephone 
and video conferences shall be handled by the delegation which asked for the meeting to be 
convened. 

Unless  the  heads  of  delegation  decide  otherwise,  the  meetings  of  the  Joint  Committee  shall 
not be public. 

Article 6 

AGENDAS FOR MEETINGS 

The  secretaries  shall  draw  up  a  provisional  agenda  for  each  meeting.  Each  delegation  may 
propose additional items for inclusion on the agenda. 

The agenda shall be adopted by mutual agreement of the heads of delegation at the beginning 
of each meeting.  

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Article 7 

MINUTES 

The  secretaries  shall  draw  up  draft  minutes  for  each  meeting.  The  draft  shall  mention  the 
decisions taken, the recommendations made and the conclusions drawn for each item of the 
agenda.  The  draft  minutes  shall  be  submitted  to  the  Joint  Committee  for  approval.  Once 
adopted  by  the  Committee,  the  minutes  shall  be  drawn  up  in  duplicate  for  each  party  and 
signed by the secretaries. 

Article 8 

ADOPTION OF ACTS 

The  Joint  Committee  shall  take  decisions  by  mutual  agreement  and  make  recommendations 
by mutual agreement between the two parties, in accordance with the provisions laid down in 
the Agreement. 

In the Joint Committee, the position of each party to the Agreement shall be expressed by its 
head of delegation.  

The  delegation  wishing  a  decision  to  be  adopted  shall  submit  a  proposal  in  the  form  of  a 
Committee decision. The other delegation must state whether it approves the draft decision, 
wishes to see it amended or requests more time to consider it. 

If both sides agree to the draft, the chairman shall record the fact in the minutes and issue the 
act adopted. 

The  decisions  (or  recommendations)  shall  be  entitled  “decision”  (or  “recommendation”), 
followed  by  a  serial  number,  the  date  of  their  adoption  and  a  description  of  their  subject. 
These  acts  shall  be  drawn  up  in  duplicate,  with  one  copy  for  each  party,  and  signed  by  the 
chairman [and the secretaries]. 

Article 9 

WRITTEN PROCEDURE 

Outside  meetings,  the  Joint  Committee  may  take  decisions  or  adopt  recommendations  by 
correspondence (written procedure). 

The head of the delegation proposing the use of the written procedure shall submit the draft 
act  by  mail  to  the  head  of  the  other  party’s  delegation.  The  other  party  shall  reply,  stating 
whether it accepts the draft, proposes amendments or asks for time to consider the draft. 

The  decision  or  recommendation  shall  be  adopted  on  the  day  that  the  head  of  a  party’s 
delegation  receives,  from  the  head  of  the  other  party’s  delegation,  the  letter  confirming 
agreement. 

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After  the  act’s  adoption,  the  chairman  shall  finalise  the  decision  or  recommendation,  in 
accordance with Article 8.  

Article 10 

OBSERVERS AND INVITED EXPERTS 

The  chairman  may  invite,  subject to  the  other  party’s  agreement,  experts,  representatives  of 
governments or other persons who are not members of the delegations to observe a meeting or 
to advise the meeting on specific subjects. 

The Joint Committee may consult experts on specific issues if both delegations agree. 

Article 11 

EXPENSES 

Each party shall cover all expenses it incurs in hosting or taking part in meetings and the work 
of the Joint Committee, the working parties and groups of experts. 

The Committee shall decide how to share expenses relating to missions entrusted to experts. 

Article 12 

CONFIDENTIALITY AND INFORMATION 

The  deliberations  at  the  meetings  and  the  documents  of  the  Joint  Committee  shall  be 
confidential,  subject  to  the  legal  obligations  of  the  parties  regarding  the  publication  of 
decisions  and  recommendations  and  the  access  to  documents.  The  heads  of  the  delegations 
may, however, agree mutually to lift the confidentiality. 

The parties may organise public briefings or otherwise inform members of the public of the 
results of the Joint Committee meetings. 

Article 13 

LANGUAGES 

Recommendations  and  decisions  of  the  Joint  Committee  shall  be  drawn  up  in  the  official 
languages  of  the  European  Community  and  the  Principality  of  Monaco.  These  language 
versions are equally authentic. 

Each party shall be responsible for producing acts in its official languages. 

The heads of the delegations shall agree on the most appropriate language arrangements for 
the Joint Committee’s communication and deliberations. Whatever the case may be, the party 
hosting the meeting shall not be obliged to provide interpreting. 

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