CELEX: 52022PC0049
Language: en
Date: 2022-02-15
Title: Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Partnership Council established by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part, on the adoption of the guidelines of the Civil Society Forum

EUROPEAN
                             COMMISSION
                                                      Brussels, 15.2.2022
                                                      COM(2022) 49 final
                                                      2022/0034 (NLE)
                                         Proposal for a
                                   COUNCIL DECISION
   on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Partnership Council
   established by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and
    the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of
   Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part, on the adoption of the guidelines
                                  of the Civil Society Forum
EN                                                                                          EN
 ---pagebreak---                                    EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
   1.        SUBJECT MATTER OF THE PROPOSAL
   The Commission proposes that the Council establishes the position to be adopted on the
   Union's behalf in the Partnership Council established by the Trade and Cooperation
   Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, of the
   one part, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part
   ("the Trade and Cooperation Agreement")1, in connection with the envisaged adoption of the
   Guidelines for the conduct of the Civil Society Forum under that agreement.
   2.        CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
   2.1.      The Trade and Cooperation Agreement
   The Trade and Cooperation Agreement establishes the basis for a broad relationship between
   the European Union and the United Kingdom. It entered into force on 1 May 2021, having
   been provisionally applied since 1 January 2021.
   The Trade and Cooperation Agreement establishes an institutional framework, including
   mechanisms for the Parties to consult civil society on the implementation of the Agreement
   and any supplementing agreement, in particular through interaction with the domestic
   advisory groups and the Civil Society Forum referred to in Articles 13 and 14.
   Article 14 of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement establishes that the Parties shall facilitate
   the organisation of a Civil Society Forum to conduct a dialogue on the implementation of Part
   Two of this Agreement. The Partnership Council shall adopt operational guidelines for the
   conduct of the Forum.
   The Civil Society Forum shall be composed by representatives of the civil society of the
   European Union and the United Kingdom and will meet at least once a year, unless otherwise
   agreed by the Parties.
   2.2.      The envisaged decision of the Partnership Council
   The purpose of the envisaged act of the Partnership Council is to set the main guidelines for
   the organisation of the Civil Society Forum. These operational guidelines should be adopted
   by the Partnership Council before the first meeting of the Civil Society Forum.
   3.        POSITION TO BE TAKEN ON THE UNION'S BEHALF
   The purpose of the proposed decision of the Council is to establish the position to be taken on
   behalf of the European Union in the Partnership Council established by the Trade and
   Cooperation Agreement on the adoption of the guidelines for the Civil Society Forum.
   It is proposed to set up a Civil Society Forum, composed of representatives of the civil society
   of the EU and the UK, which would gather a limited number of physical participants on each
   side as well as wider participation by electronic means. It will be organised yearly in close
   proximity to a Trade Partnership Committee and allow for physical and digital participation.
   The organisation would be the responsibility of the Party organising the meeting and would
   rotate yearly. The agenda will be set by agreement of the Parties and would cover issues
   related to the implementation of Part II of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (Trade,
   Aviation, Road Transport, Social Security Coordination and Visas for Short-term Visits,
   1
            OJ L 149, 30.4.2021, p. 10.
EN                                                 1                                                EN
 ---pagebreak---    Fisheries and Other Provisions). The Parties will endeavour to consult their respective
   Domestic Advisory Groups provided for in Article 13 of the Trade and Cooperation
   Agreement on possible agenda items before agreeing on an agenda.
   4.        LEGAL BASIS
   4.1.      Procedural legal basis
   4.1.1.    Principles
   Article 218(9) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides for
   decisions establishing ‘the positions to be adopted on the Union’s behalf in a body set up by
   an agreement, when that body is called upon to adopt acts having legal effects, with the
   exception of acts supplementing or amending the institutional framework of the agreement.’
   The concept of ‘acts having legal effects’ includes acts that have legal effects by virtue of the
   rules of international law governing the body in question. It also includes instruments that do
   not have a binding effect under international law, but that are ‘capable of decisively
   influencing the content of the legislation adopted by the EU legislature’.2
   4.1.2.    Application to the present case
   The Partnership Council is a body set up by an agreement, namely the Trade and Cooperation
   Agreement.
   The act which the Partnership Council is called upon to adopt constitutes an act having legal
   effects. The envisaged act will be binding under international law in accordance with Article
   14 of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
   The envisaged act does not supplement or amend the institutional framework of the Trade and
   Cooperation Agreement.
   Therefore, the procedural legal basis for the proposed decision is Article 218(9) of the Treaty
   on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).
   4.2.      Substantive legal basis
   4.2.1.    Principles
   The substantive legal basis for a decision under Article 218(9) of the TFEU depends primarily
   on the objective and content of the envisaged act in respect of which a position is taken on the
   Union's behalf. If the envisaged act pursues two aims or has two components and if one of
   those aims or components is identifiable as the main one, whereas the other is merely
   incidental, the decision under Article 218(9) of the TFEU must be founded on a single
   substantive legal basis, namely that required by the main or predominant aim or component.
   4.2.2.    Application to the present case
   The objective and content of the envisaged act relate to the common commercial policy,
   fisheries and transport. Therefore, the substantive legal basis of the proposed decision is
   Article 207, Articles 91 and 100 and Article 43 of the TFEU.
   4.3.      Conclusion
   The legal basis of the proposed decision should be Article 207, Article 91 and 100 and Article
   43 of the TFEU, in conjunction with Article 218(9) of the TFEU.
   2
           Judgment of the Court of Justice of 7 October 2014, Germany v Council, C-399/12,
           ECLI:EU:C:2014:2258, paragraphs 61 to 64.
EN                                                   2                                               EN
 ---pagebreak---                                                            2022/0034 (NLE)
                                              Proposal for a
                                        COUNCIL DECISION
     on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Partnership Council
    established by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and
     the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of
     Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part, on the adoption of the guidelines
                                       of the Civil Society Forum
   THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
   Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular
   Articles 43, 91, 100 and 207 of the TFEU, in conjunction with Article 218(9) thereof,
   Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
   Whereas:
   (1)     The Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the European
           Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain
           and Northern Ireland, of the other part (‘the Trade and Cooperation Agreement’), was
           concluded by the Union by Council Decision (EU) 2021/6893 of 29 April 2021 and
           entered into force on 1 May 2021, having been provisionally applied since 1 January
           2021.
   (2)     Article 14 of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement requires the Partnership Council
           to adopt the guidelines for the conduct of the Civil Society Forum, which shall meet at
           least once a year, unless otherwise agreed by the Parties.
   (3)     The Partnership Council is to adopt the guidelines for the conduct of the Civil Society
           Forum.
   (4)     It is therefore appropriate to establish the position to be taken on the Union's behalf in
           the Partnership Council.
   (5)     In order to allow for the timely adoption of the guidelines for the Civil Society Forum,
           this Decision should enter into force on the date of its adoption,
   HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
                                                 Article 1
   The position to be taken on the Union's behalf in the Partnership Council established by the
   Trade and Cooperation Agreement, on a decision to be taken in accordance with Article 14
   thereof, shall be based on the draft guidelines of the Civil Society Forum attached to this
   Decision.
   3
           OJ L 149, 30.4.2021, p. 2.
EN                                                   3                                                EN
 ---pagebreak---                                             Article 2
   This Decision is addressed to the Commission.
   Done at Brussels,
                                             For the Council
                                             The President
EN                                              4            EN
 ---documentbreak---                              EUROPEAN
                             COMMISSION
                                                      Brussels, 15.2.2022
                                                      COM(2022) 49 final
                                                      ANNEX
                                            ANNEX
                                             to the
                                Proposal for a Council Decision
   on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Partnership Council
   established by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and
    the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of
   Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part, on the adoption of the guidelines
                                  of the Civil Society Forum
EN                                                                                          EN
 ---pagebreak---                                                   ATTACHMENT
                         GUIDELINES FOR THE CIVIL SOCIETY FORUM
                               under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement
   Article 14(1) and Article 14(2) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the
   European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the
   United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part (the ‘Trade and
   Cooperation Agreement’) provides that the Parties shall facilitate the organisation of a Civil
   Society Forum composed of representatives of the civil society of the European Union and the
   United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the United Kingdom) that shall meet
   at least once a year, unless otherwise agreed by the Parties. The Trade and Cooperation
   Agreement further provides that the Partnership Council shall adopt the operational guidelines
   for the conduct of the Forum.
   1.        PARTICIPANTS
   According to Article 14(3) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement1, the Civil Society
   Forum will gather representatives of the civil society of the European Union and the United
   Kingdom, namely representatives of business and employers’ organisations (but not
   individual private companies), trade unions, academia, and non-governmental organisations in
   different branches of society relevant to the areas covered by Part II of the Trade and
   Cooperation Agreement. The Parties will apply their respective rules and practices on the
   registration of civil society representatives in order to promote a balanced representation of
   civil society organisations.
   For practical reasons, the number of physical participants in the Civil Society Forum will be
   limited to 60 representatives from Civil Society on each side, unless the Parties agree
   otherwise. Those representatives will be able to attend the Civil Society Forum meetings in
   person or by electronic means. The Parties may agree to hold the meeting entirely virtually in
   accordance with Article 14(2) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. The Civil Society
   Forum will be open to other members of civil society organisations, who register in advance,
   to observe.
   2.        SCOPE
   The discussions of the Civil Society Forum will cover the areas in Part II of the Trade and
   Cooperation Agreement: trade, aviation, road transport, social security coordination and visas
   for short-term visits, fisheries and other provisions.
   3.        TIMING, ORGANISATION AND AGENDAS
   The Trade and Cooperation Agreement establishes that the Civil Society Forum will meet at
   least once a year, unless otherwise agreed by the Parties. The Civil Society Forum will meet
   in close proximity to the meeting of the Trade Partnership Committee, unless otherwise
   agreed by the Parties. The co-chairs of the Trade Partnership Committee and Trade
   1
           The Civil Society Forum shall be open for the participation of independent civil society organisations
           established in the territories of the Parties, including members of the domestic advisory groups referred
           to in Article 13 of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. Each Party shall promote a balanced
           representation, including non-governmental organisations, business and employers' organisations and
           trade unions, active in economic, sustainable development, social, human rights, environmental and
           other matters.
EN                                                            1                                                      EN
 ---pagebreak---    Specialized Committees and the co-chairs of the Specialised Committees on Energy, Air
   Transport, Aviation Safety, Road Transport, Social Security Coordination and Fisheries will
   be able to participate in the Forum when matters within their remit are discussed in the
   Forum.
   The Civil Society Forum will be organised by the Party that is responsible for hosting the
   meeting of the Trade Partnership Committee, meaning that the location of the Forum will
   alternate between the European Union and the United Kingdom, unless otherwise agreed by
   the Parties. The Party hosting the Forum will provide the venue and facilitate the meeting
   (e.g. provide links for registration and virtual participation).
   The Parties will endeavour to consult their respective Domestic Advisory Groups on possible
   agenda items before agreeing a draft agenda with the other party. The Parties will endeavour
   to publish the draft agendas 15 days before the date of the Civil Society Forum meeting.
   The hosting Party will draft the results and conclusions of the Civil Society Forum in
   agreement with the other Party, within 30 days of the meeting. The results and conclusions of
   each of the meetings will be shared with the Partnership Council, Trade Partnership
   Committee and the Specialised Committees on Energy, Air Transport, Aviation Safety, Road
   Transport, Social Security Coordination, Fisheries and will be made publicly available.
   The Partnership Council may amend the present guidelines, including to address issues arising
   during their implementation.
EN                                                   2                                           EN