The Codecision Procedure

Katrin Huber & Nikolaos Tziorkas,Conciliation and Codecision Secretariat,

European Parliament

Budapest, 2 & 8 April, 2009

OVERVIEW OF EP STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONING

• 785 Members • 7 political groups• European elections

every 5 years• 20 parliamentary

committees

BREAKDOWN BY POLITICAL GROUPS

287

100

44

4341

22 30

217

EPP-EDPESALDEUENGreens/EFAGUE-NGLIDNI

COMMITTEES• Committee on Foreign Affairs• Committee on Development• Committee on International Trade• Committee on Budgets• Committee on Budgetary Control• Committee on Economic and

Monetary Affairs• Committee on Employment and

Social Affairs• Committee on the Environment,

Public Health and Food Safety• Committee on Industry, Research

and Energy• Committee on the Internal Market

and Consumer Protection• Committee on Transport and

Tourism

• Committee on Regional Development

• Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

• Committee on Fisheries• Committee on Culture and

Education• Committee on Legal Affairs• Committee on Civil Liberties,

Justice and Home Affairs• Committee on Constitutional

Affairs• Committee on Women's Rights

and Gender Equality• Committee on Petitions• Subcommittee on Human Rights• Subcommittee on Security and

Defence

EP CALENDAR

LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURECODECISION

Basic texts:

• Procedure set out in Article 251 EC Treaty - Scope of the procedure: 43 areas of Community action

• Joint Declaration on practical arrangements for the codecision procedure (OJ C145 of 30.3.2007, p.5)

LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURECODECISION

Main characteristics:• Parity between the two co-legislators:

Parliament and Council

• Up to three readings in each institution, with possibility to conclude at each stage

• Looks complicated but designed to reach agreement (ex. different deadlines in 1st , 2nd and 3rd reading)

• If no agreement no legislation

CODECISION - FIRST READING

• Commission proposal referred to Parliament

• Committee stage:

• Possibility of joint involvement of several committees (lead and opinion)

• Appointment of rapporteur• Actors:

– Political level: committee chair, rapporteur, shadow rapporteur, coordinators, other MEPs

– Technical level: committee secretariat, CODE, staff of political groups, MEP’s assistants, legal service, tabling office etc.

CODECISION - FIRST READING

• Committee proceedings: presentation of the proposal by the Commission, “fact-finding”, draft report of the rapporteur, deadline for amendments, vote

CODECISION - FIRST READING

• Plenary:

• Adoption in plenary (SIMPLE majority)• NO time limits• Possible conclusion at 1st reading after

informal negotiations • Otherwise Council’s Common Position after

EP 1st reading

CODECISION - SECOND READING

• Time limit: 3 months (possible extension to 4 months)

• Only the lead committee deals with the dossier

• Adoption Plenary (ABSOLUTE majority - 393 out of 785)

• Possible rejection

• Possible conclusion at second reading (“early second reading agreement” or “normal” second reading agreement)

• Otherwise conciliation

MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE

FIRST AND THE SECOND READING First

reading

• No time limits• Commission proposal considered by committee responsible and opinion giving committees• Broad admissibility criteria for amendments• Parliament decides (to approve, reject or amend the Commission proposal) by a simple majority (i.e. majority of Members voting)

Second reading

• Strict time limits of 3 or 4 months• Common position considered only by the committee responsible• Strict admissibility criteria for amendments• Parliament approves the common position by a simple majority, but rejects or amends it by an absolute majority (i.e. majority of all Members of Parliament)

CODECISION - CONCILIATION ANDTHIRD READING

• Final stage of the codecision procedure, if Council does not approve all EP second reading amendments

• Aim for Council and EP: reach agreement on a joint text with the help of the Commission

• Strict deadlines (3 x 6-8 weeks)• If agreement – third reading: approval of joint

text by EP plenary (SIMPLE majority) and Council

Note: No agreement in Conciliation Committee or failure to approve joint text either by EP or by Council = Act falls

NEGOTIATION PROCESS DURING THE CONCILIATION PHASE

EP DELEGATION

EP DELEGATION

EP DELEGATION

EP DELEGATION

COREPER ICOREPER I

COREPER ICOREPER I

TRILOGUETRILOGUE

mandate

mandate

CONCILIATIONCONCILIATION

DIFFERENCES between 1st/2nd READING and CONCILIATION with 3rd READING

First and second reading Conciliation and third reading

Responsibility Parliamentary committee/-s EP Delegation/ Vice-President EP

Time limits 1st reading: No time limits

2nd reading: 4 months (max.) for the EP and another 4 months (max.) for the Council

Max. 3 x 6-8 weeks,of which 6-8 weeks devoted to

conciliation

Amendments YES - tabled to committees and plenary

NO - approval or rejection of the joint text as a whole

Majority 1st reading: Simple majority

2nd reading: Absolute majority (at least 393 votes)

EP approval of joint text by simple majority

in a single vote

RECENT TRENDS IN CODECISION

• Increasing number of 1st and 2nd reading agreements

• “Early” second reading agreements (e.g. financial perspectives package)

• “Code of conduct for Codecision Negotiations”

• EP rejection in 1st reading (e.g. Port services -Jarzembowski report)

• Negotiations in trilogues during conciliation phase

• Recent involvement of new policy fields in codecision (e.g. asylum policies)