Sittings · Compare

What changed

From · Plenary report · 2024-03-25 A-9-2024-0158 on amendments to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure implementing the parliamentary reform “Parliament 2024”

→

To · Adopted text · 2024-04-10 TA-9-2024-0176 Amendments to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure implementing the parliamentary reform “Parliament 2024”

+21 added · −40 removed · 7 modified paragraphs hide unchanged text

~~PROPOSAL FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DECISION~~

P9_TA(2024)0176

~~on amendments~~Amendments to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure implementing the parliamentary reform “Parliament 2024”

~~(2024/0000(REG))~~

Committee on Constitutional Affairs

PE758.847

European Parliament decision of 10 April 2024 on amendments to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure implementing the parliamentary reform “Parliament 2024” (2024/2000(REG))

– having regard to the letter from its President of 31 January 2024,

2. Decides that the amendments shall enter into force on 16 July 2024; decides that the amendments empowering the Conference of Presidents and the Bureau to adopt implementing measures shall however apply from the date that this decision is adopted;

3. Commits to engage with the Commission to commence the revision of the Framework Agreement of 20 October 2010 on relations between the European Parliament and the European Commission in the light of the parliamentary reform "Parliament 2024" and welcomes that Parliament's President has initiated the first steps with the President of the Commission to this effect;

3. Decides that transitional arrangements shall apply to legislative procedures for which Parliament did not adopt a position before the end of the last part-session of this parliamentary term and for which Rules 56, 57 or 58 were applied; mandates the Conference of Presidents to lay down those transitional arrangements pursuant to Rule 240, on the basis of a recommendation of the Conference of Committee Chairs; decides that, for the legislative procedures for which Rule 57 was applied and for which the report of the committee responsible was adopted before the end of that last part-session, Rule 57 shall continue to apply until the adoption of the proposed legal act;

~~4. Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Council and the Commission, for information.~~

4. Stresses that, when nominating candidates for, and electing, the President, Vice-Presidents and Quaestors, political groups bear collective responsibility for putting forward candidates that respect the gender balance;

5. Commits to engage with the Commission to commence the revision of the Framework Agreement of 20 October 2010 on relations between the European Parliament and the European Commission in the light of the parliamentary reform "Parliament 2024" and welcomes that Parliament's President has initiated the first steps with the President of the Commission to this effect;

6. Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Council and the Commission, for information.

Amendment 1

Where the committee responsible for the subject-matter has decided to draw up an own-initiative report in accordance with Rule 54 on the proposal and the President has not referred it to the committee responsible for legal affairs for an opinion on the appropriateness of the legal basis, the committee responsible for the subject-matter shall request such an opinion from that committee, which shall be delivered without undue delay.

~~Amendment 8Parliament's Rules of Procedure~~

Amendment 8

Parliament's Rules of Procedure

Rule 47 – paragraph 3

4b. Parliament’s resolution shall be brought to the attention of the Council and the Commission with a view to its possible inclusion in the joint declaration on annual interinstitutional programming referred to in Rule 38(2).

~~Amendment~~<Amendment 12

Parliament's Rules of Procedure

Special scrutiny hearings

1. In order to question one or more ~~Commissioners, or any other relevant person,~~Commissioners on an issue of major political importance, the Conference of Presidents may, upon a proposal by the President, by a committee or by Members or a political group or groups reaching at least the medium threshold, convene at short notice a special scrutiny hearing.

2. The Conference of Presidents shall determine the number of Members to be appointed for a given special scrutiny hearing by the political groups and the non-attached Members. Where relevant, political groups shall ensure that the committees concerned are duly represented.

4. The speaking time allocated to a political group shall be treated as a block. Each political group shall distribute the speaking time within its block between those of its members who are participating in the hearing. Speaking time allocated to non-attached Members shall not be treated as a block.

5. Time may be allocated for questions and answers to a political group as a block for which each political group shall make free use of that time. During the time so allocated as a block, the role of the Chair of the hearing shall be limited to maintaining order and to ensuring observance of the standards of conduct laid down in Rule 10.

5. Following the conclusion of the special scrutiny hearing, its Chair may submit to the Conference of Presidents written recommendations on behalf of Members who participated in the hearing.

6. The persons called upon to be heard shall be invited by the President and Rule 123a shall apply in case the invitation is declined without sufficient justification. The Chair of the hearing may invite the person to be heard under oath. No one shall be obliged to be heard under oath, but formal note shall be taken where a person declines to be heard under oath.

~~7. Following the conclusion of the special scrutiny hearing, its Chair may submit to the Conference of Presidents written recommendations on behalf of Members who participated in the hearing.~~

Amendment 67

3. Question Time may also be held, under the terms laid down in paragraph 1, with the President of the European Council, with the Presidency of the Council, with the President of the Commission, with the entire college of Commissioners or specific categories of Commissioners, with the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, with the President of the Eurogroup and with other relevant representatives of Union institutions and bodies.

~~Amendment 71~~

~~Parliament's Rules of Procedure~~

~~Rule 137 – paragraph 5 a (new)~~

~~Present text~~

~~Amendment~~

5a. Time may be allocated for questions and answers to a political group as a block for which each political group shall make free use of that time. During the time so allocated as a block, the role of the Chair shall be limited to maintaining order and to ensuring observance of the standards of conduct laid down in Rule 10. In that case, paragraphs 4 and 5 shall not apply.

Amendment 72

4. The President may draw up, for the first part of a particular debate, a list of speakers that includes one or more rounds of speakers from each political group wishing to speak, in the order of the relative size of those political groups. Speaking time allocated to political groups shall be in proportion to the total number of their members. ~~Speaking time for key debates shall be at least two minutes per speaker.~~

Amendment 87

7. The remaining part of the time for a debate shall not be specifically allocated in advance. Instead, the President may call on Members to speak, as a general rule for no more than one minute. The President shall, as far as possible, ensure that speakers who hold different political views and who come from different Member States are heard in turn. Speaking time allocated to speakers from political groups shall be in proportion to the total number of their members. ~~That remaining part of the time for a debate shall constitute 20% of the time for key debates.~~ The Conference of Presidents shall determine the amount of that remaining time for all ~~other~~ debates.

Amendment 89

The President may invite the witnesses to testify under oath. No one shall be obliged to testify under oath, but formal note shall be taken where a witness declines to testify under oath.

Amendments 147 and 148

Parliament's Rules of Procedure

Rule 209 – paragraph 2

Present text

Amendment

2. The composition of the committees shall, as far as possible, reflect the composition of Parliament. The distribution of committee seats among political groups must be either the nearest whole number above or the nearest whole number below the proportional calculation.

In the process of determining the composition of each committee, political groups should strive for a fair gender representation.

Where there is no agreement among the political groups on their proportional weight within one or more specific committees, the Conference of Presidents shall decide.

Where there is no agreement among the political groups on their proportional weight or gender representation within one or more specific committees, the Conference of Presidents shall decide.

Amendment 95

– first request additional information through further written questions;

– additional information by means of further written questions, which shall not exceed the number of written questions initially submitted to the ~~Commissioner-designate.~~Commissioner-designate, or/and

– if coordinators are still dissatisfied, request a resumed hearing of 1,5 hour subject to the approval of the Conference of Presidents;

– a resumed confirmation hearing of one and a half hours subject to the approval of the Conference of Presidents.

For the purposes of the first subparagraph, first indent, sub-questions shall not be allowed and invited committees shall not have the right to submit additional written ~~questions~~questions.

Only one set of additional written questions and one resumed confirmation hearing may be requested as part of the evaluation of a Commissioner-designate.

(f) If, further to the application of point (d), there is still no majority of coordinators representing at least two-thirds of the committee members belonging to a political group to approve the Commissioner-designate, the Chair shall convene a committee meeting and put to vote the two questions mentioned in paragraph 1. The Chair shall submit a letter stating the committee’s evaluation.

~~EXPLANATORY STATEMENT~~

On 18 January 2023, the Conference of Presidents (CoP) set up the Working Group ‘Parliament 2024’ with a mandate to develop concrete and actionable reform proposals to strengthen Parliament’s internal working methods as well as its institutional role and capacity to act. Members of the Working Group unanimously underlined the need for reforms since Parliament has to ensure that it is and remains well-equipped to fulfil its tasks under the Treaties and to live up to the expectations of citizens. Not least in view of the many challenges and crises the EU is and has been facing, the credibility of the European Parliament also rests in its ability to reform and modernise.

The Working Group identified problems encountered along the five areas defined in its mandate, namely legislation, scrutiny, budgetary functions and budgetary control, plenary, and external relations. After ten months of analysis and sharing views, the Working Group put forward a comprehensive package of reform proposals covering the five areas.

The reform package was endorsed by the CoP on 7 December 2023 with the objective of full implementation by the end of the parliamentary term. This requires a coordinated follow-up by several parliamentary bodies. For a number of reform measures, the Rules of Procedure have to be amended and for others, additionally, implementing decisions have to be adopted by Parliament’s governing bodies.

At its meeting on 31 January 2024, with a view to facilitating the work of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO), the CoP endorsed proposed amendments to the Rules of Procedure based on its decision of 7 December 2023 and decided to forward them to AFCO. The CoP invited the AFCO Committee to act swiftly and to submit the amendments to plenary in a timely manner for adoption before the end of the parliamentary term.

The reform measures, once implemented, will lead to a better functioning of Parliament as co-legislator, arm of the budgetary authority and discharge authority. Moreover, the reforms will increase Parliament’s capacity to exercise democratic oversight and to hold the other institutions, notably the Commission, accountable.

~~ANNEX: ENTITIES OR PERSONS FROM WHOM THE RAPPORTEUR HAS RECEIVED INPUT~~

The rapporteur declares under his exclusive responsibility that he did not receive input from any entity or person to be mentioned in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure.

~~INFORMATION ON ADOPTION IN COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE~~

~~Date adopted~~

~~20.3.2024~~

~~Result of final vote~~

–:

~~Members present for the final vote~~

Gerolf Annemans, Gabriele Bischoff, Damian Boeselager, Leila Chaibi, Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz, Ana Collado Jiménez, Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield, Salvatore De Meo, Daniel Freund, Sandro Gozi, Brice Hortefeux, Giuliano Pisapia, Antonio Maria Rinaldi, Domènec Ruiz Devesa, Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, Helmut Scholz, Pedro Silva Pereira, Sven Simon, Loránt Vincze, Rainer Wieland

~~Substitutes present for the final vote~~

~~Gilles Boyer, Mercedes Bresso, Cyrus Engerer, Othmar Karas, Alin Mituța, Maite Pagazaurtundúa~~

~~Substitutes under Rule 209(7) present for the final vote~~

~~Paola Ghidoni, Michiel Hoogeveen, Ernő Schaller-Baross, Ralf Seekatz~~

~~FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL IN COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE~~

~~Key to symbols:~~