Greater democracy, greater effectiveness, greater simplicity” “

Its agenda included the presentation of three final reports by specialized work groups but the attention of the twelfth plenary session of the Convention on the future of Europe (Brussels, 5-6/12/2002) especially focused on the contribution of the President of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, to the debate on the future European Constitution. “Penelope”. The document presented by Romano Prodi to the European Parliament on 5 December has the title: “The European Union: peace, freedom and solidarity”, but has been given the more compendious title “Penelope”. It met with a favourable reception from the members of the European Convention. But the latter’s president, Valery Giscard d’Estaing, was more cautious in his response. According to Giscard, “the Commission’s useful contribution did not arouse any emotions”. Despite that, the proposals of Prodi and the two Commissioners who also serve as members of the Presidium, Michel Barnier and Antonio Vitorino, met with wide support inside the Convention, with the exception of the proposal to submit the Executive Commission not only to the control of the EP but also to the “surveillance” of the Council. The ideas contained in “Penelope” (cf. SirEurope no.44 of 5 December 2002) are fundamentally inspired by three principles that ought to guide the work of the Convention and the future intergovernmental Conference on the reform of the Treaties: greater democracy, greater effectiveness, greater simplicity. Foreign Affairs – The work group on the “External Action of the EU”, chaired by vice-president of the Convention Jean-Luc Dehaene, presented its own proposals. The group proposes that the functions currently performed by the EU’s Senior Representative for Common Foreign Policy and Security and by the Commissioner for External Relations be combined and delegated to a “European Representative for External Relations”, nominated by the Council by qualified majority vote, in consultation with the Executive and the European Parliament. Other significant proposals made by the report are those on the establishment of a new “External Affairs Council”, distinct from the current General Affairs Council; on the composition of an “EU Diplomatic Service”, accompanied by an “EU Diplomatic School”; and on the need to reinforce the consultation of the EP on matters pertaining to foreign policy. Freedom, Security, Justice – The members of the Convention then examined the conclusions of the work group on “Freedom, Security and Justice”, chaired by former Irish premier John Bruton. With a view to creating a uniform legal system and distinguishing the sectors that require common EU legislation from those that require a juridically less binding coordination, the group proposes, on the one hand, that member states conduct a regular evaluation of their own national legislations and degree of effective harmonization and, on the other, suggest that the Commission may institute proceedings through the Court of Justice in Luxembourg against those states that violate their own juridical obligations. Bruton hopes that immigration and asylum policy be developed on the basis of “principles of solidarity and the fair sharing of resources”. He also proposes that a system be put in place that would guarantee the ratification by member states of the Conventions adopted by the Council. Simplification – The first and most important recommendation of the work group on legislative simplification chaired by Giuliano Amato consists in drastically reducing the number of statutory instruments from the current 15 to 6: two of legislative character (the law and the framework-law); one non-legislative but binding (the decision); two non-legislative and non-binding (the recommendation and the opinion); one instrument, finally, for acts delegated to executors (the regulation). The report also recommends that recourse to unanimity in decisions be limited.