92001E1517

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1517/01

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Council

(21 May 2001)

Subject: Postponement of European elections

Could the Council outline the procedure and likely timescale required for postponement of European elections to be agreed should circumstances arise in any Member State that meant there would be an impediment to political campaigning through reasons of public health concerns or similar?

Reply

(21 November 2001)

Under existing legislation, namely the Act concerning the election of European Parliament representatives by direct universal suffrage annexed to the Council Decision of 20 September 1976, the procedure for setting the dates for European elections is clear.

In accordance with the provisions of Article 10(1) of the aforementioned Act, the Council determined the period during which the dates of the first elections to the European Parliament were to be set, namely 7 to 10 June 1979. Subsequent elections take place in the corresponding period in the last year of the five-year legislative period.

However, under Article 10 it is possible to determine another period for the dates of European elections. This period may be not more than one month before or one month after the period corresponding to that fixed for the first elections. Any such decision must be taken by the Council, acting unanimously after consulting the European Parliament.