15.4.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

CE 91/512

---

MINUTES

(2004/C 91 E/04)

PROCEEDINGS OF THE SITTING

IN THE CHAIR: Gerhard SCHMID

Vice-President

1.   Opening of sitting

The sitting opened at 10.00.

Bill Miller spoke on the lock-out of staff of the European Parliament office in London by the UK Independence Party (the President took note of his remarks).

2.   Documents received

The following documents had been received:

1)

from the Council and Commission: — Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the compilation of quarterly non-financial accounts by institutional sector (COM(2003) 789 — C5-0645/2003 — 2003/0296(COD)) referred to responsible ECON legal basis Article 285(1) EC — Opinion of the Council on transfer of appropriations 47/2003 between Chapters in Section III — Commission — Part B — of the General Budget for the European Union for the financial year 2003 (C5-0647/2003 — 2003/2250(GBD)) referred to responsible BUDG legal basis Article 274 EC — Proposal for a Council Regulation concerning the compilation and transmission of data on the quarterly government debt (COM(2003) 761 — C5-0649/2003 — 2003/0295(CNS)) referred to responsible ECON legal basis Article 104 (14), third subparagraph EC — Proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 77/388/EEC to extend the facility allowing Member States to apply reduced rates of VAT to certain labour-intensive services (COM(2003) 825 — C5-0653/2003 — 2003/0317(CNS)) referred to responsible ECON   opinion EMPL legal basis Article 93 EC

2)

from the Court of Auditors: — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training for the financial year 2002 together with the Centre's replies (I5-0020/2003 — C5-0630/2003 — 2003/2240(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion EMPL — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions for the financial year 2002 together with the Foundation's replies (I5-0021/2003 — C5-0631/2003 — 2003/2241(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion EMPL — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Agency for Reconstruction for the financial year 2002 together with the Agency's replies (I5-0022/2003 — C5-0632/2003 — 2003/2242(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion AFET — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia for the financial year 2002, together with the Centre's replies (I5-0023/2003 — C5-0633/2003 — 2003/2243(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion LIBE — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction for the financial year 2002, together with the Centre's replies (I5-0024/2003 — C5-0634/2003 — 2003/2244(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion LIBE — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Environment Agency for the financial year 2002, together with the Agency's replies (I5-0025/2003 — C5-0635/2003 — 2003/2245(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion ENVI — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work concerning the financial year 2002, together with the Agency's replies (I5-0026/2003 — C5-0636/2003 — 2003/2246(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion EMPL — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the Translation Centre for the bodies of the European Union for the financial year 2002 together with the Centre's replies (I5-0027/2003 — C5-0637/2003 — 2003/2247(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products concerning the financial year 2002 together with the Agency's replies (I5-0029/2003 — C5-0638/2003 — 2003/2255(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion ENVI — Proposal for a Report on the financial statements of the Community Plant Variety Office concerning the financial year 2002 together with the Office's replies (I5-0030/2003 — C5-0639/2003 — 2003/2257(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion AGRI — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market for the financial year 2002 together with the Office's replies (I5-0028/2003 — C5-0640/2003 — 2003/2258(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion JURI — Court of Auditors: Report on the financial statements of the European Training Foundation for the financial year 2002 together with the Foundation's replies (I5-0032/2003 — C5-0641/2003 — 2003/2259(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT   opinion EMPL — Court of Auditors: Annual Report and Statement of Assurance concerning the ECSC for the financial year ended 23 July 2002, together with the Commission's replies (I5-0033/2003 — C5-0646/2003 — 2003/2218(DEC)) referred to responsible CONT

3)

from Members: 3.1) motions for resolution (Rule 48): — Salvador Garriga Polledo on a European start-up register (B5-0571/2003) referred to responsible ITRE   opinion JURI, ECON 3.2) proposed amendments to the Rules of Procedure (Rule 181): — Glyn Ford on amendment of Rule 51, paragraphs 3 and 4 (B5-0584/2003) referred to responsible AFCO

3.   Transfers of appropriations

The Committee on Budgets had considered proposal for transfer of appropriations 47/2003 (C5-0590/2003 — SEC(2003)1409 final).

Having noted the Council's opinion, it had authorised the transfer, pursuant to Articles 24(3) and 181(1) of the Financial Regulation of 25 June 2002, in accordance with the following breakdown:

FROM:
Chapter B0-40 — Provisions
— Article B2-515 — Forestry	CA	-1 500 000 EUR
— Article B2-517 — Plant and animal genetic resources	CA	-1 500 000 EUR
— Item B3-4331 — European Food Safety Authority — Subsidy under Title 3	CA	-3 880 000 EUR
Chapter B2-51 — Cntrols and other operations in the agricultural sector
— Article B2-511 — Checks on application of the rules on agriculture	CA	- 600 000 EUR
Chapter B2-90 — Spport measures for the common fisheries policy
— Article B2-904 — Support for the management of fishery resources and stepping up of research (collection of basic data and improvement of scientific advice)	CA	-1 000 000 EUR
Chapter B4-30 — Action on the environment
— Article B4-304 — Legislation, awareness-raising and other general actions based on the Community action programmes in the field of the environment	CA	-2 500 000 EUR
— Article B4-305 — Community framework for cooperation to promote sustainable urban development	CA	-2 300 000 EUR
— Article B4-308 — Community action programme in the field of civil protection	CA	-2 000 000 EUR
Chapter B5-30 — Strategic implementing measures
— Article B5-300 — Strategic programme on the internal market
— Item B5-3001 — Implementation and development of the internal market	CA	-3 800 000 EUR
— Item B5-3002 — Operation and development of the internal market, particularly in the fields of notification, certification and sectoral approximation	CA	- 670 000 EUR
— Article B5-304 — Procedures for awarding and advertising public supply, works and service contracts	CA	-2 050 000 EUR
Chapter B5-31 — Standardisation and evaluation measures
— Article B5-312 — Subsidy for the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products
— Item B5-3120 — European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products — Subsidy for Titles 1 and 2	CA	-1 500 000 EUR
— Item B5-3121 — European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products — Subsidy for Title 3	CE	-1 500 000 EUR
Chapter B5-32 — Promotion of growth and employment: measures to assist firms
— Article B5-326 — Industrial competitiveness policy for the European Union	CA	- 700 000 EUR
Chapter B5-60 — Statistical information policy connected with the completion of the internal market and in support of community policies
— Article — B5-600 Statistical information policy	CA	-2 000 000 EUR
Chapter B5-72 — Telecommunications networks
— Article B5-721 — Telematics networks linking administrations
— Item B5-7210 — Networks for the interchange of data between administrations (IDA)	CA	-2 500 000 EUR
— Item B5-7211 — Networks for intra-Community statistics (Edicom)	CA	-3 000 000 EUR
TO:
Chapter B6-61 — Operating expenditure — Integrating and strengthening the european research area
— Article B6-611 — Genomics and biotechnology for health	CA	26 000 000 EUR
— Article B6-617 — Citizens and governance in a knowledge-based society	CA	5 000 000 EUR
Chapter B6-63 — Operating expenditure — Research and training actions under the euratom treaty
— Article B6-631 — Priority thematic areas of research
— Item B6-6311 — Controlled thermonuclear fusion	CA	2 000 000 EUR

*

* *

The Committee on Budgets had considered proposal for transfer of appropriations 48/2003 (C5-0566/2003 — SEC(2003)1390 final).

Having noted the Council's opinion, it had authorised the transfer, pursuant to Articles 24(3) and 181(1) of the Financial Regulation of 25 June 2002, in accordance with the following breakdown:

FROM:
Chapter B6-52 — Completion of the fifth framework programme (1998 to 2002)
— Article B6-521 — Completion of the fifth framework programme (1998 to 2002)
— Item B6-5211 — Completion of the fifth framework programme (1998 to 2002)	PA	-14 000 000 EUR
TO:
Chapter B3-20 — Culture and Audiovisual media
— Article B3-200 — Culture
— Item B3-2008 Framework programme in support of culture	PA	6 000 000 EUR
— Article B3-201 — Audiovisual media
— Item B3-2010 — MediaPlus (measures to promote the development of the audiovisual industry)	PA	8 000 000 EUR

*

* *

The Committee on Budgets had considered proposal for transfer of appropriations 49/2003 (C5-0591/2003 — SEC(2003)1412 final).

Having noted the Council's opinion, it had authorised the transfer, pursuant to Articles 24(3) and 181(1) of the Financial Regulation of 25 June 2002, in accordance with the following breakdown:

FROM:
Chapter B0-40 — Provisions
— Item B7-6313 — Aid for basic education in developing countries	CA	-3 500 000 EUR
Chapter B7-54 — Cooperation with the western Balkan countries
— Article B7-548 — Macroeconomic assistance for the countries of the western Balkans not concerned by a pre-accession strategy	CA	-3 600 000 EUR
Chapter B7-81 — External aspects of environment policy
— Article B7-810 — LIFE (European Financial Instrument for the Environment) — Operations outside Community territory	CA	-2 900 000 EUR
TO:
Chapter B7-31 — Cooperation with Latin American developing countries
— Article B7-310 — Financial and technical cooperation with Latin American developing countries	CA	10 000 000 EUR

*

* *

The Committee on Budgets had considered proposal for transfer of appropriations 50/2003 (C5-0592/2003 — SEC(2003)1411 final).

Having noted the Council's opinion, it had authorised the transfer, pursuant to Articles 24(3) and 181(1) of the Financial Regulation of 25 June 2002, in accordance with the following breakdown:

FROM:
Chapter A-24 — Postal charges, telecommunications and computer infrastructure
— Article A-240 — Postal charges	NDA	- 350 000 EUR
Chapter A-25 — Other expenditure on formal and other meetings
— Article A-253 — Bodies specialising in industrial safety
— Item A-2530 — Mines Safety and Health Commission	NDA	-80 000 EUR
Chapter A-30 — Community subsidies
— Article A-304 — Community participation in the financing of organisations advancing the idea of the European civil society
— Item A-3044 — European Agency for Development in Special Needs Education	NDA	- 187 000 EUR
— Item A-3045 — Educational activities to combat racism, xenophobia and anti-Semitism	NDA	- 100 000 EUR
Chapter A-32 — Youth, education and town-twinning
— Article A-320 — Cost of organising graduate traineeships with the institution
— Item A-3201 — Subsidy for organising traineeships for young diplomats from the applicant countries	NDA	- 200 000 EUR
Chapter A-34 — Publishing
— Article A-342 — Publications Office	NDA	-1 646 000 EUR
Chapter A-35 — Monitoring, surveys and methods of analysis in the field of economics, trade and industry, and other sectors
— Article A-350 — Economic information and administration of economic and monetary union
— Item A-3500 — Harmonised European economic surveys and use of findings	NDA	-28 000 EUR
— Item A-3501 — Economic information and administration of economic and monetary union	NDA	-72 000 EUR
Chapter A-36 — European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)
— Article A-360 — European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)	NDA	- 500 000 EUR
Chapter A-40 — Management of resources
— Article A-403 — Professional training for staff
— Item A-4030 — Language courses	NDA	- 130 000 EUR
Chapter A-45 — ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES
— Article A-452 — Office for Infrastructure and Logistics (Brussels)	NDA	- 350 000 EUR
Chapter A-70 — Decentralised expenditure on support staff and administration
— Article A-700 — Decentralised expenditure on support staff
— Item A-7000 — Auxiliary staff	NDA	-1 350 000 EUR
— Article A-703 — Expenditure on formal and other meetings
— Item A-7030 — Meetings in general	NDA	-2 500 000 EUR
TO:
Chapter A-20 — Investments in immovable property, rental of buildings and associated costs
— Article A-200 — Rent and ground rent	NDA	7 493 000 EUR

4.   Texts of agreements forwarded by the Council

The Council had forwarded certified true copies of the following documents:

—	Agreement in the form of an exchange of letters between the European Community and the Kingdom of Norway concerning certain agricultural products

—	Agreement in the form of an exchange of letters between the European Community and the Republic of Croatia concerning the system of ecopoints to be applied to Croatian transit traffic through Austria as from 1 January 2003

—

Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway consequent on the accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic to the European Union

—	Agreement between the Kingdom of Norway and the European Community on a Norwegian financial mechanism for the period 2004-2009

5.   Discrimination against MS patients (debate)

Report on Petition 842/2001 concerning the effects of discriminatory treatment afforded to persons with Multiple Sclerosis, within the European Union [2003/2173(INI)] — Committee on Petitions. Rapporteur: Uma Aaltonen (A5-0451/2003).

Uma Aaltonen introduced the report.

Michaele Schreyer (Member of the Commission) spoke.

The following spoke: Richard Howitt (draftsman of the opinion of the EMPL Committee), Richard A. Balfe, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group, Margot Keßler, on behalf of the PSE Group, Elizabeth Lynne, on behalf of the ELDR Group, María Luisa Bergaz Conesa, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group, Roy Perry, Proinsias De Rossa, Astrid Thors, Ilda Figueiredo, Michl Ebner, Minerva Melpomeni Malliori, Roger Helmer, Catherine Stihler and Uma Aaltonen.

The debate closed.

Vote: Item 23.

6.   World Summit on the Information Society (first phase: Geneva, 10/12 December 2003) (debate)

Commission statement: World Summit on the Information Society (first phase: Geneva, 10/12 December 2003).

Michaele Schreyer (Member of the Commission) made the statement.

The following spoke: Malcolm Harbour, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group, Myrsini Zorba, on behalf of the PSE Group, Astrid Thors, on behalf of the ELDR Group, Konstantinos Alyssandrakis, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group, Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Marco Cappato, Nonattached Member, Paul Rübig, Erika Mann, Carles-Alfred Gasòliba i Böhm, Michl Ebner, Barbara O'Toole, Kyösti Tapio Virrankoski, Anna Karamanou and Marco Cappato, for a point of order.

The debate closed.

VOTING TIME

Details of voting (amendments, separate and split votes, etc.) appear in Annex 1 to the Minutes.

IN THE CHAIR: Pat COX

President

7.   Ban on cat and dog fur (Rule 51)

The President announced, pursuant to Rule 51, that written declaration 17/2003 by Struan Stevenson, Bob van den Bos, Nelly Maes, Mihail Papayannakis and Phillip Whitehead on a ban on trade in cat and dog fur had obtained the signatures of the majoirity of the Members of Parliament, and would therefore be forwarded to its addressees, together with the names of the signatories, and published in the Texts Adopted of that sitting (P5-TA(2003)0605), also with the names of the signatories.

8.   Mobilisation of the flexibility instrument for Iraq (Rule 110a) (vote)

Report on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the flexibility instrument in favour of the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Iraq according to point 24 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 [COM(2003) 576 — C5-0455/2003 — 2003/0225(ACI)] — Committee on Budgets. Rapporteur: Joan Colom i Naval (A5-0456/2003).

(Qualified majority plus three-fifths of the votes cast (IIA of 6 May 1999, paragraph 24 and Article 272(9) of EC Treaty))

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 1)

MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

Adopted by single vote (P5_TA(2003)0587)

9.   Draft general budget 2004, as modified by the Council (vote)

Draft amendments to the draft general budget modified by the Council

CORRIGENDUM to first reading: Annex to texts adopted at the sitting of Thursday 23 October 2003 (Amendments and proposed modifications to the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2004 — 2nd part: Section III — Commission). Amendment 805 on Budget reference line 02 02 03 02 should read:

	AMENDMENT		DB+AMENDMENT
	Commitments	Payments	Commitments	Payments
EU-15	2 000 000	1 000 000	2 000 000	1 000 000
EU-10	4 000 000	1 000 000	4 000 000	1 000 000

(Qualified majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 2)

Jan Mulder, general rapporteur, pointed out that the vote dealt with the EU-15 budget and that the enlargement appropriations voted at first reading would be taken into account in the amending budget for enlargement.

He then announced technical corrections to amendments 335 and 378, and pointed out that a technical adjustment would have to be made in the light of the vote to ensure that Chapter XX was consistent with the vote in the different policy areas.

Parliament adopted the amendments as corrected.

The amendments adopted appear in an annex to the Texts Adopted

10.   Draft 2004 budget as modified by the Council and Letters of Amendment 1,2 & 3/2004 (vote)

Report on the draft general budget of the European Union for the year 2004 as modified by the Council (all sections) [11357/2003 — C5-0600/2003 — 2003/2001(BUD) — 2003/2002(BUD)] and Letters of Amendment Nos 1, 2 and 3/2004 [14837/2003 — C5-0570/2003, 14838/2003 — C5-0571/2003, 14839/2003 — C5-0572/2003] to the draft general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2004

Section I — European Parliament

Section II — Council

Section III — Commission

Section IV — Court of Justice

Section V — Court of Auditors

Section VI — Economic and Social Committee

Section VII — Committee of the Regions

Section VIII(A) — European Ombudsman

Section VII(B) — European Data Protection Supervisor — Committee on Budgets. rapporteurs: Jan Mulder and Neena Gill (A5-0473/2003)

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 3)

MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0588)

The following spoke:

—	Neena Gill (rapporteur) on amendment 1;

—	Terence Wynn (Chairman of BUDG Committee), who thanked all those who had taken part in the budgetary procedure and asked the Council for its position on the outcome of the second reading;

—

Gianluigi Magri (President-in-Office of the Council) made the following statement: ‘... We have concluded the second reading of the draft general budget for the financial year 2004, which is of historical importance given the Union's enlargement to 25. We are pleased to note that by your vote you have confirmed the agreement between the institutions which emerged from the conciliation meetings of 24 November. While noting that divergences remain as regards the classification of expenditure — in respect of which the Council reserves its rights — I should like to conclude this statement in the same spirit as I began when I spoke of a historical occasion, and thank all the actors in this procedure, including the institutions, for enabling this memorable day in the life of the European Union to be concluded on such a successful note.’

—	Michaele Schreyer (Member of the Commission) pointed out that the budgetary preparation of enlargement had been completed; she thanked Terence Wynn, Jan Mulder and Neena Gill on behalf of the Commission.

The President called on President-in-Office of the Council Gianluigi Magri, Commission representative Michaele Schreyer, Budgets Committee Chairman Terence Wynn, and rapporteurs Jan Mulder, Neena Gill and Joan Colom i Naval to join him, and then proceeded to sign the budget.

11.   Future budget requirements for external measures (vote)

Report on future budget requirements for external measures [2003/2037(INI)] — Committee on Budgets. Rapporteur: Guido Podestà (A5-0434/2003).

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 4)

MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0589)

12.   Transitional points system for HGVs in Austria in 2004 ***III (vote)

Report on the joint text approved by the Conciliation Committee for a European Parliament and Council regulation establishing a transitional points system applicable to heavy goods vehicles travelling through Austria for the year 2004 within the framework of a sustainable transport policy [PE-CONS 3689/2003 — C5-0562/2003 — 2001/0310(COD)] — Parliament's delegation to the Conciliation Committee. Rapporteur: Paolo Costa (A5-0475/2003).

(Simple majority for approval)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 5)

JOINT TEXT

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0590)

13.   Compensation and assistance to air passengers ***III (vote)

Report of Parliament's delegation to the Conciliation Committee on the joint text, approved by the Conciliation Committee, of a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to air passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights [PE-CONS 3676/2003 — C5-0518/2003 — 2001/0305(COD)] — Parliament's delegation to the Conciliation Committee. Rapporteur: Giorgio Lisi (A5-0464/2003).

(Simple majority for approval)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 6)

JOINT TEXT

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0591)

14.   Cogeneration ***II (vote)

Recommendation for second reading on the common position of the Council with a view to adopting a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the promotion of cogeneration based on a useful heat demand in the internal energy market and amending Directive 92/42/EEC [10345/2/2003 — C5-0444/2003 — 2002/0185(COD)] — Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy. Rapporteur: Norbert Glante (A5-0457/2003).

(Qualified majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 7)

COMMON POSITION OF THE COUNCIL

Declared approved as amended (P5_TA(2003)0592)

The following spoke:

The rapporteur, on amendment block 1.

15.   Meeting of heads of state and/or government on the IGC (Brussels, 12/13 December 2003) (vote)

Motions for resolution B5-0535, 0573, 0574, 0575, 0576, 0579 and 0581/2003

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 8)

MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION B5-0535/2003

Rejected

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION RC-B5-0573/2003

(replacing motions for resolution B5-0573, 0574, 0575 and 0576/2003):

tabled by the following Members:

—	Elmar Brok, Hans-Gert Poettering and Íñigo Méndez de Vigo, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group,

—	Enrique Barón Crespo, Klaus Hänsch, Giorgio Napolitano and Richard Corbett, on behalf of the PSE Group,

—	Andrew Nicholas Duff, on behalf of the ELDR Group,

—	Johannes Voggenhuber, Monica Frassoni and Neil MacCormick, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0593)

(Motions for resolutions B5-0579 et B5-0581/2003 and B5-0581/2003 fell.)

16.   Electronic road toll systems ***I (vote)

Report on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the widespread introduction and interoperability of electronic road toll systems in the Community [COM(2003) 132 — C5-0190/2003 — 2003/0081(COD)] — Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism. Rapporteur: Renate Sommer (A5-0435/2003).

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 9)

COMMISSION PROPOSAL

Approved as amended (P5_TA(2003)0594)

DRAFT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0594)

The following spoke:

Renate Sommer, rapporteur, on certain amendments, and Claude Turmes on amendment 37.

17.   Decentralised cooperation (2004-2006) ***I (vote)

Report on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council extending and amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1659/98 on decentralised cooperation [COM(2003) 413 — C5-0319/2003 — 2003/0156(COD)] — Committee on Development and Cooperation. Rapporteur: Jürgen Zimmerling (A5-0431/2003).

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 10)

COMMISSION PROPOSAL

Approved as amended (P5_TA(2003)0595)

DRAFT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0595)

The following spoke:

Jürgen Zimmerling, rapporteur, spoke on amendment 5, and pointed out that, following its rejection, amendment 11 fell.

18.   Gender equality in development cooperation ***I (vote)

Report on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on promoting gender equality in development cooperation [COM(2003) 465 — C5-0367/2003 — 2003/0176(COD)] — Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities. Rapporteur: Olga Zrihen (A5-0447/2003).

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 11)

COMMISSION PROPOSAL

Approved as amended (P5_TA(2003)0596)

DRAFT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0596)

19.   EC-Côte d'Ivoire fisheries agreement * (vote)

Report on the proposal for a Council regulation on conclusion of an Agreement in the form of an exchange of letters extending to the period 1 July 2003 to 30 June 2004 the validity of the Protocol setting fishing opportunities and a financial contribution as provided for in the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire on fishing off the coast of Côte d'Ivoire [COM(2003) 556 — C5-0458/2003 — 2003/0219(CNS)] — Committee on Fisheries. Rapporteur: Struan Stevenson (A5-0459/2003).

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 12)

COMMISSION PROPOSAL

Approved as amended (P5_TA(2003)0597)

DRAFT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0597)

20.   European Council (Brussels, 12/13 December 2003) (vote)

Motions for resolution B5-0570, 0577, 0578, 0580, 0582 and 0583/2003

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 13)

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION RC-B5-0570/2003

(replacing motions for resolution B5-0570, B5-0577, B5-0580, B5-0582 and B5-0583/2003):

tabled by the following Members:

—	Hans-Gert Poettering, Ilkka Suominen, Othmar Karas, Philippe Morillon, Arie M. Oostlander and Hubert Pirker, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group,

—	Enrique Barón Crespo, on behalf of the PSE Group,

—	Jules Maaten, on behalf of the ELDR Group,

—	Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit and Monica Frassoni, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group,

—	Charles Pasqua, Cristiana Muscardini, Gerard Collins and Luís Queiró, on behalf of the UEN Group.

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0598)

(Motion for a resolution B5-0578/2003 fell.)

The following spoke:

Christos Zacharakis drew attention to a discrepancy between the Greek version of paragraph 31 and the other languages (the President replied that the matter would be looked into).

21.   Removal of the EU embargo on arms sales to China (vote)

Motions for resolution B5-0548, 0549, 0552, 0553 and 0565/2003

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 14)

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION RC-B5-0548/2003

(replacing motions for resolution B5-0548, 0549, 0552 and 0553/2003):

tabled by the following Members:

—	Michael Gahler, Philippe Morillon, Georg Jarzembowski, Charles Tannock and Thomas Mann, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group,

—	Margrietus J. van den Berg, on behalf of the PSE Group,

—	Ole Andreasen, on behalf of the ELDR Group,

—	Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit and Per Gahrton, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0599)

(Motion for a resolution B5-0565/2003 fell.)

22.   Coexistence of GM crops with conventional and organic crops (vote)

Report on the coexistence of genetically modified crops and conventional and organic crops [2003/2098(INI)] — Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development. Rapporteur: Friedrich-Wilhelm Graefe zu Baringdorf (A5-0465/2003).

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 15)

MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0600)

23.   Discrimination against MS patients (vote)

Report on Petition 842/2001 concerning the effects of discriminatory treatment afforded to persons with Multiple Sclerosis, within the European Union [2003/2173(INI)] — Committee on Petitions. Rapporteur: Uma Aaltonen (A5-0451/2003).

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 16)

MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0601)

The following spoke:

Before the vote, the President welcomed Mrs Louise McVay, the instigator of the report, who was sitting in the gallery.

Uma Aaltonen, rapporteur, moved an oral amendment to paragraphs 4, 9, 11, 13 and 15.

24.   Explanations of vote

Written explanations of vote:

Explanations of vote submitted in writing under Rule 137(3) appear in the verbatim report of proceedings for this sitting.

Oral explanations of vote:

Report Paolo Costa — A5-0475/2003: Michl Ebner

Joint motion for a resolution RC-0573/2003 om regeringskonferensen: Richard Corbett, on behalf of the PSE Group, and Jean-Maurice Dehousse, on behalf of the Belgian French-speaking members of the PSE Group.

25.   Corrections to votes

Corrections to votes were submitted by the following Members:

Report Mulder — A5-0473/2003

—	amendment 1 for: Bent Hindrup Andersen, Göran Färm, Ewa Hedkvist Petersen, Hans Karlsson, Yvonne Sandberg-Fries, Maj Britt Theorin, Catherine Guy-Quint, Alexander Radwan, W.G. van Velzen

—	resolution (as a whole) against: Hans-Peter Martin

Report Podestà — A5-0434/2003

—	amendment 27 for: Eurig Wyn against: Claude Turmes

—	amendment 30 for: Claude Turmes

Report Paolo Costa — A5-0475/2003

—	joint text against: Georges Berthu, Dominique F.C. Souchet, Michl Ebner abstention: Gilles Savary

RC-B5-0573/2003 — IGC

—	recital D for: Bent Hindrup Andersen, Jens-Peter Bonde, Ulla Margrethe Sandbæk against: Gilles Savary

—	resolution for: Bent Hindrup Andersen, Jens-Peter Bonde, Ulla Margrethe Sandbæk, Helle Thorning-Schmidt against: Johanna L.A. Boogerd-Quaak abstention: Gérard Onesta

Report Zimmerling — A5-0431/2003

—	amendment 10 — first part for: Georges Garot

RC-B5-0560/2003 — European Council meeting

—	amendment 5 for: Armonia Bordes, Chantal Cauquil and Alain Krivine against: Concepció Ferrer

RC-B5-0548/2003 — China

—	resolution (as a whole) for: Dagmar Roth-Behrendt and Brian Simpson

Report Graefe zu Baringdorf — A5-0465/2003

—	amendment 3 — first part for: Simon Francis Murphy

—	amendment 4 — 1st part for: Helle Thorning-Schmidt

—	paragraph 9 for: Avril Doyle

—	resolution (as a whole) for: Francis Wurtz against: Cristina Gutiérrez-Cortines

Report Aaltonen — A5-0451/2003

—	resolution (as a whole) for: Chantal Cauquil and Alain Krivine

Members present but not voting:

Armonia Bordes and Chantal Cauquil, on resolution B5-0535/2003: recital D and final vote; Stevenson report — A5-0459/2003: amendments 4, 5, and legislative resolution; joint resolution RC-B5-0548/2003 on China: paragraph 3.

END OF VOTING TIME

(The sitting was suspended at 12.40 and resumed at 15.00.)

IN THE CHAIR: Alonso José PUERTA

Vice-President

26.   Approval of Minutes of previous sitting

Robert J.E. Evans had informed the Presidency that he had been present but that his name was not on the attendance register.

The Minutes of the previous sitting were approved.

27.   Request for urgent procedure (Rule 112)

Council request for the application of urgent procedure (Rule 112) for:

—	Proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 77/388/EEC to extend the facility allowing Member States to apply reduced rates of VAT to certain labour-intensive services (COM(2003) 825 — C5-0653/2003 — 2003/0317(CNS))

Reason for request:

The directive currently enforced was due to expire on 31 December 2003 and the Council wished to obtain Parliament's opinion on the proposal before 29 January 2004.

Parliament would be consulted on the request for urgent procedure at the beginning of the sitting of Monday 12 January 2004.

28.   Natural disasters in the South of France and the regions ‘Languedoc-Roussillon’ and ‘Provence Alpes-Côte d'Azur’(statement followed by debate)

Commission statement: Natural disasters in the South of France and the regions ‘Languedoc-Roussillon‘ and ‘Provence Alpes-Côte d'Azur’

Philippe Busquin (Member of the Commission) made the statement.

The following spoke: Françoise Grossetête, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group, Gérard Onesta, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Alain Esclopé, on behalf of the EDD Group, and Jean-Claude Martinez, Non-attached Member.

The debate closed.

DEBATE ON CASES OF BREACHES OF HUMAN RIGHTS, DEMOCRACY AND THE RULE OF LAW

(For the titles and authors of the motions for resolution, see Item 2 of the Minutes of Tuesday 16 December 2003)

29.   Georgia (debate)

The next item was the joint debate on 6 motions for resolution (B5-0547, 0550, 0554, 0556, 0560 and 0566/2003).

Bill Newton Dunn, Demetrio Volcic, Bastiaan Belder, Erik Meijer, Joost Lagendijk and Ursula Schleicher introduced motions for resolution.

The following spoke: Marielle De Sarnez, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group, Olivier Dupuis, Non-attached Member, Bernd Posselt and Philippe Busquin (Member of the Commission).

The debate closed.

Vote: Item 32.

30.   Philippines: end of the moratorium on the death penalty (debate)

The next item was the joint debate on 6 motions for resolution (B5-0545, 0551, 0557, 0562, 0567 and 0569/2003).

María Elena Valenciano Martínez-Orozco, Erik Meijer and Bernd Posselt introduced motions for resolution.

The following spoke: Ulla Margrethe Sandbæk, on behalf of the EDD Group, and Philippe Busquin (Member of the Commission).

The debate closed.

Vote: Item 33.

31.   Moldova (debate)

The next item was the joint debate on 6 motions for resolution (B5-0546, 0555, 0558, 0559, 0561 and 0568/2003).

Paulo Casaca, Bastiaan Belder and Erik Meijer introduced motions for resolution.

Bernd Posselt spoke on a technical matter.

Michael Gahler introduced his motion for a resolution.

Lennart Sacrédeus, on behalf of the PPE-DE Groupspoke.

IN THE CHAIR: Gérard ONESTA

Vice-President

Philippe Busquin (Member of the Commission) spoke.

The debate closed.

Vote: Item 34.

END OF DEBATE ON BREACHES OF HUMAN RIGHTS, DEMOCRACY AND THE RULE OF LAW

VOTING TIME

Details of voting (amendments, separate and split votes, etc.) appear in Annex 1 to the Minutes.

32.   Georgia (vote)

Motions for resolution B5-0547, 0550, 0554, 0556, 0560 and 0566/2003

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 17)

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION RC-B5-0547/2003

(replacing motions for resolution B5-0547, 0550, 0554, 0556, 0560 and 0566/2003):

tabled by the following Members:

—	Ursula Schleicher, Bernd Posselt and Marielle De Sarnez, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group,

—	Demetrio Volcic and Margrietus J. van den Berg, on behalf of the PSE Group,

—	Anne André-Léonard, on behalf of the ELDR Group,

—	Per Gahrton, Marie Anne Isler Béguin and Miquel Mayol i Raynal, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group,

—	Luigi Vinci, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group,

—	Bastiaan Belder, on behalf of the EDD Group,

—	Olivier Dupuis, Marco Pannella, Emma Bonino, Gianfranco Dell'Alba, Benedetto Della Vedova, Marco Cappato and Maurizio Turco

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0602)

33.   Philippines: end of the moratorium on the death penalty (vote)

Motions for resolution B5-0545, 0551, 0557, 0562, 0567 and 0569/2003

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 17)

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION RC-B5-0545/2003

(replacing motions for resolution B5-0545, 0551, 0557, 0562 and 0567/2003):

tabled by the following Members:

—	Bernd Posselt and Ilkka Suominen, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group,

—	Margrietus J. van den Berg, on behalf of the PSE Group,

—	Bob van den Bos, on behalf of the ELDR Group,

—	Patricia McKenna and Matti Wuori, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group,

—	Lucio Manisco and Giuseppe Di Lello Finuoli, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0603)

(Motion for a resolution B5-0569/2003 fell.)

34.   Moldova (vote)

Motions for resolution B5-0546, 0555, 0558, 0559, 0561 and 0568/2003

(Simple majority)

(Voting record: Annex 1, Item 19)

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION RC-B5-0546/2003

(replacing motions for resolution B5-0546, 0555, 0559, 0561 and 0568/2003):

tabled by the following Members:

—	Michael Gahler, Charles Tannock, Bernd Posselt and Lennart Sacrédeus, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group,

—	Margrietus J. van den Berg and Jan Marinus Wiersma, on behalf of the PSE Group,

—	Bob van den Bos, Anne André-Léonard and Ole Andreasen, on behalf of the ELDR Group,

—	Elisabeth Schroedter and Marie Anne Isler Béguin, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group,

—	Bastiaan Belder, on behalf of the EDD Group

Adopted (P5_TA(2003)0604)

(Motion for a resolution B5-0558/2003 fell.)

END OF VOTING TIME

35.   Membership of committees and political groups

Parliament took note of the appointment of George Varnava to the AFET Committee as observer, and of the fact that Adam Bielan, Michal Kaminski, Marcin Libicki and Aleksander Szczyglo had joined the UEN Group, with effect from 18 December 2003, as observers.

36.   Authorisation to draw up own-initiative reports — cooperation between committees — Withdrawal of an own-initiative report already authorised by the Conference of Presidents

Authorisation to draw up own-initiative reports, pursuant to Rules 47(2) and 163

ENVI Committee

—	Integrated product policy — Building on Environmental Life-Cycle Thinking (COM(2003) 302 — C5-0550/2003 — 2003/2221(INI)) (asked for opinion: ITRE) (Conference of Presidents' decision of 13 November 2003)

—	A European environment and health strategy (COM(2003) 338 — C5-0551/2003 — 2003/2222(INI)) (asked for opinion: ITRE) (Conference of Presidents' decision of 13 November 2003)

Cooperation between committees

Rule 162a had been applied to the following reports:

AFET Committee:

—	Developing and consolidating democracy and the rule of law and respect for human rights (COM(2003) 639 — C5-0507/2003 — 2003/0250(COD)) (asked for opinion: BUDG, DEVE) Rule 162a procedure between AFET and DEVE (Conference of Presidents' decision of 11 December 2003)

DEVE Committee:

—	Budgetisation of the European Development Fund (2003/2163(INI)) (asked for opinion: BUDG) Rule 162a procedure between DEVE and BUDG (Conference of Presidents' decision of 11 December 2003)

Withdrawal of an own-initiative report already authorised by the Conference of Presidents

ENVI Committee:

—	Follow-up report on Directive 85/337/EEC — environmental impact assessment of public and private projects (COM(2003) 334 — C5-0411/2003 — 2003/2126(INI)) (Announced in Minutes of 4 September 2003)

37.   Written declarations included in the register (Rule 51)

Number of signatures obtained by the written declarations in the register (Rule 51(3)):

No. Document	Author	Signatures
17/2003	Struan Stevenson, Bob van den Bos, Nelly Maes, Mihail Papayannakis and Phillip Whitehead	346
18/2003	André Brie, Willi Görlach, Joost Lagendijk and Philippe Morillon	50
19/2003	Marie Anne Isler Béguin and Alexander de Roo	49
20/2003	Philip Claeys and Koenraad Dillen	14
21/2003	María Sornosa Martínez	33
22/2003	Jean-Claude Martinez, Carl Lang, Bruno Gollnisch and Marie-France Stirbois	6
23/2003	Mark Francis Watts, Catherine Stihler and Phillip Whitehead	88
24/2003	Cristiana Muscardini	52
25/2003	Marie Anne Isler Béguin, Inger Schörling, Paul A.A.J.G. Lannoye, Gérard Onesta and Yves Piétrasanta	19
26/2003	Caroline Lucas, Ulla Margrethe Sandbæk and Pernille Frahm	29
27/2003	Marco Cappato and Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit	41
28/2003	Sebastiano (Nello) Musumeci, Cristiana Muscardini, Mauro Nobilia and Adriana Poli Bortone	15
29/2003	Chris Davies, Johanna L.A. Boogerd-Quaak, Marco Cappato, Anna Karamanou and Michiel van Hulten	45
30/2003	Jonathan Evans, Jacqueline Foster, Martin Callanan, Ian Twinn and Timothy Kirkhope	36
31/2003	José Ribeiro e Castro	16

38.   Forwarding of texts adopted during the sitting

Pursuant to Rule 148(2), the Minutes of that day's sitting would be submitted to Parliament for its approval at the beginning of the next sitting.

With Parliament's agreement, the texts that had been adopted would be forwarded forthwith to the bodies named therein.

39.   Dates for next sittings

The next sittings would be held from 12 to 15 January 2004.

40.   Adjournment of session

The session of the European Parliament was adjourned.

The sitting closed at 16.20.

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