1 ENERGY EFFICIENCY
(26683)
10368/05
COM(05) 265
| Green Paper on Energy Efficiency or Doing More with Less
|
| Legal base | —
|
| Department | Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
|
| Basis of consideration |
Minister's letter of 10 January 2006 |
| Previous Committee Report |
HC 34-vii (2005-06), para 1 (26 October 2005) |
| To be discussed in Council
| No date set |
| Committee's assessment | Legally and politically important
|
| Committee's decision | For debate in European Standing Committee
(decision reported on 26 October 2005)
|
Background
1.1 According to the Commission, there would be very good reasons,
even without high and volatile oil prices, for the Community to
make a strong push towards a re-invigorated programme promoting
energy efficiency at all levels. It therefore attempted in this
Green Paper, which it put forward in June 2005, to identify the
bottle-necks which prevent cost-effective efficiencies from being
made, as well as the ways in which those bottle-necks can be overcome.
1.2 As we noted in our Report of 26 October 2005,
it suggested that this should involve a number of steps, involving
on the one hand the integration of energy considerations into
other Community policies, and, on the other, certain specific
energy policies at national, regional and local levels, sectoral
measures and action at international level. Consequently, although
we criticised the Green Paper on the grounds that it was over-lengthy
and poorly structured, and thus made it difficult in places to
identify the various recommendation and conclusions at all clearly,
we nevertheless felt that, since it was wide-ranging and dealt
with an important subject, having a potential impact at a number
of different levels, it should be debated in European Standing
Committee A.
1.3 In the meantime, we also noted that the Commission
had pointed out that the Community's responsibilities in the area
of energy policy were not clearly defined in the existing Treaties,
thus requiring measures to be adopted using other legal bases,
and we suggested that there was therefore something of an analogy
with the situation which had arisen in connection with the Commission's
Communication on European Space Policy, to which we had drawn
attention in our Report of 26 October 2005.[1]
We therefore invited the Government's views on this point.
Minister's letter of 10 January 2006
1.4 We have now received a letter of 10 January 2006
from the Minister of State (Environment and Agri-Environment)
at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mr
Elliot Morley), in which he says:
"Energy efficiency's close ties with the
environment, competitiveness and security of supply means that
there are a number of provisions in the Treaty establishing the
European Community (EC Treaty) which can be relied upon as the
legal basis for activities in the field of energy efficiency at
Community level. There are already examples of this in existing
EC legislation. The Directive restructuring the Community framework
for the taxation of energy products and electricity (2003/96/EC)
relies on tax harmonisation provisions (Article 93) while the
EC legislation on energy labelling relies upon the provisions
relating to approximation of laws (Article 95). In addition, environmental
provisions (Articles 174 and 175) might also be relied upon, given
the strong environmental objectives of the proposed energy efficiency
policies. Other provisions with clear links to energy efficiency
include those relating to industry (Article 157) and transport
(Articles 70 to 80). The Commission's Green Paper on Energy Efficiency
covers all of these areas and as such, the legal basis for any
resulting Energy Efficiency Action Plan could potentially rely
on any of these provisions also."
1.5 The Minister then addresses whether there is
any parallel to be drawn with the European Space Policy. He comments:
"… there is clearly a similarity in
that there is no provision in the EC Treaty which expressly provides
for a Community policy in either field of energy efficiency or
space. As is the case with energy efficiency, there are a number
of different Treaty bases which are relied upon as the legal basis
for Community activity in the European Space Policy and the accompanying
European Space Programme and the exact Treaty provision depends
upon the precise nature of the policy, programme or activity concerned.
There is also a similarity in that both energy and space are identified
as specific areas for Community policy in the Treaty establishing
a Constitution for Europe (TCE). Of course, until such time as
the TCE is ratified or the existing Treaties amended, one must
look to the existing Treaties, and in particular the EC Treaty,
as the source of Community competence to act in any field."
Conclusion
1.6 We are grateful to the Minister for his comments,
and, although the debate we recommended in European Standing Committee
has now taken place,[2]
we are drawing these to the attention of the House.
1 (26592) 9032/05; see HC 34-vii (2005-06), para 7
(26 October 2005). Back
2
On 17 January 2006. Back
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