Meeting Summary
This week the Committee considered the following
documents:
European defence industry, European External Action
Service and the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy
The Committee considers this week a linked set of
documents which have been under scrutiny for some time, relating
to a Communication on the European defence industry and Reports
by the High Representative (Baroness Ashton) on the European External
Action Service and the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy.
The Committee has made its position clear in previous Reports:
that the EEAS review and the related defence sector Communication
should be debated prior to the 17 December General Affairs Council
and the subsequent "Defence" European Council, and that
the outcome of that Council should be debated, based on the High
Representative's proposals on CSDP and with the benefit of the
Council Conclusions. We express concern at the Government's refusal
to schedule a debate on the EEAS within the timescale recommended
in our Report of 20 November. On the European defence industry
Communication, despite the short timescale, we now recommend that
a debate be urgently scheduled in European Committee before the
December European Council. The High Representative's CSDP Report
is recommended for debate on the floor of the House immediately
after the Christmas recess.
Regulation of tobacco and related products
The Committee returns to the Draft Directive this
week, as expected. The document will be debated in European Committee
on Monday, and in advance of that debate the Committee reports
an updating letter from the Minister, which is available here. We
note that negotiations are only likely to be concluded if the
Council and European Parliament are able to reach a compromise
on Article 18, on the regulation of non-tobacco Nicotine-Containing
Products (NCPs), such as e-cigarettes, and on the scope for more
stringent domestic tobacco control measures under Article 24,
and comment that the Minister does not state in terms whether
the UK would be willing to abandon the recommendation made by
the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
to regulate non-tobacco Nicotine-Containing Products as medicines;
nor does she set out the minimum safeguards the Government would
seek to ensure appropriate and proportionate regulation of these
products. We trust that she will be in a position to do so in
the forthcoming debate.
We also make clear that we expect Parliament to be
informed of any substantial amendments to the Commission's original
proposal which emerge from the trilogue negotiations by means
of a Supplementary Explanatory Memorandum accompanied by a new
depositable text, with sufficient time for Parliament to consider
and if necessary, debate it before it is formally agreed by the
Council.
European Semester: Annual Growth Survey, draft
Joint Employment Report and Alert Mechanism Report
This Commission Communication on the Annual Growth
Survey, the draft Joint Employment Report and the Alert Mechanism
Report begin the 2014 cycle of the European Semester. A series
of overarching and country specific documents from the Commission
will follow, and the process culminates in examination of the
overall and country-specific situations by the European Council.
The Annual Growth Survey sets out the Commission's priorities
for action at national and EU level over the next 12 months to
support economic growth and employment. It is accompanied by
two reports, the draft Joint Employment Report and the
Commission Staff Working Document An overview of progress in
implementing the Country Specific Recommendations by Member States.
It is also accompanied by a Commission Report on single market
aspects of jobs and growth, which we will consider next week.
We also consider the related Commission Alert Mechanism Report
on macroeconomic imbalances. We recommend that all these documents
be debated together in European Committee before the relevant
functional Councils consider them in preparation for the March
2014 European Council.
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