Documents considered by the Committee on 7 January 2015 - European Scrutiny Committee Contents


13 Enlargement Strategy and Main Challenges 2014-15

Committee's assessment Politically important
Committee's decisionCleared from scrutiny
Document detailsCommission Communication on EU enlargement strategy and Main Challenges 2014-15 and 2014 Country Progress Reports on Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo
Legal base
DepartmentForeign and Commonwealth Office
Document numbers(a)  (36392), 14152/14 + ADD 1, COM(14) 700

(b)  (36393), 14153/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 301

(c)  (36394), 14154/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 302

(d)  (36395), 14155/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 307

(e)  (36396), 14156/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 303

(f)  (36397), 14157/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 304

(g)  (36398), 14158/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 305

(h)  (36399), 14159/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 306

Summary and Committee's conclusions

13.1 The Commission published its latest annual package of reports on 10 October 2014. The Commission Communication, "Enlargement Strategy and Main Challenges 2014-2015", provides a statement of the EU's evolving enlargement strategy, an assessment of progress, and a look forward to the challenges and priorities for 2015. This is accompanied by the customary set of comprehensive Progress Reports for each of the enlargement countries (including candidate and aspirant countries). Iceland remains a candidate country, but its Government decided to suspend accession negotiations in 2013. The other candidate countries are Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey. Potential candidate countries (those without formal Candidate Status but with an agreed EU perspective) are Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and Kosovo.

13.2 All in all, 2014 was seen as a year of fitful progress. In Albania and Macedonia, the opposition was boycotting parliament and thus blocking reforms. In Kosovo, a government had yet to be formed after the June elections; and in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the Commission's reference to a lack of collective will suggested that it did not expect long-standing political inertia to be resolved by October's elections. Problems with "rule of law/good governance" issues predominated in Montenegro — so much so that the Commission indicated that it might slow down the accession process (the first fruits, perhaps, of "front-loading" this area, and adjusting the rate of progress accordingly). In the case of Turkey, there was a litany of concerns about the erosion of fundamental freedoms and the separation of powers. Serbia was the country about which the Commission appeared to be most hopeful — even though it was the least supportive of what was regarded as a benefit of the process, viz., alignment with the EU's foreign policy priorities, where the new Government preferred to sustain active relations with Russia and to welcome President Putin in Belgrade as recently as 16 October.

13.3 The Minister for Europe (Mr David Lidington) welcomed the Commission's "fair and balanced assessment of progress and challenges in EU enlargement countries and of the enlargement process itself", which he said was "closely aligned with the Government's priorities on enlargement, highlighting the importance of addressing the fundamentals first and the need for firm but fair conditionality", and which "focuses correctly on the central challenges of the rule of law, judicial reform and the fight against organised crime and corruption; economic governance and competitiveness; the importance of strengthening democratic institutions and public administration reform, and protecting fundamental rights; and the need for good neighbourly relations and dispute resolution".

13.4 The Minister welcomed the call for enlargement countries' consolidated efforts to tackle illegal migration and improve border management, which were:

    "particular Government priorities on which it wishes to see greater activity and enforcement in enlargement countries. The Government welcomes the focus on human trafficking, but noted through the Reports less progress in tackling it in Montenegro, Macedonia and Kosovo than in the other countries. Moreover, the Government would like to see the absence of laws against trafficking of minors addressed, and continued development of asylum and national referral systems in line with EU standards."

13.5 At that stage, the Minister said, the Government was only able to provide an initial position on the Reports; as conclusions on EU enlargement would be adopted at the General Affairs Council on 16 December, with any formal decisions to be endorsed at the European Council on 18-19 December, there was time for further developments in the interim; the Government did not foresee any major decisions being taken on the accession progress of individual enlargement countries in the context of this Annual Enlargement Package but, in terms of its position, intended to take a final decision nearer December, which would give time for its own considered analysis, in the light of any further progress countries made and the outcomes of discussions in the relevant Council working groups; the Government stated that it would keep Parliament updated over the autumn on developments in its position.

13.6 This was reminiscent of his caveat, at the same juncture a year ago, with respect to the Commission's recommendation that Albania be granted candidate status; that had begun a lengthy exchange between the Minister and the Committee, which we dealt with further in a separate chapter of our Report.[34]

13.7 So far as these documents were concerned (which, together, run to several hundred pages), we were, once more, grateful to the Minister and his officials for his extremely helpful Explanatory Memorandum.

13.8 We looked forward to being updated over the next several weeks, particularly with regard to those countries in which political deadlock was hindering the process; and/or those where the Commission was emphasising the need to move beyond legislation and build a track record of implementation.

13.9 On this occasion, we noted that the Minister did not foresee any major decisions being taken by the December General Affairs or European Council on the accession progress of individual enlargement countries. We also noted that the incoming President of the Commission had publicly stated that there would be no further enlargement during the next five years.

13.10 We also noted that, against that sort of background — what one had described as the "ring of fire" that is the EU's "near neighbourhood"[35] — concern was bound to arise that public support for EU-inspired reforms might be undermined unless the economic benefits were more tangible. We accordingly asked the Minister to tell us more about the German-led initiative to encourage the west Balkan states to work together on regional projects, particularly in energy and transport.

13.11 We also asked him to explain how changes embodied in the IPA-II would enable the EU to focus on fewer and bigger projects.[36]

13.12 In the meantime, we retained the documents under scrutiny.[37]

13.13 The substance of the Minister's response is set out below (see paragraphs 13.20-13.24 below for full details). It is worth highlighting his basic approach, which we endorse:

"It is right that the Commission holds enlargement countries to account where necessary for not having made reasonable progress towards the Copenhagen Criteria. This is a consequence of the added rigour with which it is assessing enlargement countries, notably under the "New Approach". The Government is ready to wait as long as necessary for enlargement countries to evidence a sufficient track record of reform, recognising that many Western Balkans countries embark on their EU path from a lower starting point compared to countries from previous enlargement rounds."

13.14 We now clear the Commission Communication and country progress reports from scrutiny.

13.15 Though the substance of the Minister's response is satisfactory, the timing leaves significant room for improvement (see paragraph 13.25 below). Although no adverse consequences have resulted from the failure on the part of the Minister's office to send his otherwise timely response until the eve of the Christmas recess — i.e., well after the relevant Council meetings, and too late for us to deal with until now — that is a happy coincidence. We note that the Minister has apologised for a "genuine administrative mistake in my office". We will let the matter rest here for the time being: but note the Minister's assurance that he has "put in place measures to ensure that this does not happen again".

Full details of the documents: (a) Commission Communication: Enlargement Strategy and Main Challenges 2014-15: (36392), 14152/14 + ADD 1, COM(14) 700; (b) Commission Staff Working Document: Montenegro 2014 Progress Report: (36393), 14153/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 301; (c) Commission Staff Working Document: Serbia 2014 Progress Report: (36394), 14154/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 302; (d) Commission Staff Working Document: Turkey 2014 Progress Report: (36395), 14155/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 307; (e) Commission Staff Working Document: The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 2014 Progress Report: (36396), 14156/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 303; (f) Commission Staff Working Document: Albania 2014 Progress Report: (36397), 14157/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 304: (g) Commission Staff Working Document: Bosnia and Herzegovina 2014 Progress Report: (36398), 14158/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 305; (h) Commission Staff Working Document: Kosovo 2014 Progress Report: (36399), 14159/14 + ADD 1, SWD(14) 306.

Background

13.16 The Copenhagen criteria require:

—   the stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities; and

—   a functioning market economy able to cope with the competitive pressure and market forces within the Union.

13.17 The ability to assume the obligations of membership is based on progress in transposing and implementing the acquis (the body of EU law). For the purposes of accession negotiations this is split into 35 chapters ranging from the free movement of goods, through the judiciary and fundamental rights, to the environment and financial control.

13.18 The Commission's annual report and accompanying country progress reports have traditionally provided the basis for the Council to take stock and give direction to accession negotiations and pre-accession reform priorities (the Council being responsible for decisions on the admission of new Member States).

13.19 This year's "Strategy" Communication is subtitled "Completing the Foundations for Credibility": reflecting the shift in recent years to "frontloading" the core priorities — rule of law, economic governance, and public administration reform — in accession negotiations and enhancing the monitoring of candidate countries. The tenth anniversary of the historic accession of ten new Member States in 2004 is noted, with mention of the expanded business opportunities, increased trade and investment (with foreign direct investment from the rest of the world to the EU doubling as a percentage of GDP, from 15.2% of GDP in 2004 to 30.5% in 2012) and better quality of life in those countries.

13.20 The Commission asserts that the accession process is rigorous, built on strict but fair conditionality, established criteria and treating each country on its merits. The Strategy underlines the positive impact of their EU perspective on the western Balkan countries (enhancing stability, improving regional relations, deepening cooperation with the EU on key foreign policy issues, leveraging economic, political and social reform). But it also underlines how much each of the candidate and aspirant countries has to do with regard to implementation, especially in tackling corruption and organised crime, reforming public administration, judicial reform and in those areas encompassed by the fundamental freedoms of European society (embedding a parliamentary process, respecting minority rights, ensuring media freedom etc.).

13.21 The Minister's summaries of, and other detailed views on, the Commission Communication and each of the Country Progress Reports are set out in our previous Report.[38]

The Minister's letter of 11 November 2014

13.22 The Minister responds as follows:

    "The Government agrees that progress has not been consistent and that there are areas for concern. Major challenges remain, notably around the rule of law, tackling organised crime and corruption, and improving economic governance. However, we also recognise significant progress that has been made. Albania, for instance, has continued to make inroads into tackling organised crime and corruption, demonstrating that its reform ambition is long-term and substantive. Serbia, too, has taken an energetic approach to the first year of its accession negotiations.

    "It is right that the Commission holds enlargement countries to account where necessary for not having made reasonable progress towards the Copenhagen Criteria. This is a consequence of the added rigour with which it is assessing enlargement countries, notably under the "New Approach". The Government is ready to wait as long as necessary for enlargement countries to evidence a sufficient track record of reform, recognising that many Western Balkans countries embark on their EU path from a lower starting point compared to countries from previous enlargement rounds."

13.23 The Minister then updates his assessment and comments on our observations on a country-by-country basis:

    "The Government continues to monitor closely progress in Albania, where a parliamentary boycott by opposition parties remains in place, and understands the OSCE is working on a Code of Conduct for Parliamentarians to help improve the quality of Parliamentary debate. The Government continues to encourage the Albanian government and opposition parties to engage in constructive debate, using parliament as the proper forum in which to take forward discussion of reform, and continues to monitor reform efforts, particularly in the judicial sector where major structural reform is needed. Inclusive debate is taking place about the shape of judicial reform in Albania, including measures to tackle judicial corruption. I am keen to see discussion translated into action, through a properly thought-through judicial reform process supported by the international community.

    "The Government remains committed to supporting Bosnia and Herzegovina through its current challenging phase and beyond. After a relatively negative election campaign, we have since been encouraged by the more positive focus of the parties during coalition negotiations. The Government welcomes the sense of urgency to form governments at all levels, and the consensus that exists for Bosnia and Herzegovina to move quickly forward along its European path. We are urging the parties to tackle broader socio-economic reforms, alongside the long-running and important political and constitutional questions in line with our recent joint UK/Germany initiative launched by the Foreign Secretary and his German counterpart in Berlin on 5 November.

    "The Government agrees with the Committee's assessment that Kosovo has made "fitful progress". Encouragingly, the areas in which Kosovo has made progress are the immediate priorities faced in the last year, for example the well-organised elections, early progress on the Dialogue with Serbia, the extension of EULEX's mandate and the initialling of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU. The areas identified in the Report as needing further progress are longer-term but equally important. The Commission is right to draw attention to these, notably in rule of law, governance and the economy. One barrier to progress is that Kosovo has still not formed a government. As a test of Kosovo's political maturity, it is important that the elected parliamentary representatives agree a course of action themselves, rather than have a solution imposed by the international community. President Jahjaga is working to facilitate this outcome, and we have made clear that we will support any decisions she makes. If she is ultimately unable to unlock the situation, Kosovo will head to new elections. I will update the Committee when there is further movement on this issue.

    "The Government continues to closely monitor progress in Macedonia where, as in Albania, a parliamentary boycott by opposition parties remains in place. The UK continues to encourage government and opposition parties to engage in constructive debate, using parliament as the proper forum. I am concerned at backsliding on reform. We will be working with our EU partners over the coming year to deliver coordinated messages to all stakeholders in Macedonia on the importance of resolving the political crisis, improving media freedom, and developing a joint approach to a multi-ethnic society. The Government continues to believe the best way to address these concerns is through the opening of accession negotiations and the scrutiny of individual Chapters.

    "The Government also concurs with the Committee's analysis of Montenegro. Despite the opening of Chapters 23 and 24, and key judicial and prosecutorial appointments, this was a year of lost momentum, due to political polarisation and public sector capacity weaknesses. The Report's criticism of Montenegro — for its disappointing track record on implementation, delays in electoral law reform and anti-corruption legislation — was fair. The Government considers the explicit reference in the Report to the "overall balance clause" — the freezing of the opening and closing of other Chapters until progress is achieved on rule-of-law — a timely warning to Montenegro. We do not believe that the situation requires the overall pace of negotiations to be slowed at this time, but will continue to monitor closely how Montenegro rises to the challenge. The Government expects outstanding electoral reform and anti-corruption legislation, revised Action Plans for Chapters 23 and 24, and enhanced roles for parliamentary committees to improve the quality of the EU legislative process to be in place in the next few months.

    "Serbia faces many challenges on its path to EU accession, but has made steady progress since starting negotiations in January. However, one of the areas of concern we share with the Report is around Serbia's failure to align fully with EU foreign policy positions — particularly in response to Russian involvement in Ukraine. Serbia has close historical and social ties with Russia, and strong economic links, and as a result has refused to join the EU in imposing sanctions on Russia — although Serbia has reiterated its support for Ukraine's territorial integrity, including Crimea. In theory, Serbia does not need to align its foreign policy with the EU's ahead of opening Chapter 31 on Foreign, Security and Defence Policy. But in the spirit of its entry into accession negotiations, it should be aligning its foreign policy fully now — both rhetorically and with the EU's restrictive measures. While understanding the sensitivity of this issue for Serbia, the UK and other Member States have made it clear to the Serbian government that alignment with EU foreign policy positions is a key element of EU accession.

    "The Report on Turkey contains robust criticism on the erosion, through a series of legislative measures, of the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, restrictions on freedom of expression and the wider response to corruption allegations against the government. The Report also correctly highlights the key role that the Turkish Constitutional Court has played in reversing a number of provisions in recent legislation. In particular, through the overturning of bans on YouTube and Twitter, the Constitutional Court has proved itself to be a genuine guarantor of fundamental rights in Turkey. Further reform is needed to strengthen the independence, impartiality and efficiency of the Turkish judicial system.

    "The Turkish government's response to the Report has been constructive, and centred on the publication of an updated EU Strategy, consisting of a "National Action Plan for EU Accession" and "Communications Strategy" which combine to set out priorities for political and socio-economic reform. With a focus on the technical alignment process, the Action Plan sets out primary and secondary legislation that is planned under each Chapter, giving a clear indication of concrete action that will be taken. Given the inconsistent progress seen in 2014, particularly on fundamental rights and rule of law, I look forward to this Action Plan acting as a catalyst for improvement in the coming year."

13.24 Then, turning to the Committee's request for further information on the German-led initiative to encourage regional cooperation, the Minister says:

    "This centred on a Conference hosted by Chancellor Merkel in Berlin on 28 August, attended by Heads of Government of the Western Balkans countries. The Conference, to which prospective future hosts, Austria and France, were also invited, was intended as the first in an annual series, spanning 2014-2018. Western Balkans countries agreed at the Conference that, by the time of next year's Conference (to be hosted by Austria), Serbia and Kosovo should have completed full implementation of the 19 April 2013 agreement on normalisation, and Bosnia should have formed a new government. At the Conference, Economics Ministers of Western Balkans countries sought more investment in the region, underlining the importance of joint projects in the region for prospective European investment. Albania, for instance, proposed an Adriatic-Ionian highway, railway infrastructure, logistical centres and ports, and broadband connections. Countries further agreed to cooperate on energy and to overcome challenges implementing the Energy Community Framework.

    "The Government believes Germany's initiative has given a helpful impetus to regional cooperation. It looks forward to the discussion being taken forward under the Regional Cooperation Council and through the Western Balkans Investment Framework, as set out in the Commission's Enlargement Strategy. The UK welcomes Germany's focus on energy, given both the primacy of energy security in current EU discussions, and the importance the Commission has accorded connectivity in the energy and transport sectors."

13.25 Lastly, concerning Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA) funding, the Minister says:

    "The Government welcomes the reforms introduced by IPA II. Programme activities during 2014 -2020 will be more closely linked to individual country strategies, which have been agreed by Member States. The sector-based approach is a positive step. The Government is also pleased that the 'fundamentals first' principle is reflected in EU assistance programming. In particular, the emphasis on the rule of law in the region remains a top priority for the UK. The "New Approach" also provides greater recognition that progress on successful reforms should be rewarded through a performance reserve. These changes should help to focus EU assistance on fewer and bigger projects that are better targeted at specific areas and achieve improved results."

The Minister's letter of 2 January 2015

13.26 The Minister writes as follows:

    "I would like to apologise for the unacceptable delay in providing an update to the Committee on the European Commission Communication on EU Enlargement Strategy and Challenges 2014-15, and 2014 Country Progress Reports on Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo. This was caused by a genuine administrative mistake in my office, for which I apologise.

    "My original letter should have reached the Committee on the 11 November, in time for your consideration before the December General Affairs Council. However, I regret that the letter was not transmitted and our mistake did not come to light until 16 December. My officials have now provided a copy of the letter, and spoken to the clerks to explain the delay.

    "I fully appreciate that we did not meet the high standards we set ourselves for engaging with the Committee. I would like to reassure you that we have put in place measures to ensure that this does not happen again."

Previous Committee Reports

Sixteenth Report HC 219-xvi (2014-15), chapter 4 (29 October 2014).


34   See (36110), 10582/14: HC 219-xvi (2014-15), chapter 8 (29 October 2014). Back

35   See "Europe's ring of fire" in The Economist, 20 September 2014. Back

36   Also see (36371), 13769/14 at chapter 9 of our 29 October 2014 Report, where we deal with the Commission's 2013 Annual Report on Financial Assistance for Enlargment, i.e., the IPA and IPA-II and related financial instruments. Back

37   See HC 219-xvi (2014-15), chapter 4 (29 October 2014). Back

38   See HC 219-xvi (2014-15), chapter 4 (29 October 2014). Back


 
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