Report from the Commission. Annual report 2012 on relations between the European Commission and national parliaments

In 2012, as in the previous two years, relations between the European Commission and national Parliaments continued to develop along two tracks: on the one hand the Treaty-based subsidiarity control mechanism, whereby national Parliaments scrutinise the Commission by systematically checking the subsidiarity compliance of its newly adopted legislative proposals, and on the other hand the political dialogue, which encompasses exchanges of information and opinions on different policy issues during both the legislative and the non-legislative phase and goes beyond the question of subsidiarity.

This eighth annual report on relations between the Commission and national Parliaments focuses on the political dialogue. Specific aspects relating to the subsidiarity control mechanism, including the first ‘yellow card’ triggered by national Parliaments on the Commission proposal for a Regulation on the exercise of the right to take collective action within the context of the freedom of establishment and the freedom to provide services (Monti II), are dealt with in the 2012 Annual Report on Subsidiarity and Proportionality, which is published in parallel and should thus be seen as complementary to this report.

The first ‘yellow card’ certainly was a key feature in the Commission’s relations with national Parliaments in 2012. However, the broader dialogue on the substance of the Commission’s policies and proposals, going beyond the control of subsidiarity compliance and giving national Parliaments the possibility to actively participate in policy shaping at EU-level, also became a key feature of the EU landscape, especially in the context of the deepening of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). The dialogue intensified further, hence substantially enriching the relations between the Commission and national Parliaments.

In 2012, the political dialogue took the form of (i) general bilateral and multilateral debates and discussions, often triggered by or held in the context of inter-parliamentary meetings, (ii) exchange of written opinions from national Parliaments and Commission replies and (iii) numerous other contacts and meetings throughout the year.

See also:
- Report from the Commission - Annual report 2012 on subsidiarity and proportionality

ESO: Background information: The Role of National Parliaments in the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/information-guide-the-role-of-national-parliaments-in-the-european-union/

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