Amendments to resolutions

When the European Parliament draws up a report to plenary with a resolution that expresses Parliament's position, members of the committee responsible for the report can table amendmets to it, which then will be voted upon in the committee. Those amendments, which are adopted by a majority of the commitee are included in the resolution, on which Palriament as a whole votes in a plenary session. However, also at this stage amendments can be table, now in the name of a political group or at least 37 individual members.

Below some examples of conclusion relating to the infringement procedure, which have been adopted by the European Parliament on the proposal of the Greens/EFA Group in the context of reports drawn up by the Committee on Petitions (the numbers refer to the numbering of conclusions in the adopted resolutions):

Report on the annual report on the activities of the European Ombudsman for the year 2003

14. Recalls its resolution of 14 March 2003 on the implementation of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001[1], in which it expresses its regret that the Commission continues to withhold the entire infringement procedure, including the correspondence between Commission and Member States, from parliamentary scrutiny, to the detriment of the effectiveness of Community law;

23. Invites the Ombudsman, pending the implementation of the law on good administration, to work together with the Committee on Petitions in further developing, and ensuring implementation by the Commission of, the criteria for good administrative behaviour with respect to the infringement procedure established in the Ombudsman's Decision on Complaint 995/98;

Report on the deliberations of the Committee on Petitions during the parliamentary year 2003-2004

14. Notes that the European Parliament, since the Treaty of Nice, has the right to bring actions before the Court of Justice against other Community institutions on the grounds of lack of competence, infringement of an essential procedural requirement, infringement of the EC Treaty or of any rule of law relating to its application, or misuse of powers, irrespective of whether Parliament's prerogatives are concerned or not;

15. Considers that it would be legitimate for Parliament to make use of its powers under Article 230 of the EC Treaty, if this is necessary in order to bring an end to a serious infringement of Community law which has been revealed in the course of the examination of a petition, and where a significant difference of interpretation persists, despite efforts to resolve it, between Parliament and the Commission as regards the action required by Community law for the protection of citizens' rights in the case concerned;

Report on the activities of the Committee on Petitions 2006

N. whereas, under Article 230 of the EC Treaty, Parliament has the right to bring actions before the Court of Justice of the European Communities under the same conditions as the Council and the Commission, and whereas, pursuant to Article 201 of that Treaty, Parliament is empowered to exercise control over the activities of the Commission and thus has at its disposal both the legal and the political instruments needed to respond more effectively to citizens' legitimate concerns,

7. Regrets the widespread failure by Member States to implement Community environmental norms correctly, and considers that there is a need for improved consistency in the monitoring, notably, of respect for the rules of Community law on the protection of biodiversity and on the assessment of the impact of certain public and private projects and plans on the environment;

Greens/EFA amendment adopted in plenary

Is of the opinion that the credibility of Community law and the ensuring of a level playing field in the internal market would require firm action by the Commission against infringements of Community law at least in nationally important cases which set a precedence for national jurisprudence and that such action could significantly reduce citizen's subsequent need to complain to the Commission and petition the European Parliament on analogous issues;

[1] OJ C 47 E, 27.2.2003, p. 483.