Doc. 9297

18 December 2001

Greater transparency of the decisions of the Committee of Ministers

Motion for a recommendation

presented by Mr Clerfayt and others

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only the members who have signed it

1.       The Assembly finds that, too often, its recommendations do not have any real effect, due to a lack of adequate decisions by the Committee of Ministers.

2.       The Assembly regrets not knowing the reasons of this inertia. Il does not know who is responsible either for the absence of decisions, or for decisions contrary to its recommendations.

3.       This ignorance prevents the members of the Assembly from acting in their own parliament, by asking for an explanation and trying to remove existing obstacles.

4.       This situation compromises to a large extent the efficiency and credibility of the Council of Europe.

5.       The Council of Europe is intergovernmental and interparliamentary by nature. In a well-functioning democracy, members of parliament have to be able to control acts of government. In order to act in an efficient way, members of parliament need to be informed of the decisions made and the positions taken by the Ministers.

6.       The solution lies in the transparency of the decisions or the absence of decisions taken by the Committee of Ministers.

7.       For each recommendation not followed within six months after its adoption by concrete and tangible actions, the Assembly asks the Committee of Ministers to make public the names of the member states opposing their implementation.

Signed : ¹

Clerfayt, Belgium, LDR

Atkinson, United Kingdom, EDG

Bársony, Hungary, SOC

Bergqvist, Sweden SOC

Davis, United Kingdom, SOC

Durrieu, France, SOC

Gligoroski, « the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia », EPP/CD

Gross, Switzerland, SOC

Jakič, Slovenia, LDR

Judd, United Kingdom, SOC

Kautto, Finland, SOC

van der Linden, Netherlands, EPP/CD

Loutfi, Bulgaria, LDR

Mollazade, Azerbaijan, EDG

Mota Amaral, Portugal, EPP/CD

Neguta, Moldova, UEL

Prisăcaru, Romania, SOC

Puche, Spain, EPP/CD

de Puig, Spain, SOC

Rogozin, Russia, EDG

Stepová, Czech Republic, SOC

Timmermans F., Netherlands, SOC

Toshev, Bulgaria, EPP/CD

Weiss, Slovakia, SOC

Zwerver, Netherlands, SOC

¹        SOC: Socialist Group

      EPP/CD: Group of the European People’s Party

      EDG: European Democratic Group

      LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers’ Group

      UEL: Group of the Unified European Left

      NR: not registered in a group