CONTRIBUTION OF THE XLVIII COSACNicosia, 14-16 October 2012______________________________________________________________________________

1. Nobel Peace Prize

COSAC welcomes the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to the European Union as recognition ofits substantial contribution to the advancement of peace, reconciliation, democracy, humanrights and solidarity. COSAC believes that this award constitutes both an immense honour forthe European family but at the same time a challenge for the European Union to maintain andto further advance the values of democracy, peace and human rights worldwide.

2. From words to action: Making More Europe a reality.

2.1. COSAC acknowledges the need to complement and strengthen the existing economic andmonetary union and supports the reinforcement of the EMU architecture that will secure theprevention, management and resolution of crises.2.2. In view of the current developments within the European Union, COSAC appreciates thatthe deepening of the EMU will mark a new stage in the process of the European integration.2.3. COSAC believes that the reinforcement of the EMU architecture, through a fiscal andbanking union should be in line with the principles of democratic legitimacy andaccountability. COSAC underlines the crucial role that the European Parliament as well as thenational parliaments should play in this respect.COSAC recommends that the EuropeanParliament and the national Parliaments be fully consulted on and involved in the future architectureof the EMU in order to strengthen democratic legitimacy and accountability.

3. Energy

3.1. COSAC recognises the efforts of the European Union to ensure a continuous supply ofenergy at competitive prices for the optimal functioning of the European economy as well asthe welfare of its citizens, pursued in a manner that supports the attainment of the Union’slong term sustainability objectives.3.2. The completion of the Union’s internal energy market through the extension andmodernization of its energy infrastructure will enable the speedy and effective transport ofelectricity, gas and other forms of energy across Europe, thereby securing a continuous and

2competitive energy supply for Europe’s citizens and allowing all EU Member States to reap thebenefits of the internal energy market. COSAC therefore welcomes the EuropeanCommission’s proposal for a regulation on the Trans-European Energy Infrastructures, aimedat laying the foundations for the attainment of the goals set out in Europe 2020 and theUnion’s long term sustainability objectives.3.3. COSAC notes that all national Parliaments that scrutinised the above mentioned proposalwere in favour (17) or partly in favour (8) of its objectives. However, a number of nationalParliaments have expressed selective concerns over various aspects of the above proposal, asdocumented in the 18thBiannual Report of COSAC. The overview of the parliamentary scrutinyof the above mentioned proposal, as documented in the said report, indicates that in the earlystage of the legislative process at the European level, particular concerns as expressed bynational Parliaments may vary widely.3.4 COSAC, therefore, calls upon the Council and the European Parliament to take theconsiderations expressed by national Parliaments into account and to bring the said proposalto a successful conclusion as soon as possible, in order to facilitate the timely modernisationof Europe’s energy infrastructures.

4. Single Market Governance

4.1 COSAC acknowledges the importance of the Single Market as a vehicle for the promotionof European integration as well as the driving force behind sustainable economic growth andthe creation of more positions of employment for the citizens of Europe. COSAC, however,believes that the full potential of the Single Market has not yet been realised, largely owing toproblems in the implementation and enforcement of the Single Market rules.4.2 COSAC welcomes the European Commission’s Communication on Better Governance forthe Single Market, aiming, on the one hand, at identifying key areas with potential for growthand taking action to rapidly promote such growth, and on the other, at proposing measures toimprove the way in which Single Market rules are designed, implemented, applied andenforced.4.3 COSAC calls on the European Commission to work closely with the European Parliamentand national Parliaments in order to attain the objectives set out in the said Communication,and to engage in a fruitful debate as to how the Single Market can be further improved for thebenefit of Europe’s citizens and businesses.4.4 COSAC welcomes the European Commission’s commitment to draft a first report on theintegration of the single market and the implementation of the objectives of theCommunication on Better Governance for the Single Market as part of its Annual Growth

3Survey in 2013, as a useful tool in recording the progress made. COSAC calls for furthermeasures to verify the implementation of the Single Market rules on a regular basiscomparable to the European Semester exercise and acknowledges the importance of a SingleMarket test in order to assess the impact of existing legislation on the Single Market.

5. Europe 2020 Strategy – Recovery from the Economic Crisis

5.1 COSAC reaffirms the need for collective effort in order to effectively tackle the economicand social crisis and lead the Union to economic recovery and sustainable and inclusivegrowth. COSAC therefore underlines the crucial role of the Europe 2020 Strategy in achievingthese objectives.5.2 COSAC acknowledges the efforts of the European Commission to promote appropriatemeasures and means in support of growth, employment and better economic governance inline with the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy and in full respect of the solidarityprinciple. Furthermore, COSAC underlines the need that these objectives are met by MemberStates.5.3 The ongoing economic crisis makes it clear that national targets must be set in areaswhere progress needs to be made, in order to better track performance in each sector andtake rectifying action where appropriate. In this respect, COSAC encourages nationalParliaments to increase efforts to monitor progress in meeting the Europe 2020 strategy goalsandinparticularthroughthescrutinyofimplementationofCountry-SpecificRecommendations addressed to the Member States in the framework of the EuropeanSemester and their national reform programmes.

6. Political dialogue

6.1 COSAC recognises the importance of the political dialogue as a tool that reinforces thecooperation between the European institutions and national Parliaments. Although COSACacknowledges that significant progress has been made to date regarding the politicaldialogue, it believes that this dialogue can be further enhanced.6.2 In this respect, COSAC welcomes the Commission’s firm commitment to furtherstrengthening the political dialogue with national Parliaments in its reply to the Contributionof the XLVII COSAC.6.3 COSAC calls on the European Commission to further enhance its cooperation with nationalParliaments by sending more substantive responses and in a more timely manner, asrequested by a number of Parliaments. COSAC welcomes the suggestion that the annualreports of the European Commission on the relations with national Parliaments could reflectwith more clarity the influence that the opinions or other input by national Parliaments have

4had on the final text of the proposal concerned. Furthermore it calls for intensifiedcooperation on proposals on which a significant number of Reasoned Opinions have beenissued.6.4 COSAC notes that for the first time since the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, asufficient number of national Parliaments or chambers submitted a Reasoned Opinion inorder to trigger the "yellow card" mechanism on the proposal for a Regulation on the exerciseof the right to take collective action within the context of the freedom of establishment andthe freedom to provide services. COSAC acknowledges that the European Commission hasnow withdrawn the proposal. COSAC calls upon the European Commission to provideindividual responses to the Reasoned Opinions submitted and reasoning for why it considersthat the principle of subsidiarity has not been breached.6.5 COSAC recognises the value of frequent contact between national Parliaments and theCommission on specific proposals and thanks the Commission for its efforts in this regard. Itcalls on the Commission to further enhance the political dialogue by paying more visits tonationalParliamentsandtakingatailoredapproachtotheneedsofeachParliament/Chamber.6.6 COSAC appreciates the value of interparliamentary dialogue and of discussions withCommissioners within its meetings and calls on the Commission to continue its efforts toprioritise attending meetings of COSAC to build on the fruitful discussions to date.