Special working group on parliamentary reform
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In 2007 the
First proposals
One of the group's key reform ideas, extra debates on topical issues, was rejected by MEPs (mainly from the centre-right) in July 2007 over fears it would disrupt committee work while attracting very few attendees.[2] In response, ALDE leader Graham Watson MEP (member for South West England) withdrew from the group.[3]
MEPs did however back a proposal to use the
Interim report
An interim report of the reform group was presented in September 2007. It proposes a number of changes to the house, including: Cutting down the debating time for texts with no
It is hoped the changes will make the Parliament more political, however Graham Watson, who earlier left the group, stated that he doubts the grand coalition between
Final report
The final report, due to be voted on in the second week of July 2008, is being put forward by Richard Corbett MEP (PES member for Yorkshire and the Humber) who aims to gear Parliament's work towards areas where it actually has legislative powers. As described above, time on legislative bills would be increased at the expense of own initiative reports. These reports would be amended and voted on in the Committees with the plenary having a single vote on the document (plus a single vote for any alternative presented by group, but not line for line amendment).[6]
In an effort to liven up debates and make the work more visible, the
References
- ^ "Improving the public perception and efficiency of the work of the European Parliament - mandate for a working group on reform of the Parliament". European Parliament. 2007-02-15. Retrieved 2007-06-28.
- ^ Kubosova, Lucia (2007-07-12). "MEPs turn down modernising reform". EU Observer. Retrieved 2007-07-12.
- ^ a b c Kubosova, Lucia (2007-09-20). "MEPs want to see fewer heads of state in plenary". EU Observer. Retrieved 2007-07-12.
- ^ Beunderman, Mark (2007-07-11). "MEPs defy member states on EU symbols". EU Observer. Retrieved 2007-07-12.
- ^ "The European Flag". Council of Europe. Archived from the original on 2007-06-10. Retrieved 2007-07-12.
- ^ a b Corbett, Richard (2008-07-02). "[Comment] The silent revolution of parliamentary reform". EU Observer. Retrieved 2008-07-02.
- ^ Mahony, Honor (2008-07-09). "New rules to make it harder for MEPs to form political groups". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2008-07-10.