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31 January 2014
EU DOCUMENTS IN THE SEJM

In January 2014 the EU Affairs Committee (SUE) held 11 meetings: 216-226. During these meetings:

SUE

  • scrutinised 89 EU documents,
  • adopted opinion concerning EU documents (opinion no. 49),
  • considered SUE work plan for 1.01.2014 – 30.06.2014 (mtg no. 216),
  • held discussion on Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions: Commission Work Programme 2014 (COM(2013) 739 final) and Communication from the Commission: Annual Growth Survey 2014 (COM(2013) 800), presented by Janusz Lewandowski, Commissioner for Financial Programming and Budget (mtg no. 220),
  • heard Minister's of Health and Minister's of Agriculture and Rural Development information on Commission Regulation (EU) No 835/2011 of 19 August 2011 amending Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006 as regards maximum levels for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in foodstuffs (mtg no. 223).

SUE together with Foreign Affairs Committee (mtg no. 225)

  • met with the Ambassador of the Republic of Lithania Loreta Zakarevičiené and heard information on the results of Lithuanian Presidency of the EU Council,
  • met with the Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic Tasia Athanasiou and heard information on the programme of the Greek Presidency of the EU Council.

SUE together with Local Self-Government and Regional Policy Committee

  • considered report from the special Subcommittee on the Government's bill amending the act on the principles of development policy and some other acts (paper no. 1881, mtg no. 222),
  • considered motion and amendments proposed during the second reading to the bill amending the act on the principles of development policy and some other acts (papers no. 1881 and 2057, mtg no. 226).

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In January 2014 information and documents on SUE meetings no. 216-219, 221, 223 and 224, provided by the EU Affairs Committee secretariat, were published in the EDL-S (European Legislative Documents in the Sejm) and IPEX databases.

WORK IN COMMITTEES

 Agriculture and Rural Development Committee

  • 08.01.2014, considered the information of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD) on Poland's involvement in activities of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council in December 2013 (mtg no. 164);
  • 09.01.2014, heard (under the Article 157 of the Standing Orders of the Sejm) the information of the ARD Minister on the implementation of direct payments for 2013 and 2014 (including amount of national aid) (mtg no. 165);
  • 22.01.2014, held the first reading of the Government's bill amending the act on payments under the direct support schemes (paper no. 2068). Proposal aims to implement EU law and refers to transitional provisions for 2014 in relation to direct support schemes laid down by the regulation (EU) no. 1310/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17.12.2013 (mtg no. 167);
  • 23.01.2014, adopted Desideratum no. 21 addressed to the ARD Minister on the proposal of introduction of surface area limits for crops subsidized under the "Organic farming" of the Rural Development Programme 2014-2020 (mtg no. 169);
  • 23.01.2014, heard the information of the Minister of Health and ARD Minister on the Commission regulation (EU) no. 835/2011 of 19.08.2011 (mtg no. 168);

Local Government and Regional Policy Committee

  • 09.01.2014, heard the information on an endangered realization of investments within the framework of the EU financial perspective 2014-2020 due to a decreased financial potential of local government units (mtg no. 234);

Legislative Committee

  • 22.01.2014, issued a positive opinion for the Local Government and Regional Policy Committee on the Government's bill amending the act on principles of development policy (paper no. 1881, mtg). Proposal refers to the establishment of legal basis for preparing the new EU programming period 2014-2020 (mtg no. 86).
IMPLEMENTATION OF EU LAW - UST DATABASE
 In January 2014
  • The following bills implementing EU law have been referred to the first reading [paper no.]:
    • Government bill amending the act on the tax on goods and services and some other acts [2095],
    • Government bill amending the act on the system of monitoring and controlling of quality of fuel s and some other acts [2087],
    • Government bill on consumer rights [2076],
    • Government bill amending the act on payment under the direct support schemes [2068],
    • Government bill amending the act on biofuel components and liquid biofuels and some other acts [2051],
    • Government bill amending the act on supplementary supervision of credit institutions, insurance undertakings, reinsurance undertakings and investment firms in a financial conglomerate and some other acts [2050].
  • The following acts implementing EU law have been adopted [paper no.]:
    • Act of 24 January 2014 amending the act on payment under the direct support schemes [2068],
    • Act of 24 January 2014 amending the act on Agency for Restructuring and Modernisation of Agriculture [2000],
    • Act of 10 January 2014 amending the act - Electoral Code [1983].
  • The following acts implementing EU law have been published [paper no.]:
    • Act of 22 November 2013 amending the act on manufacturing and bottling of wine products, trade of those products and market organisation [1793],
    • Act of 22 November 2013 amending the act on the protection of animal health and combating infectious animal diseases and some other acts [1698].
SUBSIDIARITY CHECK IN NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS

Subsidiarity scrutiny in January

(Information from IPEX database as of 4.02.2014)

Draft legislative act
Deadline for subsidiarity scrutiny
Adoption / transmission of reasoned opinion
Chamber / parliament (country)
COM(2013) 721 2.01.2014 24.12.2013 / 24.12.2013 Senate (France)
29.11.2013 / - Bundesrat (Germany)
COM(2013) 761 3.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 769 6.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 781 8.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 798 14.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 812 17.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 794 29.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 796 29.01.2014 21.01.2014 / 22.01.2014 Cortes Generales (Spain)
COM(2013) 814 29.01.2014 29.01.2014 / 29.01.2014 Riksdag (Sweden)
PE-CONS(2013)001 29.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 813 30.01.2014 - -
COM(2013) 860 10.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 839 11.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 821 12.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 822 12.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 824 12.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 892 17.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 893 17.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 894 17.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 919 17.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 920 17.02.2014 - -
COM(2013) 853 03.03.2014 - -
COM(2013) 930 6.03.2014 - -
COM(2014) 6 18.03.2014 - -
COM(2014) 24 24.03.2014 - -
ALL REASONED OPINIONS OF NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS IN IPEX
INTERPARLIAMENTARY COOPERATION
20-22 January 2014, Brussels,  Parliamentary Week of the  European Semester
- Plenary session: Implementation of the 2013 European Semester cycle and priorities for 2014,
- Interparliamentary committee meetings organised by the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Committee on Budgets of the EP.

20-22 January 2014, Brussels, Inter-Parliamentary Conference on Economic and Financial Governance of the EU
- Addressing macroeconomic imbalances in Europe,
- The democratic legitimacy of economic adjustment programmes,
- Promoting growth and jobs in Europe through financing the real economy,
- Enhanced fiscal surveillance in EMU.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
New books in the Sejm Library Przegląd Sejmowy Kronika Sejmowa (EN)

 NEW ON THE OIDE WEBSITE

In the section Legal and Systemic Issues

The EU Justice Scoreboard

On 4 February 2014 the EP adopted the resolution on the EU Justice Scoreboard which calls on the Commission to take this exercise forward, points out the problems of methodology and indicators as well as invites the Member States to examine the results of the scoreboard and to draw appropriate conclusions.

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LATEST DEBATES - COMMENTS

Articles on the current political and economic issues in the EU from the specialist periodicals available on-line (accessed 06.02.2014)