The Subsidiarity and Proportionality Task Force, set up at the COSAC Chairpersons’ meeting in Sofia in January, held its first meeting at the European Parliament in Brussels.

The meeting of the Task Force was chaired by Kristian Vigenin, Chair of the Committee on European Affairs and Oversight of European Funds. The Bulgarian Parliament was also represented by Ivelina Vasileva, Deputy Chair of the Committee on European Affairs and Oversight of European Funds.

Kristian Vigenin informed the participants about the results from the previous three meetings of the Task Force, set up by President of the European Commission Jean Claude Juncker and chaired by First Vice President Frans Timmermans.

The participants at the meeting agreed on a number of ideas related to strengthening the role of national parliaments in the decision making process at the EU level. They include extending the deadline for national parliaments to consider legislative proposals by the European Commission; an opportunity for reviewing proposals in the course of the legislative procedure; taking into account the criteria of proportionality; better argumentation by the European Commission, including with regard to impact assessment. There were also ideas about providing an opportunity for national parliaments to initiate legislative proposals with the European Commission.

The Chair of the Committee on European Affairs and Oversight of European Funds said that those ideas would be discussed at the next meetings of the Task Force under the leadership of Frans Timmermans, and included in the draft of the Contribution to the LIX COSAC Plenary meeting, scheduled to take place from 17-19 June in Sofia.