INTER-GOVERNMENTAL CONFERENCE: COMMISSION MAINTAINS ITS AMENDMENTS ON DRAFT CONSTITUTION.

The Commission is taking care not to challenge the results of the Convention, which "exceeded expectations by drawing up a draft Constitution for Europe" the "institutional architecture of which remains primarily based on the Community method". However, as Commission President Romano Prodi has indicated to the European Parliament and to EU Foreign Ministers (see European Report 2800 and 2801 for further details), the Commission remains of the opinion that "there is scope for improving the draft Constitution in respect of a limited number of points, without undermining its overall balance".

Composition of the Commission.

In the formal Opinion which it is due to present under Article 48 of the EU Treaty on the convening of the IGC, the Commission will thus reiterate that the composition of the College as outlined in Article I-253, i.e. 15 full Members including the President and Vice-President/Foreign Minister, assisted by junior Commissioners without voting rights, "does not appear to be practical in the light of the actual functioning of the Commission". The Commission is notably curious as to the precise status of junior Commissioners: Are they members of the Commission? What are their rights? Can they attend Commissioners' meetings and participate in discussions? Can they interrupt a written procedure? Can they be authorised to take decisions on behalf of the Commission? Can they be given specific responsibility for an area of activity implying the right to give instructions to a Commission service? A whole series of questions that might have been answered in the future EU executive's staff regulations but which, in the meantime, the Commission regards in its Opinion as conceptual shortcomings. It therefore proposes another formula, based on the principle of equality between EU Member States, each benefiting from one full Commissioner, the Commission functioning in the following fashion:

- The Commission would establish groups of Commissioners which it would seek to ensure coincide in number and areas of responsibility with the various Council configurations, taking account of the division of competences between European Parliament Committees;

- Each group would consist of at least seven members; excluding the President, no Commission member should sit on more than three groups;

- The composition of each group would be decided by the President who should take account on the one hand of the responsibilities of each Commissioner, and on the...