EU warned on overriding Parliament

The European Union was warned yesterday that it must not attempt to curtail the proposed rights of member parliaments to have a say on EU legislation.

In a report on the current inter-governmental talks dealing with the future of the Union, the Commons European Legislation Committee said a new treaty "must give those who will be affected by legislation time to see it in draft and to have an input into the process ... Its provisions must not be so circumscribed, or diluted by exceptions, as to make them merely cosmetic."

The committee, which continues to complain about "unacceptable delays" in the receipt of texts of draft European Union legislation, said it considered effective parliamentary scrutiny "a touchstone of the [EU's] regard for the rights of the citizen." t Select Committee on European Legislation. The Draft Protocol on the Role of National Parliaments. Thirteenth report, session 1996-97. Commons paper 36-xiii. HMSO; pounds 8.