assent of the European Parliament

In either case, the assent of the European Parliament is required.

The assent of the European Parliament was asked for on that basis.

Our first demand is therefore that qualified majority be established with the assent of the European Parliament.

In order to achieve this result, with the practically unanimous assent of the European Parliament, several obstacles have had to be overcome.

After that, the Council has to take a unanimous decision after receiving the assent of the European Parliament.

Treaties on enlargement, association agreements and many other agreements with third countries require the assent of the European Parliament.

Any amendment of the Charter must come under the same procedure as its original drafting procedure, which means it would require the assent of the European Parliament.

It is important to note that unanimity between the Member States and the assent of the European Parliament are needed to take the final decision, not expected until at least June 2012.

Unfortunately the Council's response on 6 March 1998 completely ignored the opinion of this Parliament, arguing that the assent of the European Parliament is, legally speaking, completely ruled out.

I am sure that the assent of the European Parliament will be very helpful in this respect in encouraging people in Switzerland to vote on May 21 in what we all think would be the right way.

I am convinced, and I am speaking on behalf of my colleague Louis Michel, that the assent of the European Parliament will send a strong signal to the Member States and will speed up the internal ratification procedures.

Before accession agreements are signed, the Council will decide on the accession of the candidate countries after consulting the Commission and after receiving the assent of the European Parliament, as required under Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union.

There is time to agree those reforms and to ratify them together with the enlargement as a single package, perhaps even in the same treaty in due course, which would make ratification easier in certain countries and would of course also require the assent of the European Parliament, because we give assent to accessions.

Of course I can happily confirm, as Mr Kreissl-Dörfler invited me to do, that the Commission will recommend to the Council that if there is an agreement that the Member States and the Commission support, we will request the assent of the European Parliament before its enactment.

Could he give me an assurance today that, even if the treaty flowing from the Intergovernmental Conference, which includes the power of assent of the European Parliament, is not yet ratified, in those circumstances he would still submit the outcome of next year's conclusion of this round to us for a vote of assent?

Any change to the act introducing the election by direct universal suffrage of the Members of the European Parliament would mean that the Council had to decide the appropriate provisions unanimously, with the assent of the European Parliament, and recommend to the Member States that they adopt them in line with their constitutional rules.