25/01/2011 Session
Strasbourg, 25.01.2011 – Expressing concern at the decline in member states’ commitment to the Council of Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has suggested holding a summit “to give the Organisation fresh political impetus, make its member states more responsible towards it and, if need be, redefine its current role”.
In a resolution adopted today, based on the report by Jean-Claude Mignon (France, EPP/CD) on follow-up to reform of the Council of Europe, members of the Assembly reiterated their support for the first wave of measures introduced by the Secretary General to “reform the Organisation, revitalise it, make it more political and more geared to the needs of European citizens”.
In this regard, the PACE proposed a number of lines along which these aims should be pursued and called, in particular, for greater synergy between the Organisation’s organs, institutions and mechanisms; identifying political solutions to deal with the increasing congestion at the European Court of Human Rights; enhancing the scope of the conferences of specialised ministers; and establishing a veritable strategic partnership between the Council of Europe and the European Union.
The Assembly believes that “the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities should represent an added value for the Council of Europe and practical usefulness for the local and regional authorities of the member states, and avoid duplicating the work done in other bodies”.
As a statutory organ, the Assembly also wishes “to be fully informed and consulted on the political decisions” which the Secretary General intends to propose in the second phase of the reform. In this context, even though the Council of Europe must concentrate its resources on subjects deemed to be matters of political priority, the PACE believes it is essential to maintain sectors such as culture, education, social cohesion and migration – as the Strasbourg Declaration on Roma has recently shown.