Ministers' Deputies

Notes on the Agenda

3 April 1998

Restricted
No. 98/350

Reference documents
CM/Del/Dec(97)587/10.1b
CM/Del/Dec(97)594/10.1
GT-SUIVI(98)11

628/10.3
(A level, 15-16 April 1998)

MULTIDISCIPLINARY GROUP ON CORRUPTION
(GMC)

Request for representation in the GMC from the
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE)

In a letter dated 19 March 1998 to the Chairman of the Ministers' Deputies, the President of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) pointed out that the Working Group "Political Integrity of Local and Regional Elected Representatives" had been given terms of reference to draw up a draft European Code of Conduct of local and regional elected representatives and to monitor the work of the GMC, in particular.

To this end, the President of the CLRAE requested that the Congress be allowed to send representatives to meetings of the GMC and of any specialist committees of the GMC (see Appendix to the present Notes).

Moreover, it should be recalled that following the requests made by several International Organisations, the Ministers’ Deputies examined the issue of Observer status to be given within the GMC at their 587^th (1 April 1997, item 10.1b) and 594^th (2 June 1997, item 10.1) meetings. At these two meetings, no decision was adopted and the Deputies agreed to resume consideration of this item at one of their forthcoming meetings. The Secretariat proposes that this question be examined at the 635^th meeting (9 June 1998, B level), in the light of a document which will be prepared to this end.

Thus, for the time being, the Deputies are invited to deal only with the question of the authorisation for the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe, as a body of the Council of Europe, to be represented in the GMC.

DRAFT DECISION

10.3

MULTIDISCIPLINARY GROUP ON CORRUPTION (GMC)
Request for representation in the GMC from the
Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE)
(CM/Del/Dec(97)587/10.1b; CM/Del/Dec(97)594/10.1, GT-SUIVI(98)11)

Decision

The Deputies approved representation of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) at meetings of the GMC and of its working groups.

APPENDIX

TRANSLATION

The President
Mr Johannes DOHMES
Chairman of the Ministers’ Deputies
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Permanent Representative of the Federal Republic of Germany
to the Council of Europe

Strasbourg, 19 March 1998

Your Excellency,

At its meeting on 6 March 1998, the Standing Committee of the Congress examined a request tabled by its Working Group on the Political Integrity of Local and Regional Elected Representatives, that the CLRAE be authorised to send representatives to meetings of the Multidisciplinary Group on Corruption (GMC). The Standing Committee agreed to the request and has asked me to write to you about this matter.

The terms of reference of the Working Group on the Political Integrity of Local and Regional Elected Representatives included the preparation of a draft European code of ethics for local and regional elected representatives. It was also instructed by the Bureau of the Congress to follow the other pertinent works of the Council of Europe and particularly those of the GMC. This work seems particularly necessary since, in its action programme against corruption, adopted by the Committee of Ministers in 1996 (AIII.2 Future Action), the GMC proposed to examine the need to draw up a model European code of ethics for elected representatives and members of government at local and national levels. Furthermore, the authors of the programme recommended that representatives of the various types of person who would be targeted by these codes be closely involved in the drawing up of each model code of ethics.

An initial discussion of whether the CLRAE should be represented in the GMC has already taken place at the meeting between members of the Bureau of the Congress and the Committee of Ministers’ Working Group on Follow-up to the Second Summit, which was chaired by Mr Jacques Warrin, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe.

The members of the Congress believe that the fight against corruption is an area where local and regional authorities have certain responsibilities. They therefore wish to follow future activities more closely and, for this purpose, to have the right to be represented at GMC meetings and, if appropriate, at meetings of its specialist committees, in particular the Working Group on Administrative Law Aspects of Corruption (GMCA), which the GMC has asked to prepare a draft model code of ethics for public officials.

The members of the Congress firmly believe that they can help in the fight against corruption in Europe.

Yours faithfully,

Claude Haegi