Verification of credentials of members elected for the European elections in June 1994

VERIFICATION OF CREDENTIALS: 23 MEPs HAVE NOT YET SIGNED DECLARATIONS OF FINANCIAL INTERESTS AND THE 7 PROCEDURES INSTITUTED COME UNDER NATIONAL ELECTORAL LAWS The Commissioners approved the report on the verification of the credentials and the validity of the office of the 567 members of the European Parliament elected in June on a dual basis: 1. the official notifications of all the electoral results (stating the names of the candidates elected and the names and ranking of any substitutes) sent to the President of the European Parliament by the twelve Member States; 2. the member's signature on the two sworn statements: one on the absence of incompatibility with their elective office (Article 6 of the Act of 20 September 1976 on the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage) and one listing all their professional activities and any other remunerated functions or activities (Rule 9 and Annex 1 of the Rules of Procedure on declarations of financial interest). It is clear from this verification that the seven procedures questioning either the electoral proceedings or the office itself concern problems which relate solely to national electoral laws. Some report possible disruptions or manipulations of the actual will of the people. So far, only 23 members have not yet signed declarations of financial interests. In the recitals of the resolution, which was adopted unanimously with one abstention, the Commissioners deplore the lack of a uniform electoral procedure in accordance with the provisions of the Treaty of Rome and Parliament's resolutions on the subject. They note that national procedures do, in fact, differ considerably from one another and some even allow: - people who already hold offices incompatible with the office of member of the European Parliament to stand as candidates (as in the case of candidate ministers); - candidates to resign their European office in favour of a non-elected substitute candidate before their election has even been announced; - candidates to stand in several constituencies at once, meaning that they have to resign certain offices for the benefit of the first runner-up; - procedures which sometimes appear not to be in full keeping with the expression of the real will of the people to be applied definitively. In this provision, the Commissioners declare that the office of the members of the European Parliament who have signed the two sworn statements are valid, subject to the judgments returned by the relevant authorities in the Member States in which an electoral result has been disputed. They trust that national electoral laws on elections to the European Parliament will clearly reflect voters' wishes pending the entry into force of a uniform electoral procedure and call on the President of the European Parliament to pass the resolution on to the parliaments of the Member States.�