Development cooperation: democracy and the rule of law, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms

In its response to the common position, the Commission takes note of the text adopted by the Council and rejects certain aspects in relation to the following points: - comitology: the Commission considers that the procedure it had put forward in its initial proposal or the management committee procedure proposed by the Parliament would be more suited to requirements in this field; - financial reference amount: the Commission recalls in that respect that, according to the Declaration of the European Parliament, of the Council and the Commission of 06/03/95, legal acts concerning pluri-annual programmes that are not subject to co-decision do not include any reference to the amount considered necessary. The entry of the amount comes under the responsibility of the Council alone and does not affect the powers of the budget authority; - time limit for application of the regulation: the Commission considers that the nature of the assistance envisaged and the objectives of the activities to be carried out under this regulation do not justify such a time limit. For all of these reasons, the Commission, which has made several declarations in the procès-verbal of the common position, is unable to support the Council's text.�