Glossary of Institutions, policies and enlargement of the European Union
(Starting with "T")
©
European Communities, 1995-2007
http://europa.eu/scadplus/glossary/index_en.htm
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TAIEX
(Technical Assistance Information Exchange)
The Technical Assistance and Information
Exchange Programme (TAIEX) is an institution-building
instrument for short-term assistance in adoption,
application and enforcement of the Community acquis.
It has been operational since 1996 and its responsibilities
and area of activity have greatly increased since.
TAIEX assistance is available to candidate
countries, acceding countries as part of the pre-accession
strategy and screening process, the ten new Member
States and the countries of the Western Balkans.
TAIEX also targets the countries involved
in the European Neighbourhood Policy and Russia, which
it assists in drafting and implementing their legislation
in accordance with their action plans.
TAIEX centralises requests for help
from both the public authorities and the private sector
and brokers contacts between the requesters and the
Member States. It deploys seconded experts and arranges
peer reviews, study or assessment visits, seminars,
workshops and training. It also helps with the translation
of legislation and provides expert databases and information
on the alignment of legislation.
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Tax
harmonisation
Tax harmonisation consists in coordinating
the taxation systems of the European countries to
avoid non-concerted and competing changes in national
fiscal policies, which could have an adverse effect
on the internal market.
Full tax harmonisation covering 25
countries is a difficult undertaking, since this area
remains largely the prerogative of the Member States.
However, a minimum degree of harmonisation has been
achieved, e.g. with the common bands of value added
tax, which require a minimum VAT rate of 15% on all
products (apart from exemptions and special authorisations).
The last enlargement greatly increased
tax disparities within the Union. At the same time,
adoption of the single currency in 12 European countries
has made it necessary to establish genuinely common
rates of VAT and common rules for business taxation
in the Union.
Since 1997, the Member States have
been conducting a wide-ranging debate on the scope
for coordinated action to try to control the negative
effects of tax competition. This has centred on three
areas: company taxation, taxation of savings income
and taxation of royalty payments between companies.
With the "fiscal package" to combat
harmful tax competition, the Council adopted:
- a code of conduct for business
taxation (December 1997);
- an instrument to reduce distortions
in the effective taxation of savings income in the
form of interest payments ("Savings Taxation Directive",
June 2003);
- an instrument to eliminate withholding
taxes on cross-border interest and royalty payments
made between associated companies ("Interest and
Royalty Payments Directive", June 2003).
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Taxation
Despite the introduction of a single
market and economic and monetary union, there is still
no genuine Community policy on taxation. Specific
provisions are laid down in Articles 90 to 93 of the
EC Treaty, but the decision-making procedure for taxation
requires a unanimous vote in the Council. Up to now
this has acted as a brake on the adoption of common
rules for direct and indirect taxation. In order to
avoid these obstacles, the Commission now encourages
the use of the "closer cooperation" procedure introduced
by the Treaty of Amsterdam and developed by the Treaty
of Nice. This procedure enables the Commission to
propose that a group of at least eight Member States
may cooperate on a given matter after receiving the
approval of the Council acting by qualified majority.
It also encourages the Member States to adopt recommendations
aimed at eliminating harmful tax obstacles, rather
than binding legislative proposals.
Border controls on VAT were abolished
with the introduction of the single market in 1993.
Today, products are taxed in the country of purchase
but eventually, when the final VAT system has been
decided by the Council, they will be taxed in the
country of origin. Furthermore, VAT and excise rates
have been brought into closer alignment in the different
Member States.
The adoption of the single currency
is making it increasingly urgent to establish truly
common rates of VAT and common rules for corporate
taxation in the European Union. As part of a tax package
aimed at countering harmful tax competition, the Council
has adopted:
- a Code of Conduct on business taxation
(December 1997);
- an act to remedy distortions in
the effective taxation of savings income in the
form of interest payments (Directive on the taxation
of cross-border income from savings - June 2003);
- a common system of taxation applicable
to interest and royalty payments made between associated
companies (Interest and Royalty Payments Directive
- June 2003).
Various Commission proposals are currently
being scrutinised by the Council, notably the reform
of the common VAT system, the revision of the common
system of taxation applicable to mergers, divisions,
transfers of assets and exchanges of shares concerning
companies of different Member States and the revision
of the Community framework on charging for the use
of transport infrastructure ("Eurovignette" Directive).
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Telecommunications
or Electronic communications
With a view to completion of the internal
market, telecommunications liberalisation emerged
as a priority for the European Community at the end
of the 1980s. It began in 1988 with the opening up
of the telecommunications terminals markets to competition
and continued in 1990 with the liberalisation of telecommunications
services other than voice telephony.
In 1993, the Council of Ministers
decided to fully liberalise voice telephony services
by 1 January 1998.
In the meantime, the liberalisation
process was extended in 1994 to satellite communications
and broadcasting services and then, in 1996, to cable
television networks and mobile communications. At
the same time, an open telecommunications infrastructure
and services network (ONP) was put in place from 1990.
The adoption of common rules allowed the conditions
of access to the market for new operators to be harmonised.
From 1994 onwards, in the context
of developing the 'information society', general liberalisation
of telecommunications structures was presented as
the way to develop multimedia. Various initiatives
were adopted on the harmonisation of mobile (single
European GSM standard) and satellite communications
standards, and the integrated services digital network
(ISDN).
On 1 January 1998, the full liberalisation
of Europe's telecommunications market became a reality.
In order to accompany the opening
of the sector to competition, the European Commission
began the huge task, in 1999, of recasting Europe's
regulatory framework for telecommunications. The general
aim was to improve access to the information society
by striking a balance between regulation of the sector
and Europe's competition rules. This regulatory framework
for electronic communications is made up of five harmonising
directives, focussing in particular on the framework
directives, access and interconnection, authorisation,
universal service and users rights and protection
of privacy. To these were added the Decision of 2002
on radio spectrum policy and the Regulation of 2002
on access to the local loop.
The Commission is currently re-examining
this regulatory framework with a view to taking technological
changes in the market into account and meeting the
needs of the sector over the next ten years.
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Television
without frontiers
The concept of Television without
Frontiers is based on the free movement of European
television programmes within the internal market and
on the introduction of broadcasting quotas (the requirement
that television channels reserve over half of their
broadcasting time for European works).
The Television without Frontiers (TWF)
Directive is the cornerstone of audiovisual policy
in the European Community. It aims to safeguard certain
important public interest objectives, such as cultural
diversity, protection of minors (measures against
programmes of a violent or pornographic nature) and
the right of reply. Detailed rules on the content
and frequency of television advertising have also
been introduced.
After consulting the parties concerned,
in December 2005 the Commission published a proposal
for revision of the TWF Directive with a view to modernising
the existing rules. The main objective of this revision
is to take account of technological developments and
changes in the structure of the audiovisual market
since the Directive was adopted in 1989. The new proposal
also aims to reduce the current regulatory burden
on audiovisual service providers. This will apply
in particular to provisions on advertising, for which
the Commission proposes that the rules be made more
flexible.
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Trans-European
Networks (TEN)
The function of Trans-European Networks
is to create a modern and effective infrastructure
to link European regions and national networks. They
are essential to proper operation of the common market,
since they ensure free movement of goods, persons
and services.
Title XV of the Treaty establishing
the European Community provides the legal basis for
Trans-European Networks, which exist in three sectors
of activity:
- Trans-European Transport Networks
(TEN-T) cover road and intermodal transport, waterways
and seaports, and the European high-speed railway
network. Intelligent transport management systems
also fall into this category, as does Galileo, Europe's
satellite radio navigation system.
- Trans-European Energy Networks
(TEN-E) cover the electricity and natural gas sectors.
They help to create a single energy market and contribute
to security of supply.
- Trans-European Telecommunications
Networks (eTEN) have as their aim the deployment
of telecommunication networks based services. They
focus strongly on public services and are at the
very heart of the initiative "eEurope -- An Information
Society for All".
The TEN budget heading is supplemented
by contributions from the European Regional Development
Fund (ERDF), the Cohesion Fund, the European Investment
Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF).
As early as 1986, the Single European
Act stressed the link between smooth functioning of
the single market and the goal of economic, social
and territorial cohesion. The interconnection and
interoperability of national infrastructure networks
have emerged as key factors for coherent development
planning in the Community.
Enlargement to the countries of Central
and Eastern Europe is today increasing the importance
of the TENs by extending their scope to the entire
continent. Their efficient connection to the networks
of third countries to the east (Russia and the countries
of the CIS) and to the south (countries of the Mediterranean
basin) will contribute to economic development and
equilibrium.
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Transparency
(access to documents)
Article 255 of the EC Treaty gives
any citizen of the Union, and any natural or legal
person residing or having its registered office in
a Member State, the right of access to European Parliament,
Council and Commission documents.
The Regulation of 30 May 2001 implements
this right of access to documents from the three institutions.
However, it still provides for two types of exceptions:
cases in which access is automatically refused (for
reasons of public security, defence, international
relations) and cases in which access is refused (protection
of the commercial interests of a private individual,
for example) except where there is an overriding public
interest in disclosure.
In addition, access to documents must
be facilitated through the implementation of an electronic
public register.
The concept of transparency refers
to the openness of the Community institutions and
to their clear functioning. Transparency is linked
to the citizens' demands for wider access to information
and EU documents and for greater involvement in the
decision-making process which would help foster a
feeling of closeness to the Union.
Article 255 was inserted into the
Treaty in 1997 but the Council and the Commission
had previously adopted a code of conduct in December
1993. This code of conduct established common principles
for the two institutions in line with declaration
No 17 on the right of access to information annexed
to the Final Act of the Treaty on European Union.
On the basis of this code of conduct, the two institutions
incorporated specific provisions on access to their
documents into their rules of procedure.
The draft Constitution in the process
of ratification extends the principle of access to
documents to all EU institutions, bodies, offices
and agencies.
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Transparency
of Council proceedings
In its Rules of Procedure, the Council
of the European Union lays down the conditions under
which the public may have access to its documents
(Article 207 of the Treaty establishing the European
Community). Better access is to be provided to documents
concerning its legislative function (Article 7 of
the Council's Rules of Procedure). In particular,
"the results of votes and explanations of votes as
well as statements in minutes are to be made public".
As regards deliberations and debates
under the codecision procedure, the debates following
the Commission's presentation of its draft legislation
and the votes (including the final deliberations and
explanations of votes) are public. Public debates
on general policy and major legislative proposals
are also held once per year. Public access is normally
ensured by audiovisual means.
In principle, votes, explanations
of votes and Council minutes are public when the Council
is acting in its legislative role. The results of
votes on certain decisions, in particular those relating
to the second and third pillars, may also be published,
subject to conditions. On the other hand, indicative
votes and the adoption of preparatory acts are not
made public.
Otherwise, Council deliberations are
subject to professional confidentiality.
Transparency of the Council proceedings
is thus covered by by Article 255 of the EC Treaty,
added by the Treaty of Amsterdam, which states that
any citizen of the Union, and any natural or legal
person residing or having its registered office in
a Member State, shall have a right of access to European
Parliament, Council and Commission documents. Like
the other European institutions, the Council must
also make public a register of documents.
The European Constitution now being
ratified provides that the Council shall meet in public
when examining and adopting a legislative proposal.
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Treaties
The establishment of the first "Community",
the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), was
the starting point for over fifty years of European
treaty-making. From 1951 (ECSC Treaty) to 2001(Treaty
of Nice), no fewer than sixteen treaties were signed.
This series of treaties did far more than simply amend
the original text: new treaties were born and gradually
extended the family.
Here is the list of the principal treaties:
- The Treaty establishing the European
Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), signed in Paris
in 1951. This treaty expired on 23 July 2002.
- The Treaty establishing the European
Economic Community (EEC), signed in Rome in 1957.
- The Treaty establishing the European
Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), signed in Rome
in 1957.
- The Single European Act (SEA),
signed in Luxembourg in 1986.
- The Treaty on European Union (TEU),
signed in Maastricht in 1992.
- The Treaty of Amsterdam, signed
on 2 October 1997.
- The Treaty of Nice, signed on 26
February 2001.
All these treaties have been amended
on a number of occasions, in particular at the time
of accession of new Member States in 1973 (Denmark,
Ireland and the United Kingdom), in 1981 (Greece),
in 1986 (Spain and Portugal), in 1995 (Austria, Finland
and Sweden), in 2004 (Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia,
Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia
and Slovenia), and in 2007 (Bulgaria and Romania).
The European constitutional treaty,
signed in October 2004, will repeal and replace by
a single instrument all the existing treaties with
the exception of the Euratom Treaty. This instrument
will consolidate 50 years of European treaties. The
Constitution will not enter into force until it has
been ratified by the 27 Member States.
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Treaty
of Amsterdam
The Treaty of Amsterdam is the result
of the Intergovernmental Conference launched at the
Turin European Council on 29 March 1996. It was adopted
at the Amsterdam European Council on 16 and 17 June
1997 and signed on 2 October 1997 by the Foreign Ministers
of the fifteen Member States. It entered into force
on 1 May 1999 (the first day of the second month following
ratification by the last Member State) after ratification
by all the Member States in accordance with their
respective constitutional requirements.
From the legal point of view, the
Treaty amends certain provisions of the EU Treaty,
the Treaties establishing the European Communities
and certain related acts, creating a Community employment
policy, transferring to the Communities some of the
areas in the field of justice and home affairs (JHA),
reforming the common foreign and security policy (CFSP),
extending qualified-majority voting and enabling closer
cooperation between Member States. It does not replace
the other Treaties; rather, it stands alongside them.
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Treaty
of Nice
Adopted at the Nice European Council
in December 2000, and signed on 26 February 2001,
the Treaty of Nice entered into force on 1 February
2003.
It is the result of the Intergovernmental
Conference (IGC) that began in February 2000, the
objective of which was to gear the working of the
European institutions before the arrival of new Member
States.
The Treaty of Nice opened the way
to the institutional reform needed for the EU enlargement
with the accession of countries from eastern and southern
Europe. Some of the provisions it contains were adapted
by the Accession Treaty, which was signed in Athens
in April 2003 and entered into force on the day of
enlargement, 1 May 2004.
The main changes made by the Treaty
of Nice relate to limiting the size and composition
of the Commission, extending qualified majority voting,
a new weighting of votes within the Council and making
the strengthened cooperation arrangements more flexible.
The Declaration on the Future of the
Union, annexed to the Treaty, sets out the next steps
to be taken to deepen the institutional reforms and
to make sure that the Treaty of Nice is just one stage
in this process.
The European Constitution, which is
currently being ratified, completes the process of
reforming the Union. When the Treaty establishing
a Constitution for Europe enters into force, it will
repeal and replace the Treaty of Nice.
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Troïka
The "Troïka" represents the European
Union in external relations that fall within the scope
of the common foreign and security policy (CFSP).
Since the Treaty of Amsterdam, the
Troïka has brought together:
- the Foreign Affairs Minister of
the Member State holding the Presidency of the Council
of the European Union;
- the Secretary-General/High Representative
for the common foreign and security policy;
- the European Commissioner in charge
of external relations and European neighbourhood
policy.
The Presidency can also be assisted,
where necessary, by the representatives of the future
Presidency (Article 18 of the Treaty on European Union).
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