The committee adopted the recommendation for second reading (codecision
procedure) by Fernando FERNANDEZ MARTIN (EPP/ED, E) amending the Council's
common position on the conservation and sustainable management of tropical
forests and other forests in developing countries. It retabled many of the
amendments which Parliament had adopted at first reading but which had not
been incorporated by the Council into its common position. These included an
amendment substantially increasing the amount of money allocated for
implementing the regulation during the period 2000-2006, to take account of
the extremely difficult budgetary situation in 2000 and to guarantee a
'critical mass' needed for the projects in this area. Another amendment
sought to increase transparency in the implementation of the regulation, by
ensuring that Parliament was informed of the strategic guidelines and
priorities for implementing the various measures. The committee also felt
that it was inappropriate to limit the duration of the regulation (the
proposal stipulated that it should apply until the end of 2006), as the
protection and conservation of forests in the developing countries remained
an ongoing task.