PURPOSE : to re-establish the Social Protection Committee according to a new legal basis deriving from the Treaty of Nice.
LEGISLATIVE ACT : Council Decision 2004/689/EC establishing a Social Protection Committee and repealing Decision 2000/436/EC.
CONTENT : having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 144 thereof, this Decision re-establishes the Social Protection Committee according to a new legal basis deriving from the Treaty of Nice.
The SPC's objectives have been redefined in the light of this new legal basis. The new tasks of the Committee shall be to monitor the social situation and the development of social protection policies in the Member States and the Community; to promote exchanges of information, experience and good practice between Member States and with the Commission; without prejudice to Article 207 of the Treaty, to prepare reports, formulate opinions or undertake other work within its fields of competence, at the request of either the Council or the Commission or on its own initiative.
The Committee shall work, as appropriate, in cooperation with other relevant bodies and committees dealing with social and economic policy matters, such as the Employment Committee and the Economic Policy Committee. In fulfilling its mandate, the Committee shall establish appropriate contacts with the social partners and social nongovernmental organisations, account being taken of their
respective roles and responsibilities in the social protection sphere. The European Parliament shall also be informed regarding the activities of the Committee.
The Committee shall consist of two representatives appointed by each Member State and two representatives of the Commission. The representatives may be assisted by two alternates.
Member States and the Commission shall use their best endeavours to achieve a gender balance in the composition of delegations.
The Committee may call on external experts where its agenda so requires. The Committee shall establish contacts with representatives of the candidate countries. The Committee shall elect its chairperson from among the representatives of the Member States for a non-renewable term of two years. The chairperson shall be assisted by four vice-chairpersons of whom two shall be elected by the Committee from among its members for a term of two years. The third shall be a representative
from the Member State holding the Presidency of the Council and the fourth shall be a representative from the Member State that will hold the next Presidency. Meetings of the Committee shall be convened by the chairperson, either on his or her own initiative or at the request of at least half of the members of the Committee.
Decision 2000/436/EC shall be repealed as from the date of the first meeting of the Committee which is 04.02.2005 at the latest.
ENTRY INTO FORCE : 04.10.2004.