Vol. 396 No. 9
52 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if, in the course of Ireland's Presidency of the EC Council of Ministers, he will support a proposal that local, provincial and regional authorities in Europe be given an institutional link with the European Parliament.
As one of the institutions of the European Community, the European Parliament is responsible, within the framework established by the Treaties, for the management of its own affairs. Links between the European Parliament and local, provincial and regional authorities are therefore primarily a matter for consideration between the Parliament and the local bodies in question.
I am aware that the European Parliament already has extensive contacts, through its committees and its information offices in the member states, with a wide range of groups throughout the Community, including local, provincial and regional authorities. Should the Deputy have in mind new arrangements requiring changes to the institutional framework of the Community, this would, of course, require Treaty amendments and an intergovernmental conference.
