(The Secretary of State for
Exiting the European Union): I will attend the General
Affairs Council in Luxembourg on 15 October 2019 to represent the
UK. The UK Government has decided that from 1 September until exit
day, UK Ministers and officials will only attend EU meetings where
the UK has a significant national interest in the outcome of the
discussions.
The provisional agenda includes:
Preparation of the European Council on 17-18 October 2019
and European Council follow-up
The Council will discuss preparations for the October European
Council, for which the agenda includes: the Multiannual Financial
Framework; the next Institutional Cycle; Climate Change; and
other items such as specific foreign policy issues. The European
Council (Art 50) will meet in EU27 format to discuss the state of
play regarding Brexit. Ministers will also take stock of the
implementation of previous European Council conclusions.
Enlargement and the Stabilisation and Association Process -
Albania and the Republic of North Macedonia
Enlargement is the process whereby European countries are able to
join the European Union. The October General Affairs Council will
consider whether or not to open EU accession negotiations with
Albania and North Macedonia. The Commission’s 2018 and 2019
enlargement Progress Reports recommended opening negotiations
with both.
Any Other Business: Transparency seminar (Brussels, 24
September 2019)
The Finnish Presidency will update the Council on a Transparency
Seminar that it hosted on 24 September. The UK did not attend the
seminar due to the current policy on attending EU meetings. This
is largely an information-only item. Finland is keen to enhance
the openness and transparency of the legislation process. They
are seeking to facilitate discussions between Member States and
the institutions during their Presidency, with the aim of
reaching agreement on a number of measures to make the Council’s
work more transparent.
