Frequently Asked Questions
What is an Explanatory Memorandum?
An Explanatory Memorandum (EM) is the Government's written evidence to Parliament which summarises the content of a Proposal for EU legislation or other important EU document. It contains information about the aims of the proposal and the Government's attitude towards it. All EMs are considered by the House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee and the House of Lords Select Committee on the European Union. These Committees have a role in examining the Government's written evidence and in reporting to each House on the importance of each document and EM. The home page to this site provides links to the websites of the two committees where information about their terms or reference and the way they operate, and their published reports on EU documents can be found.
When are EMs produced?
The terms of reference (ToR) of the two Parliamentary Scrutiny Committees define EU documents for the purposes of scrutiny. Documents caught by these ToR are all proposals for legislation by the Council of Ministers across all three pillars of activity eg proposals for Council Regulations, Directives, Decisions, Joint Actions, Common Positions, Framework Decisions; Commission documents published for submission to the Council eg Communications, Reports and Green papers; as well as documents from other institutions to the Council such as from the European Court of Auditors or the European Court of Justice. An EM is produced for each document deposited in Parliament.
What if a document hasn't been published?
Although the scrutiny system is based on documents, scrutiny does not have to await the publication of an official text. If the official text of a document is unlikely to be available in time for scrutiny before a decision is reached in the Council, the Government submits an 'unnumbered Explanatory Memorandum' (so-called because it does not relate to a numbered document). This describes what is likely to be in the document and stands proxy for it: a proposal can be cleared on the basis of an unnumbered EM, and the EM may even be debated in place of the document.
Who is responsible for the operation of the EM database?
The Cabinet Office European Secretariat is responsible for the maintenance of the UK's scrutiny procedures and is responsible for working with departments to determine which documents should be deposited in Parliament. The European Secretariat is responsible for maintaining this site.
Does this site search all current Explanatory Memoranda?
The site holds copies of EMs submitted to Parliament from 1 January 2007. For copies of EMs submitted between 2003-2006, requests can be made to the Cabinet Office European Secretariat where copies are held electronically. Requests for earlier copies of EMs can be directed to the lead Government department. Hard copies of all EMs are also held by the British Library Social Policy Information Service, 96 Euston Road, London SW1P 2DB.
