38. The Committee recalled that the 13th session had considered a document prepared by the FAO Legal Counsel, following the request of the Commission that the Committee should consider the improvement of procedures to facilitate consensus in the formulation and adoption of standards. It had been agreed that the paper should be redrafted and considered further at the 14th session.[10]
39. The FAO Legal Counsel introduced the revised document, which recalled the relevance of Codex standards in the framework of the WTO Agreements and focused on the measures intended to achieve consensus throughout the decision process, in order to avoid resorting to a vote for the adoption of standards. The document also proposed to clarify the conditions under which voting could be called for in Rule VI and to amend the majority required for the adoption of Codex texts, with the understanding that voting could be resorted to only if other means had been thoroughly explored.
40. The Committee expressed its appreciation to the Legal Counsel for the comprehensive analysis of this complex issue and the constructive proposals presented in the document and considered the following aspects: the proposals for improving consensus in the decision process; the conditions for voting in the Rules of Procedure; and the amendment of the majority.
CONSENSUS IN THE DECISION PROCESS
41. The Committee recalled that according to the Guidelines for Codex Committees “chairpersons should always try to arrive at a consensus” and reasserted the importance of this recommendation, especially for matters submitted to the Commission for adoption. The Committee recommended that draft texts should be submitted for adoption to the Commission only when a large measure of consensus had been reached. Some delegations expressed the view that complete agreement on all aspects of a particular text was not always possible, and that such a requirement would prevent progress in Codex work, but acceptable compromises should be sought in order to complete the elaboration of Codex texts in a reasonable period of time.
42. Some delegations supported the recommendation to organize informal meetings and pointed out that it was useful to resolve controversial issues and generally to facilitate discussions in the Committees. Other delegations expressed their concern with any general recommendation to establish informal meetings and stressed that the objectives of such meetings should be clearly defined by the Committee concerned and that participation should be open to all interested delegations and observers in order to ensure transparency.
43. The Delegation of the Philippines noted the important role of the Chairperson in facilitating consensus and offered the view that the measures recommended could be differentiated between those that were procedural in nature and those that could be left as options of the Chairperson, such as the conduct of informal meetings.
44. Several delegations sought clarification on the proposals concerning the reallocation of work priorities and expressed the view that the priorities of the Commission and the Committees should be selected on the basis of their importance for member governments, and Codex work should not be limited to the areas where consensus was easily achievable.
RULE VI
45. The Committee recognized the importance of an interpretation of Rule VI Voting and Procedures to reflect that Rule VI.2 did not provide for automatic decision-making by voting and to clarify Rule VI.2 as to the power of a single Member to call for a vote, and agreed that relevant amendments should be proposed for consideration at the next session.
RULE X
46. The Committee recalled that the Guidelines for Codex Committees included recommendations on reaching consensus but recognized the necessity for a reference to consensus in the Rules of Procedure as they apply primarily to the Commission and to the adoption of Codex texts. In order to make it clear that decisions could be taken by vote only when other means of reaching a decision had been thoroughly explored, the Legal Counsel proposed to add a sentence to this effect in Rule X, Elaboration of Standards and to amend its title to Elaboration and Adoption. The Committee had a short exchange of views on the wording proposed and agreed to forward the proposed amendment to Rule X Elaboration to the Commission for adoption and inclusion in the Procedural Manual (see Appendix II).
MAJORITY
47. Many delegations supported the amendment of the majority to two-thirds for the adoption of standards pointing out that if consensus could not be reached, it would still be preferable to adopt standards by a larger majority, in view of the relevance of Codex texts as a reference in international trade. The Delegation of Australia expressed its objection to this proposal as it would make it more difficult to adopt new standards or revise existing standards and generally expedite the work of the Commission, and pointed out that consensus on all aspects of a standard was not always possible.
48. Several delegations supported the proposal to require a two-thirds majority of the votes cast on the first two sessions at which a text was considered for adoption, and a simple majority at a subsequent session if the two-thirds majority could not be met, in order to avoid excessive delays in the adoption of standards.
49. Some delegations, while not opposing the amendment, proposed that the discussion should focus on the measures to achieve consensus as a first stage and on the clarification of Rule VI.4 before considering specifically the amendment of the majority.
50. Some delegations proposed to consider postal voting in order to take into account the difficulties of developing countries and to ensure that the standards reflected the agreement of a large number of member countries, although they could not attend the meeting. The Delegation of Mexico drew the attention of the Committee to the possibility of using information technologies (such as the Internet) for discussions and voting. Many delegations however stressed that current procedures allowed for full discussion and exchange of views on the issues under consideration, in order to ensure the transparency of the process and arrive at compromises that would facilitate consensus. The Committee recognized that the involvement of developing countries should be facilitated and increased, and noted that this could be done through a number of measures, especially technical assistance to improve the infrastructure and capacity of the countries to participate in the Codex process.
51. The Committee agreed that the document should be redrafted in the light of the above discussion and would include the relevant proposals for amendments to the Rules or other sections for inclusion in the Procedural Manual.
