Representation in EU Institutions

Financial Services Committee — a committee set up by Decision of the Council 2003/165/EC of 18 February 2003 with a view to providing advice to the EU Council, the Economic and Financial Committee of the Council, and proposals on a range of financial market issues.

The European Commission and each member of the Council shall appoint one high-level representative and one alternate to the Committee. Lithuania is being represented by members of the Ministry of Finance. A representative of the European Central Bank and Chairs of the relevant Community committees of regulators will have observer status. The Financial Services Committee shall have one Chair and one Vice-Chair appointed for a two year term of office. Ordinarily the meetings of the Financial Services Committee are held four times a year, however, the Committee may convene more frequently where necessary.

 European Securities Committee — established by virtue of the Commission Decision No. 2001/528/EC of 6 June 2001, the principal objective whereof is to assist the European Commission in the drawing up of legal acts implementing the directives governing the securities market and to render advice to the European Commission in dealing with related issues.

The meetings of the European Securities Commission have been held since 2001. Ordinarily the Committee meets once a month. The members of the Committee are representatives of the EU Member States — usually officers of the Ministries of Finance. Representative of States seeking EU membership, of the European Central Bank, the Committee of European Securities Regulators and the EFTA countries [1] are also invited to participate in the meetings of the Committee as observers.

The agenda of the meetings includes the analysis of the directives governing the securities markets, and the challenges faced when implementing them in EU Member States; the participants of the meetings seek ways to address such challenges.

The European Insurance and Pension Committee  was established by the Commission decision 2004/9/EC and has been assisting the Commission in the insurance and occupational pensions area having regard to the Lamfalussy process, the principal objectives whereof is the expedient adoption of relevant legal acts and the high quality of legal acts governing the financial sector. With this purpose, the European Commission has developed a package of measures whereby the measures  already operational in the securities sector are being expanded into the insurance sector by establishing two new committees:

• The European Insurance and occupational Pensions Committee (EIOPS established under  2004/9/EC) was set up to replace the Insurance Committee with a view to advise the Commission in the process of the implementation of EU directives;
• The Committee of European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Supervisors — (CEIOPS established by 2004/6/EC) the principal objective whereof is to operate as an independent group of advisors on insurance and occupational pension issues.

The Committee of European Insurance and Occupational Pension Supervisors convene their meetings three times a year in accordance with the approved Rules of procedure. The Chair of CEIOPS participates in the meetings of EIOPS as an observer. The Committee may invite experts and observers to its meetings. Lithuania is represented in the Committee by civil servants from the Ministry of Finance.

[1]EFTA  – European Free Trade Association (EFTA) whose members are the non-EU States: Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein and Switzerland.