To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the co-operation envisaged by Article 127 of the treaty establishing the European Community will be restricted to that laid out in Article 129. [17287]

Article 127 (in the Amsterdam Treaty as Article 109p) gives the Community a general role of supporting and, if necessary, complementing co-operation that is occurring or may occur at Member State level, while respecting the competences of the Member States. The only specific power given to the Community for this purpose is that in Article 129 (or Article 109r) to adopt incentive measures to encourage and support co-operation.