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With reference to its previous comments, the Committee takes note of the Government's reply to the comments submitted by the Trade Union Confederation of Workers' Commissions concerning the application of the Convention. In a communication dated 7 February 1989, the above organisation alleged, inter alia, that the representative trade union organisations were not consulted on the content of the reports which were due in 1988, under article 22 of the Constitution, which is an infringement of Article 5 of the Convention.

In its reply, the Government expresses the opinion that Article 5, paragraph 1(d) does not imply that there must be prior consultations on the substance of the reports in question, and that the preparation of the reports is exclusively the responsibility of the Government. The Government concludes that the questions calling for consultations with the occupational organisations are questions raised once the reports have been drawn up. It adds that it is always ready to receive comments from the occupational organisations and that it never fails to transmit them without delay to the ILO.

In the first place, the Committee wishes to point out, as it does in its General Survey of 1982 (paragraph 124) on Convention No. 144 and Recommendation No. 152, that the provisions of Article 5, paragraph 1(d) go beyond the obligation for member States to communicate reports that is stipulated in article 23, paragraph 2, of the Constitution. Consultations are called for not on every report but only on those concerning Conventions whose application poses problems. In the case of reports on the application of ratified Conventions, due under article 22 of the Constitution, the consultations are often concerned essentially with the substance of the reply to comments by the supervisory bodies.

Lastly, and at a more general level, the Committee feels that it is useful to recall its position regarding the scope of the obligation to hold prior consultations provided for by the Convention. The principle generally accepted during the preliminary work on the Convention is that the outcome of the consultations should not be regarded as binding and that the ultimate decision rests with the Government. However, the consultations in the meaning of the Convention are none the less compulsory and should be held before the proposed measures are ultimately decided upon (see the above-mentioned General Survey, paragraphs 42 to 45).

The Committee trusts that the Government will take the above comments into consideration and that, in future, it will hold the required consultations on "questions arising out of reports" due under article 22 of the Constitution, in accordance with the letter and spirit of the provisions of the Convention.