Catalogue description Foreign and Commonwealth Office: UK Presidency of Council of the European Union: Registered Files (WPP and WP Series)

The Presidency of the Council of the European Communities was primarily to organise and chair all meetings of the Council and troubleshoot and solve disputes between member states. The Council is presided over for a period of six months by each member state in turn in accordance with an established rota.

The Conference Unit was set up to co-ordinate the administrative arrangements for the 1977 London meetings of NATO Ministers, Commonwealth Heads of Government and those arising from the British Presidency of the European Community. The registry was set up to include political co-operation files which were divided into groups in line with political co-operation and geographical working groups. Political co-operation files and the UK Presidency secretariat files relating to political co-operation were handed over to the European Integration Department on completetion of the six months of the UK Presidency.

A similar Conference Unit was set up to co-ordinate the administrative arrangements for the 1981 London meetings.