The EU’s Decision Making Process

Law

The EU’s decision-making process in general and the co-decision procedure in particular involve three main institutions. Name and describe the function of each institution.

The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union established in 1993 after the ratification of the Maastricht Treaty by members of the European Community and since expanded to include numerous Central and Eastern European nations. The establishment of the European Union expanded the political scope of the European Economic Community, especially in the area of foreign and security policy, and provided for the creation of a central European bank and the adoption of a common currency, the euro. European Union has also three very important institutions that makes the process and the co-decision procedure. The European Parliament, the Council of Ministers and the European Commission.

1The European Parliament compared to many national parliaments, it lacks the cut and thrust of debate between government and opposition. Its real work is done in committee. The plurality of languages used makes the debates far from spectacular. When it comes to the detail of legislative or budgetary work, MEP’s shape legislation in a way that members of many national parliaments do not. In the national conext, when a government publishes a bill, it is usually clear what eill come out of the procedure.

European Parliament (EP) is the only directly elected multinational parliament in the world, as well as the only directly elected institution in the European Union. Its actual and potential role is therefore central to arguments about the democratic deficit, and whether EU is democratic and its decisions legitimate. For most of its history, the EP has been a relatively weak institution compared to the Council and the Commission. Since the first direct elections in 1979, and particularly in the 1990s, its powers and status increased substantially.

The European Parliament (EP) is elected by EU citizens to represent their interests. Parliament created the 1950 with the founding treaties, and since 1979 its members are directly elected by the citizens they represent. Elections are held every five years. Right to vote has every European citizen, anywhere in the EU they reside. The Parliament expresses the democratic will of the approximately 500 million EU citizens and represent their interests in discussions with other EU institutions. The current Parliament is composed of 736 members from all 27 EU countries. Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are not divided into national sections, but in five European groups. These groups represent all views on European integration than the warm up to the federalists openly Eurosceptics.

The European Parliament has three places of work. Brussels in Belgium, Luxembourg and Strasbourg in France. Parliament has three main functions. Establishment of European laws, jointly with the Council in many policy areas. The fact that the EP is directly elected by citizens is one of the factors that guarantee the democratic legitimacy of European legislation. Exercise democratic supervision over all EU institutions and in particular to the Commission. It has the power to approve or reject the appointment of commissioners, and to accept censure against the Commission collectively. The power of money. Parliament shares with the Council the power on the EU budget and thus may affect costs. After the procedure, approves or rejects the budget as a whole.

Another significant institutions is the Council of Ministers. The Council of Ministers was created in 1974 in order to create an informal space for discussion between the Heads of State or Government. Soon they became a body which sets the objectives of the Union and sets the path for their achievement in all sectors of the EU. He formalized in 1992 with the Maastricht Treaty, which established the function of, to provide the Union with the necessary impetus and define the general political guidelines. On December 1, 2009 under the Treaty of Lisbon was one of seven institutions of the Union. The European Council defines the general political directions and priorities of the European Union. The European Council shall provide the Union with the necessary impetus and define general political directions and priorities. It doesn’t exercises legislative power.

The European Council consists of the Heads of State or Government of Member of the State and the President and the Chairman of the Committee. The High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy shall take part in the functions of the Council. When the agenda assist, the members of the European Council may decide a minister to assist each member and the chairman of the Commission, by a member. The European Council comes every six months, leader of its President, and when the agenda requires the President calls an extraordinary European Council meeting.

Finally the third and important institution is the European Commission. The Commission is independent from national government. Its role is to represent and defend the interests of the whole union. It drafts proposals for new European legislation to be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council.Commision is also the executive body of the Union, in other words, it is responsible for implementing the decisions of the Parliament and the Council. This means that the Commission manages the daily affairs of the European Union, implementing its policies, running its programs and allocating its funds. The term ‘’Commission’’ is used in two senses. First, it refers to a group of men and women, one member from each EU country, appointed to run the institution and take the decisions. Second, the ‘’Commission’’ refers to the institution itself and its staff.

Committee members informally known as ‘’Commissioners’’. All previously held political positions iin their home countries and many of them have exercised ministerial functions, but as members of the commissions office in the Unions general interest and not take instructions from national governments. The new Commission is appointed for five years, six months after the elections to the European Parliament. The procedure is as follows. First the governments of the Member States shall nominate by common accord the person they intend to appoint a new chairman of the Committee, the Commission President designate approved by Parliament. The commission President designate, in agreement with the governments of the Member State, chooses the other members of the Commission. The Council approved the establishment candidate by qualified majority and then submit it for approval in Parliement. Each candidate is required to be heard b the Parliement, which is then consulted about the ‘’body’’ of the commissioners. The new Commission is appointed permanently by the Council acting by qualified majority on a vote of approval by Parliament.

The Commission is politically accountable to Parliament, which could force to resign if they accept censure. Each member of the Commission obliged to resign if the President so requests, in agreement with the other commissioners. The Commission participates in all sessions of Parliament to clarify and justify its policies, and also replies regularly to written and oral questions from Members. The main responsibilities of the Commission are four. First of all it propose legislation to Parliament and the Council. Second manage and implement policies and budget of the Union. Thirdly it enforce European Law (jointly with the Court). Fourthly it representing the European Union on the international scene, for example by negotiating agreements between the EU and third countries. The European Commission may be the strangest executive bureaucracy ever created. Despite claims that it can be understood using the accepted tools for analysing traditional bureaucracies , the Commission is in many respects a ‘’sui generis’’ institution. Legally the Commission is a single entity. In practise, however, it is a unique hybrid in two senses. First it is given direction by a political arm, or college, or Commissioners, but the college is unelected. Second, the college exists alongside a permanent, formally apolitical administration, or what is known as the Commissions ‘’services’’ or Directorates – General, for whose work the college is held responsible.