EU Law Making

Question 1

What is the name and what topics can one million citizens from at least seven member states request the Commission to initiate legislation on?

Answer 1

European Citizens’ Initiative

Where legal act is necessary to implement Treaties.

Question 2

What is the ordinary legislative procedure?

Answer 2

Proposal from Commission

First reading - note, if both Council and Parliament are happy, the legislation is automatically adopted.

Second reading

Conciliation - 6 weeks. If can’t agree, legislation fails.

Third Reading

Question 3

Voting in Parliament

Answer 3

Qualified majority

Question 4

Majority requirements for Voting in Council (do not discuss qualified majority)

Answer 4

When AMENDING legislation in First and Second reading, must be unanimous. Conciliation and Third Reading only needs q. majority.

APPROVING legislation only needs q. majority.

Question 5

Loophole around unanimity requirement

Answer 5

Commission can voluntarily amend before conclusion of Council’s first reading

Question 6

Describe qualified majority for Council voting.

And blocking minority.

Answer 6

55% MS

Supported by MS representing at least 65% total population.

Blocking minority if at least four Council members representing more than 35% of EU population.

Question 7

Name and describe the most common special legislative procedure

Answer 7

Consultation - Passed by Council after consulting Parliament, but does not depend on Parliament’s consent.

Question 8

Principle in Roquette Freres

Answer 8

Council must wait for Parliament to provide a response in the consultation legislative procedure.

Question 9

Principle in European Parliament v Council

Answer 9

Parliament should be reconsulted with important changes to measure in consultation legislative procedure.

Question 10

Name the Principles of Law Making listed in Art 5(1) TEU

Answer 10

Conferral

Subsidiarity

Proportionality

Question 11

What is the area of conferral called?

Answer 11

A competence.

Question 12

Describe express and implied competence.

Answer 12

Express: explicit in Treaty

Implied: other powers may be necessary to ensure the existence of original power.

Question 13

Principle in French Republic v Commission

Answer 13

Implied competences must be exceptional.

Question 14

Name and describe types of competence

Answer 14

Exclusive competence: Only Union may legislate. Restricted in Art 3 TFEU to essential areas like customs union, competition rules, monetary policy.

Shared competence: both Union and MS may legislate where EU has not exercised its competence.

Supplementary competence: Where the Union has competence to support, coordinate, or supplement MS action. In areas such as tourism. industry, culture.

Question 15

For shared competence, what will happen if EU ceases to act?

Answer 15

competence reverts back to MS.

Question 16

Under Supplementary competence, can the EU harmonize laws?

Answer 16

no.

Question 17

Describe Specific and General competence

Answer 17

specific: legislation passed regarding narrow area

General competence: provided by two Treaty provisions: Art 352 and 114 TFEU

352: action necessary to attain objectives of EU. REQUIRES SPECIAL LEG. PROC., which is unanimity from the Council.
114: directly affecting internal market.

Question 18

What if more than one legal basis is available? Why might it be problematic?

Answer 18

CJEU to decide - usually on the basis of which gives a greater role to Parliament.

May be problematic because different legal bases might require different legislative procedures.

Question 19

Facts and law in Tariff Preferences case.

Answer 19

Facts: Commission and Council disagreed over legal basis for regulations. The regulations did not include any legal basis.

Law: All legislation must make it clear what legal basis is being used.

Question 20

Describe the principle of subsidiarity.

Answer 20

Where the EU does not have exclusive competence, the Union shall act only where actions cannot be effectively achieved by MS.

Question 21

Which institution(s) are considered the guardians of subsidiarity?

Which regulation was withdrawn because review of subsidiarity failed?

Answer 21

National Parliaments.

Monti II

Question 22

What is the second institution capable of reviewing legislation for subsidiarity?

Answer 22

CJEU.

Question 23

Describe the principle of proportionality

Answer 23

Content and form of Union action cannot exceed what is necessary to achieve objectives of the treaties.

Question 24

Principle in Federation Charbonniere

Answer 24

Proportionality is a general principle of EU law.

Question 25

Which competences do the principle of proportionality apply to?

Answer 25

All of them.

Question 26

Facts and law in R v Intervention Board

Answer 26

Man submitted application for export licence four hours late. Cost him over 1.6 million pounds.

Measures must be appropriate and necessary to attain objective. Forfeiture of entire security was too severe.

Question 27

Principle in r v secretary of state for health ex p British American Tobacco (Investments) and Imperial Tobacco

Answer 27

For proportionality, measure must be “manifestly inappropriate”.