Exam 1 Flashcards
What is the legislative function?
Setting general rules
Acting as a legislator
What is the executive function?
Exercising control
Determining course of action
What is the judicial function?
Constitutional review
Acting as a constitutional court
Investigating in cases
What is the difference between intergovernmental and supranational institutions?
An intergovernmental institution focuses on the member state interest, while a supranational organization considers the whole EU and its citizens, and there is pooling of sovereignty on certain matters
Which EU institutions are intergovernmental and which are supranational?
Intergovernmental is the Council and the European Council
Supranational is the entire EU (plus citizens), the Commission, the court, and the European parliament
Where is the bicameralism in the EU?
You have the European parliament which are elected by the citizens, and you have the Council of Ministers, which are elected by member states
What is the European Council? Who does it exist of?
Sets the goals and directions of the Union, is a political connection between member-states and the Union. It consists of the Heads of State or the Government of the Member States
What is the European Commission? What does it consist of?
It proposes legislation and drafts the budget, focuses on application/implementation of Union Law, represents the interests of the Union
Consists of one Commissioner from each Member State
Wat is the Council of the European Union? Who does it consist of?
It has legislative & budgetary functions, makes final decisions, represents the national interests of Members
Consist of governmental ministers from each state. Under the Council is also the corepresentative groups, which discuss and advice the council
What is the European Parliament? who does it consist of?
The European Parliament is involved in modifying legislature, and budgetary functions, supervises the Commission, and represents citizen interests.
Consists of directly elected members under degressive proprotionality
What is the court of Justice and its role?
The Court of Justice enforces and interprets EU law, reviews legility of acts, establishes infringments of EU law, and gives preliminary rulings
What affects the legitimacy of the EU institutional framework?
The complexity of it and the lack of democratic accountability
Can member states opt out of treaties?
Yes, they can sometimes, but it defeats the purpose of the EU, and if the EU makes legal decisions for the Member, they are bound by what has been agreed upon under pacta sunt servanda
What types of policies does the EU have? Explain what the different policy types aim to do
Re-destributive policies -> giving back to the people and helping improve social, economical and environmental circumstance, distributive policies –> what do we do with our money, which is mainly on national level focused on tax and regulatory policies –> rules and standard setting
What is the difference between positive and negative intergration in regards to regulatory policies?
Positive integration is re-regulation, so it sets values and standards to uphold, replacing national rules with EU rules. Negative integration is the removal of barriers, so focusing on an open market and regulating that it is as open as possible
Explain the principle of subsidiarity when it relates to the European Union
It means that to use the lowest level of governance possible in order to get the job done
What safeguards basic fundamental rights in the EU? What is the difference in their application?
The european convention on Human Rights (ECHR), and the Charter of fundamental rights
The ECHR is obligatory on all member states, while the Charter is only applicable to EU institutions and member states when carrying out EU legislation
What are the primary souces of law of the EU?
Treaty on the European Union (TEU)
Treay on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)
Any treaty which amends the foundational treaties
What are the secondary sources of the EU?
Regulations, directives, and decisions
What are the general principles and what is the importance of general principles in regards to Union Law?
General principles include those in the ECHR, the constitutional traditions of the Member States, and the Charter of the EU
General principles are important as they are there for the future, as times changes, needs might change and it can fill in gaps in the codified law and can be the basis of judicial review
What is the difference between founding, amended, and consolidated treaties?
Founding is the original legislation
Amended indicates changes to the original
Consolidated contains all changes
What is the difference between regulations, directives, and decisions?
Regulations and decisions are directly applicable, while directives allow the member state discretion on implementation
How do legislative acts get enacted? How do they work?
There is the ordinary legislative procedure and the special legislative procedure to implement legislature. They work by
What are passerelle clauses?
