W2: institutional framework Flashcards
Intergovernmental and supranational institutions
Intergovernmental institutions: Eu institutions that represent the member states
Supranational institutions: EU institutions that represent the general interest of the EU + European Parliament (represents citizens)
Eu treaties: setting institutions’ mandate
- Principle of conferral (art. 5 TEU): the EU acts only within the limits of the competences that EU countries have conferred upon it in the treaties
- Division of powers and institutional independence: each institution has its own mandate, set out in the Treaties (TEU; TFEU)
The EU institutional framework
- European council (executive, representing member states)
- Council (executive/legislative, regpresenting member states)
- European Commission (executive, representing the EU)
- European parliament (legislative, representing citizens)
- Court of Justice of the EU (judicial, representing the EU)
- European Central Bank (executive, representing the EU)
- Court of Auditors (control, representing the EU)
The primary purpose of the EU’s institutional set-up
To make sure that all relevant interests- those of member states, citizens, and the EU as a whole – are represented in key phases of decision making.
Although it makes sure that citizens can directly affect the composition of one of its institutions - the European Parliament- it seeks to incorporate a much wider range of interests:
- Citizens are represented by the European Parliament, whose members are chosen via direct popular elections in each of the member states
- Member states are represented in the European Council – bringing together the Heads of State and Government of the member states – and the Council of Ministers- consisting of representatives at ministerial level of the member states.
- The interests of the EU as a whole are represented and protected by all other institutions: Commission, Court of Justice, Court of Auditors and European Central Bank. Officeholders in each of these institutions are to act independently and without instructions from any government or other institution.
Allocation of powers in the EU
Executive tasks: consists of giving political direction, implementing polities and externally representing the EU. In the EU these tasks are distributed over four different institutions:
1. The European Council: provides political directs and represents the EU.
2. The Council: implements policies
3. The Commission: initiates legislation, implements policies and represents the EU externally.
4. The European Central Bank: implementing monetary policy
Legislative tasks: consist of examining, modifying and adopting legislative measures which provide the basis for EU policies.
- In the EU the Parliament and the Council share legislative powers. It can be likened to the organization of a bicameral legislature. The European Parliament represents the citizens and the Council the member states. But, they do not have the formal right initiate legislative proposals. This right belongs to the Commission (monopoly on initiating legislation).
Judicial tasks: consists of the interpretation of EU law as well as the adjudication of conflicts involving EU institutions, member states and all other parties that may be involved. Court of Justice
Supportive tasks: the Court of Auditors examines the EU’s revenues and expenses
European Commission:
- Executive power, supranational
- Has a president: appointed by European council
- ‘shall promote the general interest of the Union and take appropriate initiatives to that end’.
- Each member state appoints one commissioner with specific policy portfolio. Each commissioner has a cabinet, administration of civil servants organised in policy departments (directorate generals).
Legislative function:
- Preparing legislation
- Exclusive right of initiative
Executive function
- Implementing policies
- Management of EU finances
- Executes competition policies
Enforcement function (guardian of the treaties)
- Monitors the proper implementation of EU laws by member states and private actors
- Enforcer of competition law
External representative function
- External representation: speaks on behalf of all EU countries in international bodies
- Negotiates international agreements on behalf of the EU
How powerful is the commission?
The member states control the commission (intergovernmentalism)
- Right of legislative initiative in the ordinary legislative procedure, but member states ultimately take decision (together with EP)
- Informal influence through constant dialogue
- Member state nationals in the college of commissioners
- Influence through committees: comitology. Committees of national experts with whom the commission is obliged to negotiate. Sometimes they can even vote
The commission as an autonomous actor
- Substantial implementation powers (but: comitology)
- Entrepreneurial role (pro integration): influencing the agenda and direction of European integration (find allies, expertise, legal initiative)
European council:
Formal institution since the Lisbon treaty
- EU heads of state and government, therefore has enormous political clout
- And three other members without voting rights: president, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, president of the commission (for coordination with the commission)
Functions: comparable to a board of direction
- General policy direction: ‘board’ that incentivises Commission, long term strategic decisions
- Oversight of treaty reform and enlargement (initial agreement and final consent)
- Problem solver and crisis manager: financial, migration, Russia-Ukraine
- Appointments: own president, commission president, high representative foreign affairs. Their appointments need to be confirmed by the EP.
Role of the present of the European council: Charles Michel
- Chairs meetings of the European council
- Drives forward work of the European council
- Elected by European Council by QMV for 2,5 years (once renewable)
Decision making in the European Council
- The European Council meets four times in a year in Brussels and can if necessary meet for additional extraordinary or informal sessions.
- Decisions are made by consensus, except when the Treaty provides differently. One of those exceptions is the appointment of its president which does not require unanimity
- Formal votes are rarely taken.
Council of the EU (the Council or Council of Ministers)
Variety of formations: depending on the subject.
- Member states can determine who they send to a specific meeting as long as it is someone at ministerial level who may commit the governments of the Member State in question and cast its vote.
Functions:
- Legislative: main legislator together with European Parliament
- Executive: e.g., EU’s common security and defence policy
- Forum for coordination: open method of coordination
Presidency:
- Eurogroup and Council of Foreign affairs (High representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy) have their own president
- All other council formation: every six months a different country in the lead as president. Trio presidencies: three member states over a period of eighteen months, work together.
Organization
- The most important configuration in which the Council meets, consists of the general Affairs Council which meets monthly and is responsible for the overall coordination of the council’s work.
- Member states can use the presidency to set the agenda of the Council and focus on specific priorities, but their room for manoeuvre is limited.
- The Council’s meetings involve more than deciding upon legislation. On the one hand, it is involved in thinking and deliberating about issues which might at some point in time become the subject of legislation; on the other hand, it takes executive decisions – for example, on extending sanctions against a certain country or on the continuation of external missions.
Intergovernmental or supranational?
- At first sight: purely intergovernmental
- However, few decisions are taken at the ministerial level: committees, working parties and COREPER. Preparing decisions. About 80% of the decisions made in the council are rubber stamped by the council, therefore power lies in the preparation of these decisions
European Parliament:
- Strasbourg and Brussels, with secretariat in Luxembourg
- 705 members, directly elected in the member states.
- Not organised by member states, but by ideological ‘families’
Functions:
- Legislative: co-decides with the council under the ordinary legislative procedure. But no right to initiate
- Budgetary: annual budget needs EP approval
- Scrutiny of the executive: right to ask for information, committees of inquiry, annulment action CJEU, submitting questions,
- Appointment and dimissal of commission: approves the appointment for the commission president and of the commission (after public hearings) as a whole. Power to censure and dismiss the entire commission
Court of Justice of the EU (CJ)
Composition:
- CJEU, general court, EU Civil service tribunal
- Court of justice:1 judge from each EU country -> highest court
- General Court: 2 judges from each EU country -> deals with direct actions brought by natural/legal persons seeking annulment, as well as cases by MS against the commission
- 11 advocates-general: deliver legal opinions on cases
Functions: Interprets EU law to ensure consistent application in member states and settle legal disputes between national governments and EU institutions
- Interpreting the law (Preliminary rulings): national courts in doubt about the interpretation or validity of an EU law ask the court for clarification
- Enforces the law (infringement proceeding), against a national government for failing to comply with EU law (initiated by member state or commission)
- Reviewing legality of EU legal acts (actions for annulment): if EU act violates EU treaties (initiated by MS, EP, Commision, Council or natural/legal persons). Looks at the proper procedures and judicial basis
The European Central Bank (ECB)
- In political systems central banks serve a variety of purposes: to issue a country’s currency, act as a lender of last resort and implement monetary policies.
Tasks
- Conducting the EU’s monetary policy the ECB has the monopoly to issue the Euro currency and decides on the Eurozone’s monetary policy.
- Maintaining the financial stability of the Eurozone system the ECB keeps track of the financial health of the Eurozone and its banks and other financial institutions.
- Conducting foreign exchange operations and maintaining the Eurozone’s foreign reserves to ensure the liquidity and stability of the Eurozone, the ECB may buy or sell foreign reserves.
Organization
- The ECB’s main decision-making body is the Governing Council, which consists of the members of the ECB’s executive board and the governors of the banks of the Eurozone countries.
The European Court of Auditors
Focuses on financial auditing, effectiveness and efficiency of public spending
Tasks
- Checks revenue and spending of the EU and all its institutions.
- Examines efficiency and effectiveness of EU policies and programmes
- Coordinates the work of different auditing courts in EU member states
Organization
- Consists of 27 members appointed for six tears by the Council
Making sense of the institutional framework
- The EU’s institutional hardware is somewhat different to that of national political systems.
- This applies in particular to executive and legislative functions which are both shared between the different institutions. This means that the core policy-making functions in the EU are not in the hands of one institutional actor, but require cooperation and collaboration between different bodies that represent different interests.
- While the institutional hardware of the EU is unique, it is based upon a common model for organizing democratic systems: that of consensualism. It aims to disperse power and constrain the use of it.
Legislation and decision making:
no single procedure for making and implementing EU policies and different methods are used over different spheres of EU policy!
