WEEK 7: Legislative and Judicial Institutions: The Council of Ministers, The European Parliament and the ECJ

Question 1

How does the EU have a bicameral legislature?

Answer 1

• Council representing the Member States

- Parliament representing the citizens

Question 2

What is the historical comparison between the European Council and the European Parliament?

Answer 2

• Council more powerful historically as Parliament held only a consultative role
• However, the Parliament has become progressively more powerful

Question 3

How has the European Parliament become progressively more powerful? (PART 1)

Answer 3

-SEA (1987) new legislative procedures: cooperation and assent

-Maastricht (1993): co-decision procedure
Amsterdam and Nice Treaties:co-decision extended to new issue areas (Council and EP can reach an agreement at first reading)

Question 4

How has the European Parliament become progressively more powerful? (PART 2)

Answer 4

Lisbon Treaty: the Council and the EP have equal standing:Co-decision becomes the ‘ordinary legislative procedure’ (EP and Council share equal powers)

Question 5

What is the Organisation of the Council and what are some of its features?

Answer 5

• Made up of differing Council Formations
• Different decision-making procedures (unanimity vs. QMV) depending on issue-area
• Working ‘culture’: voting is uncommon, consensus-seeking approach

Question 6

What are the most important Council Formations?

Answer 6

General Affairs, Foreign Affairs (Headed by High Representative), ECOFIN

Question 7

What is one of the strongest committees in the council?

Answer 7

The COREPER

Committee of Permanent Representatives in the European Union

Question 8

What is the function of the COREPER?

Answer 8

It prepares the Council meetings – negotiating across the entire range of EU affairs

Question 9

What are the 2 differing types of the COREPER?

Answer 9

1) COREPER I: deputy permanent representatives for the ‘technical councils’
2) COREPER II: permanent representatives for the most political councils

Question 10

What are some of the permanent representatives in the COREPER?

Answer 10

• Most senior position of the member states in Brussels
• Career diplomats

COREPER is insulated from domestic political debate

Working Groups
A vast network of country officials specializing in specific policy areas

Question 11

What does the rotating presidency of the Council mean? (PART 1)

Answer 11

• Each member state holds presidency of the Council for 6 months (Rotating Presidency)
• Each has a list of policies it would like to see adopted, set-out in a working programme
• Members use the presidency to pursue their own objectives, but the record of a ‘good’ presidency is also important (agenda manipulation is difficult – think about small countries!)

Question 12

What does the rotating presidency of the Council mean? (PART 2)

Answer 12

• Average time for a legislative dossier to be negotiated: about 18 months (strong variation)
• Presidencies organised in ‘triumvirates’: three presidencies present a common programme together

Question 13

What are the tasks for the Presidency?

Answer 13

-Arrange and chair Council meetings
(not in Foreign Affairs: role undertaken by High Representative after LT)

• Build a consensus for initiatives
• Ensure consistency of policy development

Question 14

How does the council decide on things?

Answer 14

• Unanimity: in foreign, defence, enlargement and taxation (every member counts equally)
• Qualified majority: in most policy areas (system of weighting votes by size)

Question 15

What are the elements of the Qualified Majority?

Answer 15

• Majority of all member states (55 percent) representing at least 65 percent of the Union’s population is required (into force in 2014)
• Until 2014 – Nice Treaty provisions: majority of the member states, 74 percent of the weighted votes, and 62 percent Union’s population

Simple majority: only procedural issues

Question 16

What was the turnout to the latest European Parliament?

Answer 16

42.54% in 2014

Question 17

What is the organisation of the European Parliament?

Answer 17

• President of the EP: Elected for 2 1/2 years

- The Bureau

Question 18

What are the functions of the European Parliament President?

Answer 18

Functions: chairing debates in plenary sittings, external representation

Question 19

What is the Bureau of the European Parliament?

Answer 19

Responsible for matters relating to the budget, administration, organisation and staff.

Made of President + 14 VP’s

Question 20

What is the Bureau made up of?

Answer 20

• Conference of Presidents: President + Presidents of Working Groups (sets the agenda of the EP)
• Committees (25-71MEPs) Prepare the work of the plenary sessions in their area of competence
• Delegations (12 – over 70MEPs) Maintain relations with Parliaments of non-EU MS (41 delegations in the previous legislature)

Question 21

What are the necessary conditions for the creation of a political group in the European Parliament?

Answer 21

25 MEPs

Political Groups must represent 1/4 of the member states (7 Member States)

Question 22

What are the differing political groups in the European Parliament?

Answer 22

• EPP: largest group since 1999 – Represents Christian-Democracy. Position: (centre)-right
• S&D (until 2009: PES): grouping socialists, social-democrats and labour parties. Position: centre-left
• ECR: breakaway group of the EPP. Eurosceptic
• ALDE: bringing together liberal and democratic parties. Strongly pro-EU. New name ‘Renew Europe’

Question 23

What are the 2 principals of MEP’s?

Answer 23

the political group and their national party

• National parties embedded in national histories and political system
• Political Groups in European Parliament get constantly bigger in size (EU-6…EU- 28)

Question 24

What are the functions of the Committees in the European Parliament?

Answer 24

Exploring ideas with the Commission, fostering own initiative reports, examining legislative proposals

Question 25

How do the Committee’s pass a report?

Answer 25

1) A committee is named committee responsible
2) A rapporteur is chosen within the committee
3) A report is tabled
4) The committee votes. The report moves to the plenary stage

Question 26

What is the role of the European Parliament in the decision making process?

Answer 26

• Parliament co-legislator with the Council in the ordinary legislative procedure
• The Parliament and the Council have to agree on the same text
• The procedure is constituted by (a maximum of) three readings

In the 3rd reading, conciliation committee made up of equal number of representatives from the European Parliament and the Council is convened

Question 27

What actually happens in the decision making process?

Answer 27

• Fewer and fewer readings procedures are decided on 3rd reading
• More legislation concluded at 1st reading

Question 28

What does the judicial arm of the EU include?

Answer 28

• The European Court of Justice
• The General Court (previously the Court of first instance)
• Judicial panels (ensure community law is interpreted and applied uniformly across the EU)
• The Court of Auditors (monitors the revenues and expenditure of the Community)

Question 29

What is the history and evolution of the European Courts? (PART 1)

Answer 29

European Court of Justice was created in 1951 by the treaty establishing the ECSC

Task: Interpretation and application of the then one treaty (ECSC) and to ensure that law was observed

Powers increased in 1958 by the Treaty of Rome – ECJ served all three communities (EEC, EURATOM and ECSC)

ECJ emerged as a supranational court: with compulsory jurisdiction over all areas falling within the scope of the treaties and making binding decisions for Community institutions, individuals and MS

Question 30

What is the history and evolution of the European Courts? (PART 2)

Answer 30

Court of First Instance (now the General Court): was est. by the SEA in 1986 and was initially attached to the ECJ

Treaty of Nice: Distinction of CFI from ECJ. Judicial panels were attached to the CFI

Jurisdiction: Gradually increases as more and more areas fall within QMV and have moved out of the second and third pillar

Question 31

What is the Composition of the European Courts?

Answer 31

Both courts – consist of 28 judges (one for each member state) with the ECJ also including eight advocate generals

Advocate generals: Provide impartial and independent assistance to judges – present an assessment of EU law and propose legal solutions (first opinion)

President of the Court: elected by the judges for three-year terms. Role to oversee direction of ECJ work (assign cases etc) and can order the suspension of the Union’s work and order interim measures if necessary

Court registrar: Appointed for six years by the Court and is responsible for procedural and administrative matters

Question 32

Case Studies on Judicial Activism on Article 34 (Case 1)

Answer 32

Article 34 – ‘quantitative restrictions on imports and all measures having equivalent effect shall be prohibited between states”

ECJ ‘deregulatory’ interpretation – able to remove some of the barriers towards a single market

Case 1: Dassonville decision (1974) - ECJ declared illegal any national rule that hindered directly/ indirectly trade within the Community. Included quotas, restrictions on imports, internal rules

Question 33

Case Studies on Judicial Activism on Article 34 (Case 2)

Answer 33

Article 34 – ‘quantitative restrictions on imports and all measures having equivalent effect shall be prohibited between states”

ECJ ‘deregulatory’ interpretation – able to remove some of the barriers towards a single market

Case 2: Cassis de Dijon decision (1979) established that any product that can be legally sold in one MS can be legally sold anywhere in the EU. Established the principle of mutual recognition