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EU Institutions Revision Sheet

The Institutional Framework
The Institutional Framework of the Union was originally laid down by the European Coal and Steel
Community (ECSC) Treaty, which established a mix of supranational and international institutions in
a tripartite system consisting of the Council of Ministers, the Commission, and the European
Parliament (The Assembly)
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The
European Council has now become the main policy=steering body which has been formalized as the
main institution (Article 13 TEU), and the additional consultive bodies such as the Committee of the
Region (CoR) and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) which gather the opinions of
public interest and feed them in to the decision-making process
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e
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However, the Judicial Branch is most notably separate, although
under Article 13 TEU an institutional balance is required whereby each institution must not act
beyond powers granted to them by treaties
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The Nice Treaty and the 2004 accession negotiations by Bulgaria and Romania agreed that
the number of Commissioners should be reduced to two-thirds of member states
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Although Article 17(5) still commits to the reduction of Commissioners, the guarantees given
to Ireland to hold a new referendum in 2009 reinstated the principle of one Commissioner
per state and hence there are currently 28 Commissioners
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Although Commissioners are nominated representatives of the member states, they are
required under Article 17(3) TEU and 245 TFEU to not seek instruction from governments
and act completely independently
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The Commission is not considered a massive bureaucracy with only 23,000 staff working
directly in the Commission Directorates
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They are then subject to
approval to the European Parliament by majority vote
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The High representative is appointed by the European Council by QMV with the agreement
of the Commission President
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The term served is a renewable period of 5 years under Article 17(3) TEU
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Removal of the Commission
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The Commission can be removed by a vote of censure by the European Parliament (EP), but
only collectively until the replacement committee is appointed in its entirety
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Also, single commissioners can be removed by request of the Commission President under
Article 17(6) TEU
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Tasks and Duties
Article 17 TEU imposes duties upon the Commission promoting the general interest of the Union
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Main functions:
1) Must ensure that the provisions of the Treaty and the measures taken by the institutions
under the are applied
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2) It formulates and proposes policy initiatives and legislative proposals by way of
recommendations on matters as expressly provided for by the Treaty or as the Commission
deems necessary
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They have the sole
right to propose legislation under Article 17(2) TEU
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3) It has limited powers of independent decision-making by participation in the shaping of the
measures taken by the Council of Ministers and by the EP under Article 211 EC
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4) It has powers under delegated and implementing legislation procedures conferred on it by
the Council of Ministers and the EP for the adoption of non-legislative administrative, or
regulatory acts (Articles 290 and 291 TFEU)
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EU Institutions Revision Sheet

The Council (of Ministers) of the EU

The council of Ministers of the EU is NOT the same as the European Council, but is often referred to
as the Cou il
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The Council decides on the adoption of legislative proposal, in a procedure known as the
ordi ary legislati e pro edure u der Article 289 TFEU
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Along with the EP, the Council are
responsible for adopting the annual budget under Article 314 TFEU
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This can be done by
simple majority votes
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Council general law-making powers
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As well as specific powers to enact legislation under particular Articles within the Treaty, the
Council also have general powers to enact legislation
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Article 352 TFEU provides generally that the Council can enact measures required to meet
the objectives of the Union
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COREPER and the Council Secretariat
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COREPER are the committee of permanent representatives built up of senior national
officials
COREPER are not formally established under Articles 16(7) and 240(2) TFEU, and aims to
reduce the workload of the Council
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Article 240(2) also provides for a permanent Council Secretariat to overtake much of the
mundane work of the Council, such as the organisation and preparation of meetings, and
also assists the European Council and the High Representative
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They have no legislative function
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The European Council has been criticised for being a completely intergovernmental organization
who are placed at the top of the EU Institution Hierarchy
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The European Parliament
Functions and powers
Legislative powers
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The primary legislative powers of the EP are granted under Article 14(1) TEU, which
empowers them to exercise legislative and budgetary functions jointly with the Council
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The Lisbon Treaty furthered this power considerably in more than 40 instances
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The EP can also question the Court of Justice as to whether a proposed international
agreement breaches a treaty
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The EP now also has the right of participation in the revision of Treaties, under Article 49
TEU, by submitting their proposals to the European Council
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The President of the Commission is voted for via QMV which must then be approved by the
EP
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In 2004 the Commission was
required to be reconstituted as a result of the EP taking objection to a particular
Commissioner
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Ability to question the Commission or the Council under Article 230 TFEU
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By a two-thirds vote by the EP, they have the power to censure the Commission under
Articles 17(8) and 234 TFEU
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However, the Commission President CAN have the
power to remove an individual commissioner under Article 17(6) TEU
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However, this
consultation can be ignored once received by the Council
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The Committee are governed by Articles 301 – 304 TFEU
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The CoR are governed by Articles 305-307 TFEU
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