1.2 From the Treaty of Rome to the Treaty of Lisbon
The “European Economic Community (EEC)” was established with the Treaty of Rome in 1957 with the participation of six countries (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands).
About 36 years were needed to move from the EEC with the “Common Market” to the European Community (EC) with the “Single Market” and the four freedoms (i.e. movements of goods, services, people and money) as established by the Treaty of Maastricht in 1993 and the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1999.
About 52 years were necessary to move from the European Community to the current “European Union” as established by the Treaty of Lisbon ratified by all the 28 Member States before entering into force in 2009 (Correra and Silano, 1995; Capelli et al., 2006).
Some difficulties for the further development of the European Union have emerged from the referendum that was held in the UK on 23 June 2016, to decide whether the UK should leave the European Union. As many as 51.9% of the total votes in the UK were in favour of leaving the EU. The referendum turnout was 71.8%, with more than 30 million people voting. The UK has officially left the EU on 31 January 2020 after a general election. An agreement concerning the relationships between the EU and the UK is still under negotiation.
1.3 The Main EU Institutions
The main European Union Institutions are the European Commission, the Council and the Parliament.
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union with the following tasks: (i) to “promote the general interest of the Union”, without prejudice to individual Member States; (ii) “to ensure the application of the Treaties” and adopted measures; and (iii) “to execute the budget”. The European Commission further holds a virtual monopoly on the legislative initiative, as it proposes all primary EU legislation to the European Parliament (EP) and the Council of the European Union. The Commission is also in charge of proposing and adopting delegated Regulations after consulting expert groups, composed of representatives from each EU country, which meet on a regular or occasional basis.
The College of Commissioners is composed of the representatives from all the Member States, and the Commission is structured as General Directorates. The Commissioners are appointed by the Member States. The DG Health is in charge of food safety.
The European Council brings together the Heads of State or Government of the EU Member States in quarterly meetings and seeks to set the overall direction and priorities of the European Union. The Presidents of the European Council and the European Commission are members but have no vote. Although not being a member of the European Council, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission also takes part in its meetings.
In the EU Council, the government Ministers from each EU Member State meet to discuss, amend and adopt laws and coordinate policies. The Ministers have the authority to commit their governments to the actions agreed upon in these meetings. The Council is the main decision-making institution of the EU and negotiates and adopts primary EU laws, together with the European Parliament, based on the proposals from the European Commission.
The EU Council:
- coordinates EU countries’ policies;
- develops the EU’s foreign and security policy, based on European Council guidelines;
- concludes agreements between the EU and other countries or international organizations;
- adopts the annual EU budget jointly with the European Parliament.
There are no fixed members of the EU Council as the Council meets in ten different configurations, each corresponding to the policy area being discussed. Depending on the configuration, each country sends its Minister responsible for the policy area under discussion. For example, when the Council meeting on economic and financial affairs (the “Ecofin Council”) is held, it is attended by each country’s Finance Minister.
The Foreign Affairs Council has a permanent chairperson – the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. All other Council meetings are chaired by the relevant minister of the country holding the rotating EU presidency.
Overall consistency is ensured by the General Affairs Council – which is supported by the Permanent Representatives Committee that is composed of EU countries’ Permanent Representatives to the EU. All discussions and votes take place in public. To be passed, decisions usually require a qualified majority of 55% of all EU countries representing at least 65% of the total EU population. At least four countries (representing at least 35% of the total EU population) are needed to block a decision. Sensitive topics like foreign policy and taxation require a unanimous vote (all countries pro), whereas a simple majority is required for procedural and administrative issues.
The Parliament, directly elected by the European citizens every four years, is structured as Committees. The number of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) for each country is roughly proportional to its population, but this is by degressive proportionality: no country can have fewer than 6 or more than 96 MEPs, and the total number cannot exceed 751 (750 plus the President). MEPs are grouped by political affiliation, not by nationality.
The President represents the Parliament to other EU institutions and the outside world and gives the final go-ahead to the EU budget.
Parliament’s work comprises two main stages:
- Committees – to prepare legislation. The European Parliament has 20 committees and 2 subcommittees, each handling a particular policy area. The committees examine proposals for legislation, and the members of the EP and political groups can put forward amendments or propose to reject a bill. These issues are also debated within the political groups. The Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI Committee) is in charge of food safety.
- Plenary sessions – to pass legislation. This is when all the members of the EP gather in the chamber to give a final vote on the proposed legislation and the proposed amendments. These sessions normally are held in Strasbourg, France, for four days a month, but sometimes there are additional sessions in Brussels, Belgium.
The Parliament, together with the Council, adopts the primary Regulations of the EU based on the European Commission proposals, whereas both institutions maintain the right of scrutiny for the delegated Regulations adopted by the European Commission and the Member States.
Two other institutions play important roles in the European Union:
- the Court of Justice of the EU upholds the rule of European law; and
- the Court of Auditors checks the financing of the EU’s activities.
In the EU there are a number of other institutions and interinstitutional bodies that play specific roles:
- the European Central Bank is the central bank of the European Union countries which have adopted the euro, and it is responsible for European monetary policy;
- the European External Action Service (EEAS) manages the EU’s diplomatic relations with other countries outside the bloc and conducts EU foreign and security policy;
- the European Economic and Social Committee represents civil society, employers and employees;
- the European Committee of the Regions represents regional and local authorities;
- the European Investment Bank provides funding for projects that help to achieve the aims of EU, both within and outside the EU, and helps small businesses through the European Investment Fund;
- the European Ombudsman investigates complaints about maladministration by EU institutions and bodies;
- the European Data Protection Supervisor safeguards the privacy of people’s personal data;
- the Publications Office publishes information about the EU;
- the European Personnel Selection Office recruits staff for the EU institutions and other bodies;
- the European School of Administration provides training in specific areas for the members of EU staff; and
- a host of specific agencies and bodies handle a ra...
