EUROPEAN PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS
Results of the June 6-9 European Parliament elections, in which about 51% of 370 million-plus electors in 27 European Union (EU) countries voted, showed gains for rightwing and far right parties at the cost of mainly Left and liberal parties.
The centre-right group European People’s Party (EPP) was projected to win the most seats, 186 (10 more than in 2019), in the 705-member House (It will now become a 720 member House) that meets in Strasbourg, France.
THE INSTITUTIONS IN EUROPE
The EU is a unique supranational entity. Its member states pool their sovereignty to acquire a collective strength and global influence that they cannot achieve individually.
In practice, this means that member states delegate some of their decision-making powers to the shared institutions they have established.
THE INSTITUTIONS:
- The European Commission (EC)
- The Council of the EU, and
- The European Parliament,
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
- Role: Promotes the general interest of the EU by proposing and enforcing legislation as well as by implementing policies and the EU budget
- Members: a team or ‘College’ of Commissioners, 1 from each EU country
- President: Ursula von der Leyen
- Year established: 1958
- Location: Brussels (Belgium)
- Website: https://commission.europa.eu/index_en
The European Commission is the EU’s politically independent executive arm. It is alone responsible for drawing up proposals for new European legislation, and it implements the decisions of the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.
THE COUNCIL OF EU
- Role: Voice of EU member governments, adopting EU laws and coordinating EU policies
- Members: Government ministers from each EU country, according to the policy area to be discussed
- President: Each EU country holds the presidency on a 6-month rotating basis
- Established In: 1958 (as Council of the European Economic Community)
- Location: Brussels (Belgium)
- website: https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/
In the Council of the EU, informally also known as the Council, government ministers from each EU country meet to discuss, amend and adopt laws, and coordinate policies. The ministers have the authority to commit their governments to the actions agreed on in the meetings. Council meetings take place in Brussels, except for three months (April, June and October) when they are held in Luxembourg.
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
- Role: Eirectly-elected EU body with legislative, supervisory, and budgetary responsibilities
- Members: 720 MEPs (Members of the European Parliament) (705 until 2024 elections)
- President: Roberta Metsola
- Established In: 1952 as Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel community, 1962 as European Parliament, first direct elections in 1979
- Location: Strasbourg (France), Brussels (Belgium), Luxembourg
- Website: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/portal/en
The European Parliament is the EU’s law-making body. It is directly elected by EU voters every 5 years.
ALLOCATIONS OF SEATS
The 720 seats of the Parliament are allocated on the principle of ‘degressive proportionality’, meaning smaller states elect more MEPs than their populations would proportionally warrant.
No country can have fewer than 6 or more than 96 MEPs. The total number cannot exceed 750 (plus the President)
MEPs are chosen by proportional representation, ensuring the number of elected MEPs is proportional to the votes they receive.
MEPs are grouped by political affiliation, not by nationality.
The President represents Parliament to other EU institutions and the outside world and gives the final go-ahead to the EU budget.
FUNCTIONS OF THE PARLIAMENT
The Parliament has 3 main roles:
- Legislative
- Passing EU laws, together with the Council of the EU, based on European Commission proposals
- Deciding on international agreements
- Deciding on enlargements
- Reviewing the Commission’s work programme and asking it to propose legislation
- Supervisory
- Democratic scrutiny of all EU institutions
- Electing the Commission President and approving the Commission as a body. possibility of voting a motion of censure, obliging the Commission to resign
- Granting Discharge, i.e. approving the way EU budgets have been spent
- Examining citizens’ petitions and setting up inquiries
- Discussing monetary policy with the european central bank
- Questioning Commission and Council
- Election Observations
- Budgetary
- Establishing the EU budget, together with the Council
- Approving the EU’s long-term budget, the “Multiannual Financial Framework”
HOW DOES THE PARLIAMENT WORK?
Parliament’s work comprises two main stages:
- Committees – to prepare legislation.
The Parliament numbers 20 committees and three subcommittees, each handling a particular policy area. The committees examine proposals for legislation, and meps and political groups can put forward amendments or propose to reject a bill. these issues are also debated within the political groups.
- Plenary sessions – to pass legislation.
This is when all the MEPs gather in the chamber to give a final vote on the proposed legislation and the proposed amendments. Normally held in strasbourg for four days a month, but sometimes there are additional sessions in brussels.
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