THE INSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE EC

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1 THE INSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE EC Institutions and bodies No rigid separation of powers (legislative, executive, judicial) A single institutional framework for the EU (art. 3 TEU) The institutions (art. 7 TEC): European Parliament, Council, Commission, Court of Justice, Court of Auditors; the European Council (art. 4 TEU); European Council and European Central Bank (art. 13 TEU Lisbon) The European system of central banks (ESCB, art. 8 TEC, art. 282 TFEU): European Central Bank and national central banks Bodies: Economic and Social Committee, Commitee of Regions, European Investment Bank

2 Fundamental institutional principles A single institutional framework for the EU and EC The principle of enumerated competencies (art. 5(1) TEC, art. 5 TEU Lisbon) The principle of loyal (sincere) cooperation (art. 10 TEC, art. 4 TEU Lisbon): Member States and European institutions The principle of subsidiarity and proportionality (art. 5(2)(3) TEC, art. 5(3)(4) TEU Lisbon)

3 The political institutions: European Parliament and Council Political and control institutions The European Parliament: evolution of compositions and functions From the Parliamentary assembly to an elected European Parliament ( ) Term and composition (arts 189 and 190 TEC, art 14 TEU Lisbon, arts TFEU) European and national political parties (art. 191 TEC, art. 224 TFEU)

4 Functions of the European Parliament Political control and participation to the lawmaking process Political control: information from other EC institutions, questions, temporary committees of inquiry (art. 193 TEC, 226 TFEU) Petitions by European citizens and the Ombudsman (art. 195 TEC, art. 227 TFEU) Political control over the Commission: motion of censure (art. 201 TEC, art. 234 TFEU) Standing to start an action in front of the ECJ (art. 230 TEC, art. 263 TFEU): evolution

5 The Council European Council (# Council of Europe), Council: arts 15 and 16 TEU Lisbon Composition: representatives of the governments of Member States Variable composition: the role of COREPER (Comité des répresentants permanents, art. 207 TEC, art. 240 TFEU, art. 16 (6-8) TEU Lisbon) The Presidency: problems of continuity and reform (art. 15 (5-6) TEU Lisbon) The High Representative for the common foreign and security policy (art. 207(2) TEC, art. 18 TEU Lisbon)

6 The law-making power of the Council Functions: law-making power, coordination of economic policies of the Member States, delegation of implementing powers to the Commission (art. 202 TEC, art. 16 TEU Lisbon) Voting systems: unanimity, simple majority, qualified majority; complexity of the system and interinstitutional balance The expansion of qualified majority vote: from intergovernmentalism to supranationalism; TEU Lisbon: double majority members/population (art. 16 (3-5)) The European Council: the political engine of the EU (art. 15 TEU Lisbon)

7 The democratic deficit of the EU Democratic deficit: what does it mean? Democracy and legitimacy The balance of power between the European institutions and the Member States The balance of power among the European institutions: no rigid separation of powers The role of national political parties and national public opinion Towards the United States of Europe or a European Community of States? The role of the European peoples; Art. 12 TEU Lisbon; Protocol on the role of national parliaments (no. 1): information and contron on subsidiarity

8 The Commission The Commission (art. 211 TEC, art. 244 TFEU, art. 17 TEU Lisbon): the engine of the European Community Functions: control of the application of EC law (art. 211 TEC, art. 17 TEU Lisbon) Monopoly over law-making initiative (exceptions) Implementation of EC measures delagation by the Council

9 The role of the Commission Composition: one member for each member States (art. 213 TEC) The future: less commissioners than member States Rotation system (see protocol on enlargement) Guarantees of independence Working method A hybrid nature: law-making, executive powers, quasi-judicial powers

10 The Commission as the engine of the EC Appointment of the Commission: the role of the Council and the European Parliament (art. 17 (7) TEU Lisbon, art. 214 TEC) The role of the President of the Commission (art. 17 (6) TEU Lisbon) Political control by the European Parliament: the motion of censure (art. 201 TEC, art. 234 TFEU) The link between the Commission and the council: the comitology system

11 The Court of Justice The Court of Justice and the Court of first Instance; the judicial panels (civil service); Lisbon Treaty: Court of Justice, General court, specialised courts (art. 19 TEU) The composition of the Court: one judge for each member State; requirements (art. 223 TEC, art. 253 TFEU) The Advocate general (art. 222 TEC, art. 252 TFEU) The jurisdiction of the Court of first instance (art. 225 TEC, art. 256 TFEU)

12 The judicial function The role of the Court: interpretation and application of the law (art. 220 TEC, # art. 19 TEU Lisbon) The composition of the Court: chambers and plenary sittings The procedure: the statute and the rules of procedure; the conclusions of the Advocate general The relationship between the Court of Justice and the Court of first instance: right of appeal and limits (art. 225 TEC, art. 256 TFEU)

13 Changes and challenges in the European judicial structure The crisis of the judicial system: victim of its own success? The problem of the caseload: enlargment and deepening The role of judicial control in the second and third pillar: limits; reform in the Lisbon Treaty (arts TFEU) The reform of the judicial arichitecture by the Treaty of Nice: towards a multi-level judicial system and a European constitutional court The European judicial system as a decentralysed system: the relationship between the European and the national courts

14 Other institutions The Court of Auditors (art. 246 TEC, art. 285 TFEU): composition and functions Consultative bodies: the Social and Economic Committee (art. 257 TEC, art. 301 TFEU) and the Committee of the Regions (art. 263 TEC,art. 305 TFEU) The institutions of the European Monetary Union: the European Central Bank and the System of European Central Banks (art. 112 TEC, art. 282 TFEU) The European Investment Bank (art. 266 TEC, art. 308 TFEU) The EC agencies: variety and plurality