European Commission Of The European Union

The Parliament has three months from their first initial contact with the council about the commissions proposal for legislation if they have not came to a decision whether or not to carry on with the proposed legislation or agree with the Councils view on it .Then the council will be deemed to adopt the act in accordance with its position Art 294(7)(a) TFEU. The Parliament can take different approaches within the three month timeframe. The Parliament can reject the Council’s perception if they do so then the act would be considered not to have been implemented. This is known as veto and prevents the bill becoming law. However in order for this procedure to take place there must be a majority vote of the component members of parliament. Or they can vote an majority vote to propose the amendments of the future legislation which the council has proposed.

Where does the power in the EU lie? Is it in the member States or the government? Or does the power lie in certain components of the EU such as, the Commission, the Council, the Parliament or the Court of Justice. There is no clear cut answer and the division of responses to this question from the class supports this.

The council of ministers- This is the European Union’s main decision making body, it is composed of ministers from the National governments of each of the member states, and meets in Brussels or Luxembourg to agree legislation and policy.

The European parliament is an elected parliamentary institution of the European union (EU) which was formed on November 1st 1993, they mainly focus on functions like legislation within the 28 member states that form up the European union to help sustain, control and create a political and economic community throughout Europe, the European parliament’s general role is to represent the citizens of the EU community.

6. All new EU Treaties must be ratified by each Member State according to its own constitutional provisions.

The European Court of Justice is the main governing body for the EU and enforcer of the laws over all of its member states. The functions of the European Court of Justice is to enforce Community law, to tackle disputes between member states and the European council and between the member states themselves, and also to protect the rights of all European individuals.

One of the fundamental objectives of the EU was to ensure that the law is interpreted in a consistent manner within the national courts of the Member States, expectedly this has caused complications on the issue of supremacy between the EU and the national law, the Member States presumed that they were allowed to exercise national sovereignty internally. Fundamentally, the Treaties are binding on all other Member States. The European Parliament and the Council of Ministers have enacted laws, hence the European Court has the authority to make the final judicial decisions. Therefore, in order to understand the conflict between the EU and the national law, we must first understand the concept of supremacy by defining what it is and how do national courts perceive it. The statement suggests that the issue of supremacy between the EU and the national law is ineffective unless a conflict arises. This essay will discuss progressively the operation of EU and national laws along with historical developments and criticisms, to examine as to what extent the statement is valid.

The European Union is based on the rule of law. The treaties are an agreement between EU countries and it sets objectives for the EU. To serve European communities, the purpose the European institutions which have been changed over the years and is always based on intergovernmental principles. Parliamentary Assembly; the voice of the citizens have the power of co-decision, the Courts of justice; the duty to ensure that the Community law is observed, the Council; comprises representatives of the member states, still has the most powerful role in legislative process by the procedure of majority voting, and the commission has major responsibilities for the implementation of Community law . EU countries sign the Treaty of Lisbon establishing a European Constitution.

The EU is an autonomous legal order, and its survival is dependent on the principle of supremacy. An effective, coherent system is essential for uniformity. The principle cites that when national and EU conflicts, EU law is supreme.

By definition, a supranational organization is one which, “extends beyond or transcends established borders or spheres of influence held by separate nations” (Hanks, 1991). This concept is applied to the ECJ as an emphasis on “the common goods or goals of the EU, as opposed to the separate interests of member states” (McCormick & Olsen, 2013). The ECJ effectively balances the member states’ need for representation by retaining a slightly intergovernmental element to achieve the goal of an integrated, supranational Europe. Its structure, which consists of 28 judges (representing each member state), a president, and the advocates general; gives member states security that the courts acknowledge the needs and wishes of their people, as each country is represented equally in the courts (McCormick & Olsen, 2013). By approaching the structure intergovernmentally, the ECJ allows each country to feel confident that their interests are being represented. In reality however, the judiciary is incredibly independent and impartial, so the comfort gained from its intergovernmental structure is superficial, and the ECJ is openly supranational.

Single Market and Community only ♦ -from 1.01.1999, when the euro becomes currency of 11 of the 15 member states.  2. Strengths and weaknesses of the European Union.   Firstly, it should be given the "price" of disunited and divided Europe.

In 1974, when the European Council was created, all countries decided that treaties will be agreed together and they cannot be enforceable if they are not approved democratically from all Member States. Treaties are at the top of the European Union’s hierarchy and they are primary legislations which give rights to Member states and European citizens but also create obligations to the European States to implement the “new law” into their own domestic law. Also, Treaties sets the European Union’s constitutional basis and, as stated in the case of Costa, they cannot be overridden by any national law.

The EU, with representatives from its 28 member states, enacts a broad set of policies and guidelines that local laws are supposed to be consistent with. Often considered

European Union has got executive, legislative, judiciary power and its own institutions as parliament, council, commission, court of justice, central bank and many others. Any citizens of European Union have got the possibility to vote their representatives to the European Parliament in order to directly participate in the decision making.

The European Commission is the Executive (governmental) body of the EU, initiating legislative proposals and also managing the EU’s budget (Europa, 2007). Each commission operates for a five-year period, with meetings taking place in Brussels every Wednesday. The Commission consists of a President of the Commission and twenty-eight commissioners (some vice presidents). Employees of the Commission are organised according to department (Directorates-General) and answer to a Commissioner. The Commission exists in order to represent the interests of the whole of the EU (thus arguably the whole of Europe), as opposed to individual Member States. The Commission represents the EU on a global basis and is the main participant in negotiations in areas such as trade. The appointment of Commissioners is the responsibility of the Parliament, with all having previously assumed senior positions in politics in their own country, usually within its national government. Proposals are drafted by the senior civil servant (Director-General. A proposal may be adopted if more than half of the Commissioners decide to adopt it. Once agreed, all Commissioners must give their unconditional support – similar to the collective responsibility held by the Scottish executives and the UK. The Commission works closely with both