THE DECISION-MAKING STRUCTURE BEFORE THE TREATY OF AMSTERDAM

 		 
    In the following chapter I will present briefly the three core institutions of the European Union as they are presented in the internet pages of Institutions of the European Union, unless otherwise stated.

 
   

The European Parliament

 
    Originally, the Treaty of Rome (1957) gave the Parliament only a consultative role, allowing the Commission to propose and the Council of Ministers to decide legislation. Subsequent Treaties have extended Parliament's influence to amending and even adopting legislation so that the Parliament and Council now share the power of decision in a large number of areas.

 
    The decision-making procedures at the moment are numerous. In order to understand the changes the Treaty of Amsterdam is about to bring I will introduce briefly few procedures applied by the core institutions of the European Union. Under consultation procedure the Council must consult the European Parliament and take its views into account. However, it is not bound by Parliament's position but only by the obligation to consult it. The procedure applies in particular to the common agricultural policy. (Ref. Reform Glossary.)

 
    The cooperation procedure allows Parliament to improve proposed legislation by amendment. It involves two readings in Parliament, giving members ample opportunity to review and amend the Commission's proposal and the Council's preliminary position on it. This procedure applies to a large number of areas including the European Regional Development Fund, research, the environment and overseas cooperation and development.

 
    The co-decision procedure referred to in Article 189b was introduced by the Treaty on European Union. It gives Parliament the power to adopt instruments jointly, as a last resort, with the Council. In practice, it strengthens Parliament's legislative powers by giving it the right to reject proposals in the following fields: the free movement of workers, right of establishment, services, the internal market, education (incentive measures), health (incentive measures), consumer policy, trans-European networks (guidelines), environment (general action programme), culture (incentive measures) and research (framework programme). (Ref. Reform Glossary.)

 
    Under the codecision procedure between Council and Parliament, a Conciliation Committee may be set up as provided in Article 189b of the Treaty on European Union. The Committee consists of the members of the Council or their representatives and an equal number of representatives of Parliament, and is referred to in the event of any disagreement between the two institutions on the outcome of a codecision procedure, for the purpose of reaching agreement on a text acceptable to both sides. The draft of such a text must then be ratified within six weeks by qualified majority in the Council and by an absolute majority of the members of Parliament. Should one of the two institutions not approve the proposal, it is not adopted. (Ref. Reform Glossary.)

 
    The assent procedure, whereby the Council must obtain Parliament's assent (absolute majority of its members) before certain important decisions can be taken was introduced by the Single European Act. Parliament may accept or reject a proposal but cannot amend it. The assent procedure mainly concerns the accession of new Member States and certain international agreements. It is also required for citizenship, the specific tasks of the European Central Bank, amendments to the Statute of the ESCB and of the ECB, the Structural and Cohesion Funds and the uniform procedure for elections to the European Parliament. (Ref. Reform Glossary.)

 
    The European Parliament approves the Union's budget each year. The budgetary procedure allows Parliament to propose modifications and amendments to the Commission's initial proposals and to the position taken by the Member States in Council. On agricultural spending and costs arising from international agreements the Council has the last word, but on other expenditure - for example, education, social programmes, regional funds, environmental and cultural projects - Parliament decides in close cooperation with the Council. In exceptional circumstances, the European Parliament has even voted to reject the budget when its wishes have not been adequately respected.

 
   

The Council of the European Union

 
    The Council of the European Union, usually known as the Council of Ministers, has no equivalent anywhere in the world. Here, the Member States legislate for the Union, set its political objectives, coordinate their national policies and resolve differences between themselves and with other institutions. It is a body with the characteristics of both a supranational and intergovernmental organization, deciding some matters by qualified majority voting (QMV), and others by unanimity. In its procedures, its customs and practices, and even in its disputes, the Council depends on a degree of solidarity and trust which is rare in relations between States. Each meeting of the Council brings together Member States' representatives, usually ministers, who are responsible to their national parliaments and public opinions. Nowadays, there are regular meetings of more than 25 different types of Council meeting: General Affairs (Foreign Affairs ministers), Economy and Finance, and Agriculture meet monthly, others such as Transport, Environment and Industry meet two to four times a year.

 
    Presidency of the Council rotates every six months. The Presidency's role has become increasingly important as the responsibilities of the Union have broadened and deepened. It must arrange and preside over all meetings, elaborate acceptable compromises and find pragmatic solutions to problems submitted to the Council and seek to secure consistency and continuity in decision-taking.

 
   
Decision-making according to either QMV or to unanimity
 
    The Treaty on European Union based the Union's activities on three ²pillars² and established that mainly decisions should be taken either by qualified majority voting or by unanimity. Pillar One covers a wide range of Community policies (such as agriculture, transport, environment, energy, research and development) designed and implemented according to a well-proven decision-making process which begins with a Commission proposal. Following a detailed examination by experts and at the political level, the Council can either adopt the Commission proposal, amend it or ignore it. The Treaty on European Union increased the European Parliament's say through a co-decision procedure, which means that a wide range of legislation (such as internal market, consumer affairs, trans-European networks, education and health) is adopted both by the Parliament and the Council.

 
    In the vast majority of cases (including agriculture, fisheries, internal market, environment and transport), the Council decides by a qualified majority vote with Member States carrying the following weightings:

 
    Germany, France, Italy and the United Kingdom 10 votes Spain 8 votes Belgium, Greece, the Netherlands and Portugal 5 votes Austria and Sweden 4 votes Ireland, Denmark and Finland 3 votes Luxembourg 2 votes Total 87 votes

 
    When a Commission proposal is involved, at least 62 votes must be cast in favour. In other cases, the qualified majority is also 62 votes, but these must be cast by at least 10 Member States. In practice, the Council tries to reach the widest possible consensus before taking a decision so that, for example, only about 14% of the legislation adopted by the Council in 1994 was the subject of negative votes and abstentions. Those policy areas in Pillar One which are subject to unanimity include taxation, industry, culture, regional and social funds and the framework programme for research and technology development.

 
    For the other two pillars created by the Treaty on European Union - Common Foreign and Security Policy (Pillar Two) and cooperation in the fields of Justice and Home Affairs (Pillar Three), the Council is the decision-maker as well as the promoter of initiatives. Unanimity is the rule in both pillars, except for the implementing of a joint action which can be decided by qualified majority. The objectives of the Common Foreign and Security Policy are to define and implement an external policy covering all foreign and security aspects. Cooperation in Justice and Home Affairs aims to achieve the free movement of persons inside the Union; promote measures of common interest in the fields of external border control, asylum policy, immigration policy; and fight against terrorism, drug trafficking and other serious forms of international crime.

 
   
European council
 
    Since 1974, Heads of State or Government meet at least twice a year in the form of the European Council or 'European Summit'. Its membership also includes the President of the Commission. The President of the European Parliament is invited to make a presentation at the opening session. The European Council has become an increasingly important element of the Union, setting priorities, giving political direction, providing impetus for its development and resolving contentious issues that have proved too difficult for the Council of Ministers. The European Council submits a report to the European Parliament after each of its meetings and an annual written report on the progress achieved by the Union.

 
   

European Commission

 
    The role and responsibilities of the European Commission place it firmly at the heart of the European Union's policy-making process. The Council and the European Parliament need a proposal from the Commission before they can pass legislation. EU laws are mainly upheld by Commission action, the integrity of the single market is preserved by Commission policing, agricultural and regional development policies are sustained, managed and developed by the Commission as is development cooperation with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific. Research and technological development programmes, vital for the future of Europe, are organized by the Commission.

 
    The Commission, in close collaboration with the European Council, frequently provides the impulse towards further integration at the crucial moments when it is needed. Decisive initiatives in recent years have been launching the strategy which culminated in the completion of the single market in 1993, the Commission's role in drawing up a blueprint for economic and monetary union and its drive to strengthen economic and social cohesion between the regions of Europe.

 
    At the moment, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom have two commissioners and each of the other Member States have one commissioner, totaling to 20 members. Their term of office is 5 years (1995-2000). The President is chosen by the Heads of State or Government meeting in the European Council after consulting the European Parliament. The other members of the Commission are nominated by the 15 member governments in consultation with the incoming President.

 
    The Commission does not take the main decisions on Union policies and priorities - this is the prerogative of the Council and, in some cases, of the European Parliament. The classic description of the Commission's role identifies three distinct functions: initiating proposals for legislation, guardian of the Treaties and the manager and executor of Union policies and of international trade relationships. The Commission does not have an exclusive right of initiative in the two areas of intergovernmental cooperation covered by the Treaty on European Union - Common Foreign and Security Policy and cooperation on Justice and Home Affairs. But it can submit proposals in the same way as national governments and it participates in discussions at all levels.