Introduction.
The European Union is an international organization that consists of member states found in Europe. The primary role of the European Union is to promote democracy and to ensure that human rights are preserved. It also ensures citizens follow the rule of law in Europe. The meetings held by the head of the member states form the European Council. The concept of executive power in the European Union consists of the European Council and the European Parliament. This arm of the European Union has the legislative powers. The European Commission is the second arm of the European Union that has the executive powers (Bulmer, 2020). The court of justice of the European Union is another arm whose role and powers are judicial.
Analysis and Arguments.
The European Council consists of 47 member countries. It, therefore, consists of 28 presidents and prime ministers of the member countries. It is mandated to set up the momentum for the development of the European Union. This is usually achieved by setting out the guidelines and principles that will govern the European union into fulfilling its roles. The European Council also consists of a president elected by the members of the European Union whose purpose is to lead the entire Council. The European Council also consists of the President of the European Commission. This is the executive branch of the European Union. The European Council, however, does not have the powers to initiate executive roles; it is the European Commission. Instead, the European Council plays an essential role in providing the guidelines and principles into formulating executive policies. Therefore, the European Council has the executive power. The European Council also consists of the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security, who is only present in the Council when matters of foreign affairs are being discussed. The European Council also consists of the President of the European Central Bank, whose presence is also dependent on the topic of discussion by the council members.
The powers of the European Council include providing leadership to the European Union following the Lisbon Treaty. This is achieved by analyzing the general political direction of the European Union. After that, the European Council recommends the best priorities for the European Union politically. The other power of the European Council is crisis and risk management. These are factors that affect the management of the European Union. The European Council, therefore, takes the central role in such a scenario by making and entering into agreements with the other parties involved in the crisis. This is where the national representatives are unable to solve their differences with the opposing parties. Thirdly, the other power of the European Council is ensuring economic and fiscal coordination. This is achieved through appointing the right President of the European Central Bank to the office to ensure that the financial and fiscal policies are followed. The European Council also has the power to appoint the right High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security into the office of security, freedom, and social justice hence ensuring the safety of the citizens of Europe (Greenwood, 2017).
The European Council, however, does not have the powers to make laws. However, its primary legislative role is to announce the legislative results agreed upon by all members of the European Union. Yet, before the announcements of the legislative results, the European Council has roles to play. One of these roles is identifying the specific legislative matters that need action. This sets the pace for all the members to make the conclusion and propose possible measures. The European Council may also set the deadlines in which the participants should meet following the conclusion they are supposed to make. Overall, the European Council has the power of shaping the policy and the goals of the European Union.
The European Council, European Commission, and the European Parliament fall under the European Union. However, these arms have different roles to play. Thus, the correlate since the fall under one union. Therefore, the following section is going to explain in detail the relationship between the three arms of the European Union. The European Parliament consists of a member from different international political parties. The central role of the European Parliament is to take part in the European Union’s legislative Council. The European Council on the other hand, comprises of the heads of states. The central role of the European Council is to promote and reconcile national interests. It also sets out the agenda, providing direction, and making critical decisions for the European Union. These two entities however are of political importance to the European Union (Hodson & Peterson, 2017). The two bodies, moreover, are correlated. This implies that one of the entities oversees the actions of the other entity. For instance, the European Parliament regulates the European Council’s involvement in political issues. The European Parliament also oversees the transparency and accountability of the European Council. The European Parliament and the European have some roles and duties that bring the two entities together. For instance, at the start of every European Council meeting, the President of the European Parliament attends the meeting where they give an opening speech concerning their views of the actions taken by the European Council. The European Parliament also holds parliamentary debates regarding actions taken by the European Council that affect the European Union as a whole.
European Commission, on the other hand, consists of 27 commissioners, each from different member states of the European Union. The commission is led by a president as well. The European Commission also consists of eight vice presidents, three executive vice presidents, a High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and eighteen commissioners. The President of the European Commission assigns duties to all the members. The primary role of the European Commission formulating and enforcing the legislative policies for the European Union. It, therefore, has the executive power in the European Union. However, the proposed laws and regulations should be approved by the European Council as well as the European Parliament (Jacobs & Corbett, 2019). Nevertheless, the European Commission has the role of protecting the interests of the European Union and the citizens in general, which cannot be handled at the national level. However, this entity is related to the European Council and the European Parliament in various ways. The European Commission first has the powers of implementing the decision made by the European Commission and the European Parliament.
The European Commission also works hand in hand with the European Council and the European Parliament by choosing the top spending priorities for the European Union. The European Commission also proposes the annual budget for the European Union. After the proposal is made, the budget should be approved by the European Council and the European Parliament. The European Council, in conjunction with the European Parliament, has the power of appointing the President of the European Commission. The European Parliament conducts the election, after which the winning candidates are put forward before the European Council for an appointment. The winning presidential candidate then appoints the vice presidents. Therefore, the three entities, the European Council, the European Parliament, and the European Commission, work hand in hand for the success of the European Union. None of them can work without the help of others. Therefore, the three entities should join forces and put aside political differences and any other differences for a better European Union. Hence, promoting the rule of law in Europe and fighting for social justice.
The European Council has some political and legal roles assigned to it in the European Union. The political role played by the European Council has been, in the long term, misunderstood as negative political roles. However, the following section will explain in detail the role of the European Council in shaping the political figure of the European Union. The overall political role of the European Council is defining the political direction that the European Union should take. It involves setting out the best priorities that will build an exceptional political figure for the European Union. The other political role of the European Council is taking center stage in appointing the executive personnel of the European Union (Johnston, 2019). For instance, the European Council appoints its own President. It also has the powers of proposing the President of the European Commission with the help of the European Parliament. The European Council also has a political role of appointing the commissioners of the European Commission. Nevertheless, the European Council has the political purpose of appointing the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy as well as the executive leadership of the Central Bank of Europe.
The European Council is one of the two bodies of the legislative branch in the European Union. The other entity is the European Parliament. Therefore, the legal roles of the European Council, on the other hand, include the following. First, the European Council plays the legal function is to amend and approve the laws formulated by the European Commission. The other legal role of the European Council is to formulate budgets for areas such as foreign policies and coordination of macroeconomic factors. The European Parliament, however, works together with the European Council in formulating the budget, but the European Council is more potent than the European Parliament.
Conclusion.
The European Council has the executive power over the other arms of the European Union based on the roles it plays. Therefore, the three divisions of the European Union should work together to fulfill the purposes of the European Union. Moreover, the members of the European Council should elect wisely by the citizens of Europe. This will ensure a useful representation of their need in the European Union.
Question Two.
Introduction.
The Treaty of Maastricht first formulated the process of co-decision. The parties involved in the co-decision procedure are the European Council and the European Parliament since it is a legislative process. The method of reaching a co-decision comprises consensus (Moser, 2016). The co-decision process has significant impacts on various sectors in Europe. Some of the affected areas, include, first, improving the working environments in most of the companies. This will ensure the health safety and protection of the workers. The second area where the co-decision procedure is the equality between men and women in society. The other areas where co-decision procedures are applicable include modernization of social protection systems, incorporation of unemployed people, and many others. However, the process of co-decision follows a specific system during implementation. These steps will be explained in detail in the following section. Besides, the process of co-decision is paramount since it promotes fairness since the opinions of the citizens get to be heard through the representation in the European Council and the European Parliament.
Analysis and Arguments.
The procedure of co-decision is based on an Ordinary Legislative Procedure, and it involves the three arms of the European Union. The European Commission formulates and proposes the laws which should be approved by the European Council and the European Parliament before passing the laws. The Ordinary Legislative Procedure has seven steps that will be explained in detail below. The seven steps are divided among the first reading, the second reading, and a trilogue. The first procedure is where the commission plays a role in the co-decision process. This is where the European Commission submits its legislative proposals to the European Parliament (Ludlow, 2018). The people involved in the formulation of the proposal include the European Investment Bank, European Central Bank, European Parliament, the citizens’ opinions, and a quarter of the member states. After the proposal, the first reading is the second step and is done in Parliament. During this stage, the European Parliament scrutinizes the proposal and make changes where necessary and decide whether to adopt or not.
The third step of the Ordinary Legislative Procedure is the first reading but in the Council. During this step, the European Council decides whether to accept the Parliament’s decisions. If that is not the case, the European Council has a chance of amending the proposal and returns the amended proposal to the European Parliament for the second reading, which is the fourth step. Under this stage, the European Parliament reviews the European Council’s proposal, and if accepted, it is approved and passed (Dionigi & Rasmussen, 2019). If the European Parliament rejects the proposal, the law is not passed, and the procedure of reviewing it is also canceled. However, if the European Parliament has amendments, the proposal is returned to the Council for the second reading. This is the fifth stage of the Ordinary Legislative Procedure. Under this stage, the European Council may accept the amendments by the European Parliament, or reject. When the Council agrees with the changes, the proposal is adopted, and if it is rejected, the entire procedure is canceled.
The sixth stage of the Ordinary Legislative Procedure is conciliation. The committee forming the conciliation comprises of equal members from the European Parliament and the European Council. This is where the conciliation committee agrees on the canceled proposal by the European Commission under a joint text. However, if the conciliation committee rejects the proposal, the proposal does not qualify to enter force, and the entire procedure is wrapped up. If, in any case, the conciliation committee agrees on a joint text, it is returned to the European Parliament and the European Council for the third readings. This forms the last step of the Ordinary Legislative Procedure and is also known as a trilogue. The European Parliament does the third hearing first. The European Parliament votes in plenary, and if the joint text loses, it is rejected hence not adopted. On the other hand, if the joint text wins, it is approved and submitted to the European Council for the trilogue. The European Council can either reject or accept the joint text. When it is rejected, the procedure is canceled; hence the proposal is not adopted. If the joint text is accepted, the proposal is approved and passed.
Conclusion.
From the analysis above, it can be deduced that the European Union is dependent on the three arms for its success. Therefore, the Ordinary Legislative Procedure should be carefully followed before making any decisions or passing laws. This is done in favor of the citizens of Europe since the European Union is just a representative.
Question Three.
Introduction.
The European Union has the legislative branch. The forming entities of the legislative branch are the European Parliament and the European Council. The legislative role is exercised more by the European Parliament. This is because it plays more legislative roles than the European Council. Some of these roles include amending and adopting legislation, formulating budgets for the European Union, supervising the works of the other bodies such as the European Council as well as the European Commission (McCormick, 2017). However, the national Parliament also has legislative powers. Therefore, it cats as the competing party for the European Parliament. The National Parliament, however, has more powers than the European Parliament. This is because the National Parliament can formulate and pass the laws. However, this role has been misused by the members of the National Parliament in the long run. Therefore, there is a need to assign more powers to the European Parliament more powers than the National Parliament. The reasons for this statement will be explained further in the next section.
Analysis and Arguments.
The National Parliament comprises of the legislatures from all the member states of the European Union. The National Parliament works under the treaty of Lisbon as well, and its primary role is to examine the proposed laws by the European Union (Chalmers et al., 2019). However, the members of the National Parliament are appointed to the European Parliament as members of the European Parliament. This is because the two bodies work hand in hand. Moreover, the National Parliament and the European Parliament formed an entity known as the Conference of European Community Affairs Committees (COSAC). This body was formed to ensure that the National Parliament and the European Parliament keep in touch after every six months since the meeting is held after this duration annually. The COSAC meets to discuss and examine the laws proposed by the European Union. Moreover, the relationship between the European Parliament and the National Parliament is also handled by a body called the Conference of Presidents. These two managing bodies expect the European Parliament, COSAC and the Conference of Presidents, to report to the National Parliament concerning all the activities conducted by the European Parliament. This is achieved through a process where the European Parliament invites the members of the National Parliament to discuss various proposals.
The National Parliament plays various roles. One of these roles include; first, it scrutinizes the member governments of the European Union. After scrutiny, the National Parliament influences the member government to act in legitimate ways by holding them accountably. The other role of the National Parliament concerning the European Union is holding meetings and dialogues with the European Union’s bodies, such as the European Parliament and the European Commission (Nugent, 2017). The conversations and meetings are in line with legislative matters such as formulating laws, passing of bills, and adoption of the laws. Thirdly, the National Parliament also carries out a subsidiary inspection on the European Union. This is to ensure that the European Union follows the reasoned opinion procedures when formulating legislative proposals. Lastly, the National Parliament is involved in the inter-preliminary cooperation of the European Union. This is where the National Parliament, in conjunction with the European Parliament, works hand in hand to fulfill the legislative duties and roles.
Unlike the European Parliament, the National Parliament has the power to formulate laws and adopt them. The European Parliament, on the other hand, helps in setting out the principles and guidelines for the European Commission to develop the rules. There is no procedure like the Ordinary Legislative Procedure followed by the National Parliament in adopting the laws. Therefore, the formulated and adopted laws might be passed following personal benefits by the members of the National Parliament. Thus, the powers of the European Parliament should be enhanced since it represents the needs of the citizens (Servent, 2017). Moreover, the European Parliament consists of personnel who represent the interest of the citizens. Therefore, enhancing the roles of the European Parliament than the National Parliament would be more effective. Nevertheless, strengthening the legislative power of the European Parliament will help in formulating the budget of the European Union. This is because the European Parliament relates the work and role of the European Union. The budgetary formulation also is in line with the welfare of the citizens. Therefore, the chances of pursuing personal benefits and gains as opposed to the National Parliament. Furthermore, the National Parliament plays many roles; hence the effectiveness of the functions and duties is minimized. Therefore, enhancing the legislative powers of the European Parliament will promote the division of labor. This translates to the effectiveness of work due to specialization.
Conclusion.
The European Parliament should, therefore, be given more powers than the National Parliament. Because of this, the interests and the needs of the citizens of Europe will be represented adequately. Nevertheless, this will ensure the effectiveness of the legislative roles and duties. The responsible authorities in Europe should thus enhance the legislative powers of the European Parliament.
References
Bulmer, S. (2020). The member states of the European Union. Oxford University Press, USA.
Chalmers, D., Davies, G., & Monti, G. (2019). European union law. Cambridge university press.
Dionigi, M. K., & Rasmussen, A. (2019). The Ordinary Legislative Procedure. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics.
Greenwood, J. (2017). Interest representation in the European Union. Macmillan International Higher Education.
Hodson, D., & Peterson, J. (Eds.). (2017). The institutions of the European Union. Oxford University Press.
Jacobs, F., & Corbett, R. (2019). The European Parliament. Routledge.
Johnston, M. (2019). The European Council: Gatekeeper of the European Community. Routledge.
Ludlow, P. (2018). The European Commission. The New European Community (pp. 85-132). Routledge.
Moser, P. (Ed.). (2016). Decision rules in the European Union: A rational choice perspective. Springer.
McCormick, J. (2017). Understanding the European Union: a concise introduction. Palgrave.
Nugent, N. (2017). The government and politics of the European Union. Palgrave.
Servent, A. R. (2017). The European Parliament. Macmillan International Higher Education.
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