European Union InstitutionsBy Mrs Hilton

No 1 in a series of 3 presentations:

1. EU Institutions2. How EU Laws are made3. Types of EU laws (which you will

make!)

Learning objectives

1. To be able to discuss the two roles of the EU commission

2. To be able to identify the role of the EP

3. To be able to illustrate the roles of the ECJ with cases

Why is the EU interesting to law students?It makes laws relating to a wide

range of issues◦E.g. Environment◦E.g. Rights of workers

EU Institutions

The EU is made up of 4 institutions:1. EU Commission2. European Parliament (EP)3. Council of Ministers4. European court of Justice

(ECJ)(EECE)

EU Commission

27 independent commissionersWork for good of EU rather than

member statesCommission has 2 main roles

◦Initiator of new laws (creating new laws for benefit of EU member states)

◦Guardian of the treaties (making sure EU law enforced)

ReadWhat’s wrong with our food?

European Parliament 1

785 members of the EP called Meps

Elected every 5 years in their member states

Allocated seats in proportion to their country population

May join a political party or remain independent

Co-decides laws on education and culture

European Parliament 2They elect a president:

Hans Gert-Pottering

Read Press Release

European Parliament 3

They have power to ◦Reject Commissions’ proposed EU

budget◦Hold the Commission and Council of

Minsters accountable◦Dismiss the whole Commission

◦Read World: Europe crackdown on Euro-Sleaze to find out what happened in 1999

Council of Ministers 1

27 Ministers one from each member state

Changes depending on what is being discussed◦E.g. Farming matters – minister for

rural affairs will attendCOM decides which of the

Commissions proposals should be made law

Council of Minsters 2 The Council has legislative power, which it shares with the

European Parliament under the ‘co-decision procedure’. In addition to this, the Council and the Parliament share equal responsibility for adopting the EU budget. The Council also concludes international agreements that have been negotiated by the Commission.

According to the Treaties, the Council has to take its decisions either by a simple majority vote, a ‘qualified majority’ vote or unanimously, depending on the subject to be decided.

The Council has to agree unanimously on important questions such as amending the Treaties, launching a new common policy or allowing a new country to join the Union.

In most other cases, qualified majority voting is used. This means that a Council decision is adopted if a specified minimum number of votes are cast in its favour. The number of votes allocated to each EU country roughly reflects the size of its population.

Council of Ministers

Also known as the Council of the European Union

Number of votes for each country in the Council

Germany, France, Italy and the United Kingdom 29 Spain and Poland 27 Romania 14 Netherlands 13 Belgium, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary and

Portugal 12 Austria, Bulgaria and Sweden 10 Denmark, Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia and Finland 7 Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg and Slovenia 4 Malta 3

Total: 345 (need 255 for majority)

European Court of Justice 1

The ECJ is in Luxembourg27 judges hold high judicial

positions in home countryJudges appointed for 6 year termAssisted by 8 Advocates General

(Lawyers)◦Research cases sent to court◦Produce written opinions – which help

member states work out precedent set by the case

ECJ 22 roles

◦Judicial role◦Supervisory role

ECJ Judicial roleTo decide cases brought against

member states or EU institutions (Commission can make states comply)

Re Tachographs: EC Commission v UK (1979)The UK was not complying with strict EU transport laws, which required HGVs to be fitted with a tachograph machine to limit number of hours a driver is allowed on road without a break. The ECJ forced the UK to abide by law.

ECJ Supervisory roleWhere a case being heard in a member state

court – concerning EU law can be referred to ECJ for a decision

Highest court in member state will make the referral

Must be on a question of EU LawNot for people wanting to take appeal higher

than HOL

Read Adidas case

Marshall v Southampton Area Health Authority (1986)Marshall had been forced to retire from her job. In the UK the retirement age for men was 65 years old, yet for women it was 60 years old. Marshall argued that her employer would not have been able to treat a man the same way. As this case involved EU laws regarding sex discrimination, the HOL referred the case to the ECJ fir a decision. The ECJ agreed that Marshall should win her case. The UK then had to change the retirement age making it same for men and women.

Quiz1. What case illustrates the judicial role of the ECJ?2. What case illustrates the supervisory role of the ECJ?3. Why did the whole Commission resign in 1999?4. What happened when France refused to lift the

British beef ban in 1999?5. What are the two roles of the commission?6. How many Advocates General are there, and what

do they do?7. If the Commission initiates new laws – what does the

Council of Minsters do?8. Does the EP have the power to dismiss the whole

Commission?9. How many MEPs are there? And why are there that

many?

Answers1. Re Tachographs: EC Commission v UK (1979)

2. Marshall v Southampton Area Health Authority (1986)

3. Over sleaze allegations

4. The Commission commenced proceedings against France

5. Initiator of new laws / Guardian of the treaties

6. 8 Ags and they research cases sent to court and produce written opinions to support judges in ECJ

7. Decides which of the Commissions proposals should be made into law

8. Yes

9. 785 elected every 5 years from member states, allocated seats in proportion to population.