Council of the European Union

The Council of the European Union is the principal decision-making institution of the European Union (EU). It is often informally called the Council of Ministers or just the Council, the name used in the treaties; it is also called Consilium as a Latin language compromise. Within the competencies of the Community pillar, it is the more powerful of the two legislative chambers, the other being the European Parliament.

The Council is composed of twenty-seven national ministers (one per state). However the exact membership depends upon the topic being discussed. The Union’s law is limited to specific policy areas. However it does override national law. As the Union operates on supranational and intergovernmental platforms, in some areas the Council is superior to the Parliament, having only to consult to get assent from the body, In many areas, however, the union uses the legislative process of codecision procedure, in which the two bodies are equal in power.

The Council does not have a single president in the traditional sense, but the role is rotated between each member state every 6 months (known as the “Presidency”), with the minister from that state then able to set the agenda. Another powerful position is the Secretary General who is also the representative of the Union’s foreign policy.

The primary purpose of the Council is to act as one of the two chambers of the Union’s legislative branch. However the Council has legislative initiative in the latter two of the three pillars of the EU. It also holds, jointly with the parliament, the budgetary power of the Union and has greater control than the parliament over the intergovernmental areas of the EU. Finally, it formally holds the executive power of the EU which it confers upon the European Commission.

Legally speaking, the Council is a single entity, but it is in practice divided into several different councils. Each council deals with a different functional area. In this formation, the council is composed of ministers from each state government who are responsible for this area. They meet irregularly throughout the year except for the three major configurations (top three below) which meet once a month. There currently nine formations:

Ø General Affairs and External Relations (GAERC). The most important of the formations, GAERC is composed of ministers for foreign affairs. Since 2002 it has held separate meeting on general affairs and external relations. It also coordinates preparation for and follow-up to meeting of the European Council. It includes the ESDP and development cooperation.

Ø Economic and Financial Affairs (Ecofin). Composed of economic and finance ministers of member states it includes budgetary and eurozone matters via an informal group composed only of eurozone member ministers.

Ø Agriculture and Fisheries. One of the oldest configurations brings together once a month the ministers of agriculture and fisheries, and the commissioners responsible for agriculture, fisheries, food safety, veterinary questions and public health matters.

Ø Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA). This configuration brings together justice ministers and interior ministers of member states. The sphere of interest includes civil protection.

Ø Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO). It is composed of employment, social protection, consumer protection, health and equal opportunities ministers.

Ø Competitiveness. It was created in June 2002 though the merging if three previous configurations (Internal Market, Industry and Research). Depending on the items on the agenda, this formation is composed of the ministers responsible for the areas such as European affairs, industry, tourism and scientific research.

Ø Transport, Telecommunication and Energy. Created in June 2002, through the merging of three policies under one configuration, and with a composition varying according to the specific items on its agenda, this formation meets approximately once every two months.

Ø Environment. It is composed of environment ministers, who meet about four times a year.

Ø Education, Youth and Culture (EYC). It is composed of education, culture, youth and communication ministers, who meet around three or four times a year. It also includes audiovisual issues.

Complementing these, the Political and Security Committee (PSC) bring together ambassadors to monitor international situations and define policies within the ESDP, particularly in crises.

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Дата добавления: 2015-11-14