The EU The EU Institutions and Institutions and

MechanismMechanism

?

• INTERNATIONALIZATION

• GLOBALIZATION

• INTEGRATION

The EU Institutions and Mechanism

STAGES OF ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

Free Trade Zone Customs Union Common Market Economic Union Political and Economic Union

Supranational X Intergovernmental integration co-operation

• Community method of supranational integration

features : 1) goal - higher level of integration 2) superiority of political goals

(F-G reconciliation) 3) supranational central institution

History

• 1947 - 59 “First steps” - Learning

• 1951 TREATY OF PARIS - ECSC

• 1957 TREATY OF ROME - EEC and EUROATOM (EAEC)

History - continue

• 1965 Merger treaty - EC• 1986 Single Act signed (1987 SA in force)• 1992 Maastricht treaty = TEU (1993 in force)• 1997 Amsterdam• 2000 Treaty of Nice• 2003 Athens – Accesson treaties• 2004 East Enlargement• 2004 Treaty on European Constitution signed

INSTITUTIONSINSTITUTIONS

European Council = Council of EU = SummitEuropean Council = Council of EU = Summit heads of governments since 1975 twice a year

( X Council of Europe )

Council of Ministers Council of Ministers

- ministers with different agendas :

ECOFIN – ministers of finance

Etc.

The Council - voting

The number of votes each member state can cast is set by the Treaties.

The Treaties also define cases in which:• a simple majority,• a qualified majority• or unanimity are required.

Qualified majority

From 1 November 2004 will be reached if the following two conditions are met:

• if a majority of member states approve in some cases a two-thirds majority); (MIN 16)

• a minimum of 232 votes is cast in favour of the proposal, i.e. 72.3 % of the total (321) (almost the same like before)

• In addition, a member state may ask for confirmation that the votes in favour represent at least 62% of the total population of the Union. If this is found not to be the case, the decision will not be adopted.

Distribution of votes for each member state (from 01/11/2004)

Germany, France, Italy, United Kingdom

29

Spain, Poland 27Netherlands 13Belgium, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Portugal

12

Austria, Sweden 10Denmark, Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Finland

7

Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Luxembourg, Slovenia

4

Malta 3TOTAL 321

The Presidency

• EC(Oct 2002) confirmed the rota order until the end of 2006:

• EC will decide on the order of the Presidencies for 2007 and the following years by 1 May 2005 at the latest.

2004

January-June: Ireland

July-December: Netherlands 

2005

January-June: Luxembourg

July-December: United Kingdom 

2006

January-June: Austria

July-December: Finland

Presidency – 2007-20

• 2007 – D, Port.• 2008 – SL, FR• 2009 – CR, S • 2010 – E, B• 2011 – H, PL• 2012 – DK, CY• 2013 – IRL, LI

• 2014 – EL, IT• 2015 – LT, LUX• 2016 – NL, SK• 2017 – M, UK• 2018 – EST, BG• 2019 – A, ROM• 2020 - FIN

European CommissionEuropean Commission

• 25 members:

President and Commissioners

(each country 1)

• General Directorates + special institutions

Starting November 22, 2004

Barroso´s Commission is comming…

AppointmentsJosé Manuel Barroso President, Portuguese

Margot Wallström Vice President, Institutional Relations and Communication Strategy, Swedish Günter Verheugen Vice President, Enterprise and Industry, German Jacques Barrot Vice President Transport, FrenchSiim Kallas Vice President Administrative Affairs, Audit and Anti-Fraud, EstonianFranco Frattini Vice PresidentJustice, Freedom and Security, Italian Viviane Reding Information Society and Media, Luxembourger Stavros Dimas Environment, GreekJoaquín Almunia Economic and Monetary Affairs, SpanishDanuta Hübner Regional Policy, Polish Joe Borg Fisheries and Maritime Affairs, Maltese

Appointments- continueDalia Grybauskaitė Financial Programming and Budget, Lithuanian Janez Potočnik Science and Research, SlovenianJán Figel Education, Training, Culture and Multilinguism,  SlovakianMarkos Kyprianou Health and Consumers Protection, Cypriot  Olli Rehn Enlargement, Finnish Louis Michel Development and Humanitarian Aid, Belgian  László Kovacs Taxation and Customs Union, HungarianNeelie Kroes Competition, Dutch Mariann Fischer Boel Agriculture and Rural Development, Danish Benita Ferrero-Waldner External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy, Austrian Charlie McCreevy Internal Market and Services, IrishVladimir Špidla Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, CzechPeter Mandelsor Trade, British Andris Piebalgs Energy Latvian

DG Services:

AgricultureCompetitionEconomic and financial affairsEducation and cultureEmployment and social affairsEnergy and transportEnterpriseEnvironmentFisheriesHealth and Consumer ProtectionInformation societyInternal Market

Joint researchCentre Justice and home aafairsRegional policyResearchTaxation and custom unionDevelopmentEnlargementEurope Aid – co-operation- foreign relationsHumanitarian aidTrade

DG Services- continue:

G E N E R A L  S E R V I C E S

• European Anti-Fraud Office • Eurostat• Press and Communications• Publication Office• Secretariat general

I N T E R N A L  S E R V I C E S

• Budget• Group of Policy Advisers• Informatics• Internal Audit Service• Interpretation• Legal Service• Personnel and Administration• Translation

European ParliamentEuropean Parliament

• 626 members for 5 years Till 2004 elections:

• 732 members after June elections

• Direct elections since 1979

European ParliamentStrasbourg – main seat

European Parliament

EP Political fractions composition

EP Political fractions

 Political groups:

PPE-DEGroup of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats

PSE Group of the Party of European Socialists

ELDRGroup of the European Liberal, Democrat and Reform Party

GUE/NGL

Confederal Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left

Verts/ALE

Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance

UEN Union for Europe of the Nations Group

EDD Group for a Europe of Democracies and Diversities

NI Non-attached

Institutions- continue

• European Community Court of JusticeEuropean Community Court of Justice

• Court of AuditorsCourt of Auditors

The Court of Justice of the European Communities

The Court of Justice is made up

of 25 Judges and

8 Advocates-General

appointed for 6 years.

The Court of First Instance

• 1 President (elected from among the judges)25 judges (5 chambers each composed of 3 or 5 judges)

• The Court of First Instance is currently composed of 25 Judges, at least one from each Member State.  The Judges are appointed for a renewable term of six years by common accord of the governments of the Member States.

• Subject-matter of actions: all matters, including:

• agriculture • State aid • competition • commercial policy • regional policy • social policy • institutional law • trade mark law • transport • Staff Regulations

INSTITUTIONS - continue

• ECBECB – European Central bank – European Central bank

• ESCB – Eropean System of Central BanksESCB – Eropean System of Central Banks

European Central Bank (Frankfurt a.M.)

European Central Bank

• ECB + the national central banks together =

=Eurosystem = the central banking system of the euro area.

• The main objective of the Eurosystem: to maintain price stability = safeguarding the value of the euro.

President of the ECBJ.C.Trichet

Former Governor of the Banque de France

appointed starting Nov 1, 2003 by common accord of the governments of the Member States that have adopted the euro at the level of Executive Heads.

He succeed Willem F. Duisenberg, who had been President of the ECB

from 1 June 1998

Institutions - continue

• EIBEIB

• COREPER

• Economic and Social Council

• Council of Regions

• Specific Agencies

LEGISLATION• Common body (acquis communataire)------------------------------------------------------• Primary legislation

• Secondary legislation : * Regulations * Directives * Decisions * Recommendations, Opinions, Resolutions and Declarations

LEGISLATION - continue

• 3 types of legislative procedures : 3 types of legislative procedures : Consultation Co-operation Co-decisions

Policy “integration level” of the EU

• COMMON POLICY

• POLICY CO-ORDINATION

• CONSULTED POLICY

• INDEPENDENT POLICY

3D EU Integration Process

• Enlargement

• Widening

• Deepening