I. The European Parliament I.

1. EU-integration knowledges Prepared by Dr. Endre Domonkos (PhD) Academic Year 2012/2013 Autumn Semester

2. I. The European Parliament I. • The European Parliament (EP) is a representative body elected directly by the citizens of the Union. • The Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) working in European political groups. • It’s important to note that Parliament isn’t a decision-making institution equal in rank to the Council. • The Parliament hasn’t got legislative power of its own, it assumes the role of the co-legislator of the Council.

3. I. The European Parliament II. • Today, the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) just their colleagues sitting in national parliaments – represent the citizens of the Union directly. • The MEPs share with national assemblies is that they also form political groups; they perform their duties according to the stance taken by their relevant affiliation. • Since 1979, the Members of the European Parliament have been elected directly by the citizens of the Member States for a period of five years.

4. I. The European Parliament III. • Despite the transnational nature of political groups, the conditions under which the European elections are held in the various Member States still differ. • On the basis of these principles, it is up the Member States to determine which system they draw on to elect their European representatives. • The main common principle is that each State has to adhere to the principle of proportional representation when electing its Members to the European Parliament,applying either the party list system or the single transferable vote.

5. I. The European Parliament IV. • According to the last European Parliamentary elections, held on between 4 and 7 June in 2009, the European Parliament now has got 736 members. • In the European Parliament, the Members don’t sit in national delegations but according to their political affiliations in factions of European political parties – in so-called political groups . • The political groups play a key role in the work of the Parliament. • The European political groups are generally formed by MEPs with similar political values.

6. I. The European Parliament V. • 7 political groups in the European Parliament: • Group of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats) (265 seats); • Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament (184 seats); • Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (84 seats); • Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance (55 seats); • European Conservatives and Reformists Group (54 seats); • Confederal Group of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left (35 seats); • Europe of Freedom and Democracy Group (32 seats).

8. I. The European Parliament VI. • The European Parliament is also headed by a President, who is assisted by the Vice-presidents. • The main tasks of the Presidents are the followings: • The President signs the budget of the EU and those EU acts in which the Parliament acts as co-legislator with the Council. • The MEPs also elect 14 Vice-presidents from among themselves in the term of two and a half years.

9. I. The European Parliament VII. • The day-to-day work of the European Parliament is managed by two central bodies: the Conference of Presidents and the Bureau. • The President of the Parliament and the leaders of the political groups comprise the Conference of Presidents. • In the European Parliament, the standing Committees are in charge of the in-depth discussion and detailed preparation of topics. • The task of the Committees:

10. I. The European Parliament VIII. • The Committees vary in size. • The MEP responsible for drafting particular report and thus preparing Parliament’s decision is called the rapporteur. • The rapporteurs are appointed by the committee on the basis of deals between the political groups. • The number of rapporteurships is proportionate to the weight of a political group in a Committee.

11. I. The European Parliament IX. • Besides the standing Committees, the Parliament has the right to set up sub-committees, temporary committees and temporary committees of inquiry. • The EP’s official seat is in Strasbourg, but Brussels and Luxembourg also play an important role in the work of the institution. • The EP meets in plenary session in Strasbourg, while the Committees meet in Brussels and the General Secretariat is located in Luxembourg, whichhas got responsibility for the background work of the EP.

12. II. The European Court of Justice I. • The European Court of Justice (ECJ) of the European EU has its seat in Luxembourg. • Its establishment was related to the creation of Community law. • Main tasks of the European Court of Justice: • The ECJ comprises one judge from each Member State. • The judges hold office for a renewable term of six years.

13. II. The European Court of Justice II. • The Court of Justice may sit in plenary session or in chambers of three of five judges. • Advocates General (8 persons) have the same status as the judges. • The Court of First Instance is composed of at least one judge from each Member State. • According to the Treaty of Nice the Court of First Instance became the general judicial body in almost direct actions. • Appeals against the rulings of the Court of First Instance under its jurisdiction may be submitted to the Court of Justice in cases defined in its Statute.

14. II. The European Court of Justice III. • The procedures of the European Court of Justice are the followings: 1. Proceeding for failure an obligation (vis-á-vis the Member States). 2. Proceeding for annulment: 3. Proceeding for failure to act (vis-á-vis the Community institutions). 4. Actions for damages: 5. Request for an opinion: 6. Preliminary rulings:

15. II. The European Court of Justice IV. • Appeals can be considered a special type of proceedings. • The procedure before the Court of Justice always has a written stage and almost always an oral stage. • The written stage is generally more significant. • Difference between direct and indirect actions. • The role of judge-rapporteur: • It’s important to emphasize that no appeal can be made against the judgements of the Court of Instance.

16. III. The Court of Auditors • The European Court of Auditors was established as the independent body entrusted with the supervision of Community finances in 1977. • The Court of Auditors sits in Luxembourg. • The Court of Auditors consists of one member from each Member State. • Main tasks of the Court of Auditors:

17. IV. The Economic and Social Committee • The Economic and Social Committee (ESC) is one of the Union’s two advisory bodies, the other being the Committee of Regions. • Currently, in a Union of 27 the ESC has 344 members. • The ESC elects its President, two Vice-presidents and a Bureau from its members every two years. • The Bureau is made up if 24 members, 8 from each interest group; its task is to coordinate the work of the Committee. • The seat of the ESC is in Brussels. • Main tasks of the ESC:

18. V. The Committee of the Regions • The Committee of the Regions was set up by the Maastricht Treaty to provide a forum for local and regional authorities to express their points of view on EU decision-making. • The Committee has got 344 members, who represent local and regional authorities. • The Members of the Committee elect their President, a Vice-president from each Member State and a Bureau from their members every two years. • The Bureau coordinates the work of the Committee. • The seat of the Committee of the Regions is in Brussels.

19. VI. The European Investment Bank • The European Investment Bank (EIB) was created under the Treaty of Rome. • The Luxembourg-based EIB’s objective is to contribute to the balanced economic development of the EU through financing capital investments. • Board of Governors: consists of Ministers nominated by each Member State, usually Ministers of Finance. • Board of Directors: based on the nominations of the Member States and of the European Commission for a term of 5 years. • European Investment Fund: to finance the establishment, growth and development of SME-s.

20. VII. The European System of Central Banks and the European Central Bank I. • The Maastricht Treaty established the programme of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), involving the establishment of the single European currency in the third phase of the programme and, at the latest, by 1999. • The ESCB is composed of the European Central Bank and the national central banks (NCBs) of the Member States. • The primary objective of the ESCB is to maintain the price stability. • The ESCB is responsible for the following tasks:

21. VII. The European System of Central Banks and the European Central Bank II. • The main decision-making body of the ECB is the Governing Council. • The Governing Council adopts the guidelines and takes the most important decisions of the ESCB. • The Executive Board comprises the President, the Vice-president and four other members, chosen on the basis of their recognised financial expertise. • The task of the Executive Board: • The General Council :

22. VIII. Composition of the European Parliament according to the Treaty of Lisbon • Modification of the number of seats in the European Parliament. • The number of MEPs shall not exceed 750 plus the President. • Max. 751 Members of the EP. • The exact distribution of seats shall be decided by the European Council (unanimously). • Principle of degressive proportionality.

23. IX. The Court of Justice under the Lisbon Treaty I. • The Treaty of Lisbon: it renamed the European Court of Justice to the Court of Justice of the European Union. • Expansion of jurisdiction in the area of police and judicial co-operation in criminal matters + to a smaller extent, in the area of foreign and security policy. • In the field of Common Foreign and Security Policy the Court hasn’t got jurisdiction. • To review the decisions brought by the European Council in areas other than foreign and security policy.

24. IX. The Court of Justice under the Lisbon Treaty II. • The Statute of the Court of Justice can be modified by the ordinary legislative procedure. • The Court of Justice of the European Union: 1. Court of Justice ; 2. General Court; 3. Specialised courts; • New procedure was introduced with regard to the appointment of Judges and Advocates-General.

25. X. The European Central Bank under the Lisbon Treaty • The European Central Bank became an institution of the Union. • Modification in the appointment of the Executive Board. • The Members of the Executive Board are now appointed by qualified majority of the European Council. • The provisions of the Statute of the ECB can be modified by the ordinary legislative procedure. • The ECB’s primary objective is to maintain price stability by including price stability in the catalogue of the Union’s values.

26. XI. The Economic and Social Committee under the Lisbon Treaty • The ESC assists the European Parliament, as well as the Council and the Commission in its advisory capacity (Article 13 (4) TEU). • Extension of the ESC’s term of office from four to five years. • Maximum number of its members remains 350. • Composition of the ESC: „The Council, acting unanimously on a proposal from the European Commission, shall adopt a decision determining the Committee’s composition” (Article 301, TFEU).

27. XII. The Committee of the Regions under the Lisbon Treaty • The CoR assists the EP as well as the Council and the Commission in its advisory capacity. • Extension of the CoR’s term of office from four to five years. • Members of the Bureau: two and half a years. • Maximum number of its members remains 350. • The Lisbon Treaty granted two new powers to the Committee of the Regions.

28. XII. The Committee of the Regions under the Lisbon Treaty - Zoltán Horváth (2011): Handbook on the European Union, Hungarian National Assembly, Fourth Edition, Chapter 2, The institutional structure of the European Union, pp. 81-149. - Zoltán Horváth – Bálint Ódor (2010): The Union after Lisbon. The Treaty Reform of the EU, Chapter 5, The Union’s institutions, pp. 158-172.