Institutions of the EU

• Decision-tree to distinguish political systems
  • Parliamentary (most European countries)
  • Presidential (US)
  • semi-presidential (France, Lithuania)
• Is the executive responsible to the legislative?
• Is the president elected directly for a fixed term?

• Voters elect national parliaments & EP
• European Commission is supranational → EU bureaucrats, not working in favor of MS
• National executives play legislative role in EU → Council

European Commission (COM)

• from ECSC’s High Authority
  • managed & oversaw what happens in ECSC
• work similarly to national level governments → portfolios & DGs
• collegiality principle → decision tried to be taken as consensus & carried to the outside together
• presidentialization → UvdL more prominent than past presidents
  • actual powers not changed fundamentally (a little in Nice Treaty)
  • presidents have wielded more power
  • set agenda, chair meetings, delegate → possibly also just realization
• Commission & MS:
  • Interest to have commissioner from each MS → have to be a political figure in their respective country
  • Commissioners usually belongs to same party as majority in MS governments

European Council (EUCO)

• Charles Michel current president of EUCO
• High profile meeting, EU summit
• not many formal procedural roles
• logrolling: find a package deal at a higher level → does not hinge on small pieces

Council of the European Union