Institutions of the European Union

The European Union (EU) is governed by seven institutions. Article 13 of Treaty on European Union lists them in the following order: the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council of the European Union (the Council); the European Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the Court of Auditors.

European Council

- the group of heads of state or government of the EU member states
- meets four times a year to define the Union's policy agenda and give impetus to integration
- The President of the European Council (appointed by the European Council), Herman Van Rompuy, is the person responsible for chairing and driving forward the work of the institution, which has been described as the highest political body of the European Union
- Appoints the Commission Pdt + HR (High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Lady Ashton)

Commission

- executive arm of the Union
- twenty-seven appointee (1 from each state)
- responsible for drafting all law of the European Union and has a monopoly over legislative initiative
- deals with the day-to-day running of the Union
- has a duty to uphold the law and treaties (in this role it is known as the "Guardian of the Treaties")
- led by a President nominated by the European Council and approved by Parliament
- remaining 26 Commissioners nominated by member-states, in consultation with the President, (portfolios assigned by the President). The Council then adopts this list of nominee-Commissioners. The Council’s adoption of the Commission is not an area which requires the decision to be unanimous, their acceptance is arrived at according to the rules for qualified majority voting. The European Parliament then interviews and casts its vote upon the Commissioners. The interviews of individual nominees are conducted separately, in contrast to Parliament’s vote of approval which must be cast on the Commission as a whole without the ability to accept or reject individual Commissioners. Once approval has been obtained from the Parliament the Commissioners can take office. The current President is José Manuel Barroso (EPP), his commission was elected in 2004 and is set to be reelected in 2010.

Council

- The Council of the European Union (informally known as the Council of Ministers or just the Council)
- body holding legislative and some limited executive powers and is thus the main decision making body of the Union
- Its Presidency rotates between the states every six months,
- The Council is composed of twenty-seven national ministers (one per state). However the Council meets in various forms depending upon the topic. For example, if agriculture is being discussed, the Council will be composed of each national minister for agriculture
- They represent their governments and are accountable to their national political systems. Votes are taken either by majority or unanimity with votes allocated according to population
- they share the legislative and budgetary power of the Parliament, and also lead the Common Foreign and Security Policy

Parliament

- shares the legislative and budgetary authority of the Union with the Council
- The Parliament's President (its speaker) is Jerzy Buzek (EPP), who was elected from the Parliament's members in 2009
- Its 736 members are elected every five years by universal suffrage and sit according to political allegiance
- it has weaker powers than the Council in some sensitive areas, and does not have legislative initiative
- It does, however, have powers over the Commission which the Council does not