Outline the functions and organisation of the European omission. Discuss why the Commission has been criticised in recent years. Is it a democratically legitimate institution?

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My Essay on the European Council

Question: Outline the functions and organisation of the European omission. Discuss why the Commission has been criticised in recent years. Is it a democratically legitimate institution? 

European Commission, branch of the governing body of the  (EU) invested with executive and some legislative powers. Located in Brussels, Belgium, it was founded in 1967 when the three treaty organizations comprising what was then the European Community (EC) were officially merged; previously, each organization was governed by a separate commission. The commission is composed of 30 members two from each of the five largest EU nations and one from each of the others.

As to the question of elected or not elected, each member of the European Commission has been appointed jointly by the governments of the 15 member states, and undergone individual scrutiny and a vote of confidence from the European Parliament. 

Members are appointed by agreement among the member nations and serve four-year terms. One member serves as president and six serve as vice presidents. A large administrative staff, numbering some 24,000, is divided among many committees and administrative agencies. The commission implements the provisions of the EU's founding treaties and carries out rules issued by the .

In keeping with the objective of the founding treaties, the commission initiates EU policy on the economy in particular but, increasingly, also on environmental and foreign and security affairs. The legislation it drafts is subject to amendment by the  and to ratification by the Council of the European Union. It was under the presidency of Jacques  (1985–95) that the commission put forward the Single European Act (1987) and the Treaty of European Union (1992; also known as the Maastricht Treaty), both of which provided for a significant expansion of the EU's powers. In 1995, Jacques  of Belgium became president of the commission. The entire commission resigned in 1999 amid accusations of financial mismanagement, corruption, fraud, and nepotism, and a new set of commissioners, with Romano  of Italy as president, was appointed later the same year. In 2004, José Manuel  succeeded Prodi as president.

The European Commission, has various responsibilities and plays a major role in the European Union's policy-making process as EU laws are mainly enforced by Commission action. The Commission differs from other institutions in the EU system through its “power of initiative”. This means that only the Commission has the authority to initiate legislation in the areas known as the “first pillar” (a category which includes most areas of policy). However, the  and the  are both able to formally request that the Commission legislate on a particular topic. In the areas that fall within the “second pillar” () and “third pillar” (), the Commission shares the power of initiating legislation with member states.The purpose-built  in Brussels, housing the European Commission.The Commission also takes the role of “guardian of the treaties”, which includes taking responsibility for initiating infringement proceedings at the  against member states and others who it considers to have breached the EU treaties and other community law.The Commission negotiates international  agreements (in the ) and other international agreements on behalf of the EU. It closely co-operates in this with the .  The Single European Act of 1986 as well as the Treaty on European Union and the Amsterdam Treaty confirmed and expanded the scope of the Union and the Commission's responsibility in additional areas. These include the environment, education, health, consumer affairs, the trans-European networks, R&D policy, culture, and economic and monetary union (EMU). In 1995 the  of the Commission was adapted to account for the accession of Finland, Sweden and Austria. Commission proposals, actions and decisions are in various ways scrutinised, checked and judged by the other institutions (except the European Investment Bank). The Commission does not, however, take any decisions on EU policies and priorities, as this is the prerogative of the Council and, in some cases, also of the European Parliament. The Commission is responsible for adopting technical measures to implement legislation adopted by the Council and, in most cases, the Parliament. This legislation is subject to the approval of committees made up of representatives of member states. This process is sometimes known by the jargon term of .The Commission also   in the Union, vetting all mergers with Community-wide effects and initiating proceedings against companies which violate EU competition laws

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The European Commission has three distinct functions:

  • initiator of proposals for legislation;
  • guardian of the Treaties;
  • Manager and executor of EU policies and of international trade relations.


The Commission has a monopoly on the initiative in Community decision-making and drafts proposals for a decision by the two decision-making institutions: the Parliament and the Council. Thus, the legislative process begins with Commission proposals (for regulations or directives) which need to be in line with the Treaties and help to implement them. Normally, the Commission takes guidelines of national authorities into account. Commission proposals must encompass ...

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