The Council: A second chamber for the European Union?

The Conference on the Future of Europe is an opportunity to reflect on the Union's democratic foundations, including the legislative role of the Council of the European Union (EU) and its relations with the European Parliament. Is it pertinent to reform the Council, either by reinforcing its pa...

ver descrição completa

Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: García Roca, Francisco Javier, Bustos Gisbert, Rafael, García Vitoria, Ignacio
Formato: informe técnico
Fecha de publicación:2022
País:España
Recursos:Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Repositorio:Docta Complutense
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/128579
Acesso em linha:https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/128579
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:342
Derecho constitucional
Derecho comunitario (Derecho)
5605.04 Derecho Constitucional
Descrição
Resumo:The Conference on the Future of Europe is an opportunity to reflect on the Union's democratic foundations, including the legislative role of the Council of the European Union (EU) and its relations with the European Parliament. Is it pertinent to reform the Council, either by reinforcing its parliamentary features or by transforming it into a Senate or a Second Chamber? Would such a change enhance the democratic legitimacy of the EU decision-making process? To answer these questions, this study looks at three connected issues in detail. First, it analyses the role of second chambers in the integration process of sovereign states in broader political entities (higher polity). Second, it examines the different bicameral systems (composition, powers, and functions), particularly in the EU Member States, but also in other models that may help as a reference. Third, it explores proposals to reform the Council put forward by leading political and academic figures. The study aims at providing a set of tools that may serve as inspiration should calls to transform this key EU institution be followed, and suggests three reform scenarios, using the instruments found in existing parliamentary and federal systems.