Towards the ESM and ‘Six Pack’: the Players
Dr. Nellie Munin


The European Council
•Summit of heads of State and government of EU Members States.
•Conduct at least two annual meetings.
•Determines the ‘high policy’ of the EU, which is later translated into details by other EU bodies.
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-Democratically elected in their states.
-Represent domestic and EU interests.

The Council of the EU
•Composed of the relevant ministers (=ministers of finance) of EU Member States.
•In charge of EU legislation (with EU Parliament)
•In charge of policy and pragmatic decisions aimed at pursuing the high policy decisions taken by
the European Council.
–-  Democratically elected in their countries.
-Represent domestic and EU interests.
•Voting: qualified majority, sensitive issues – consensus. (Formulas specified in Lisbon Treaty, %
member states representing % citizens).
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The EU Parliament
•Representatives are democratically elected in the Member States.
•Represent domestic and EU interests.
•Representation and voting powers are relative.
•Involved in the nomination of the President of EU Commission and its DGs.
•Usually in charge of EU legislation (with the Council).
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•Criticism: was not enough involved in the decisions with regard to the ESM and ‘Six Pack’.
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The EU Commission
•In charge of monitoring the implementation of EU law by the Member States (‘guardian of the
Treaties) and of drafting EU legislation.
•A professional body of experts of varied EU nationalities. Not elected democratically.
•Headed by politicians:
•President - nominated by EU Parliament and Council of Ministers’ consent.
•DGs – elected by national governments, nominated by EU Parliament and Council of Ministers’
consent.
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The ECB (European Central Bank)
•Consists of:
•Executive Board
•Board of Governors
•Professional, not democratically elected.
•Rotation of representation.
•EU countries which are not EMU Members are only consulted, have no voting rights.
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 Conclusion
-The decision-making process about the ESM and ‘Six Pack’ involved the following bodies:  The
European Council, the Council of the EU, and to a certain (limited) extent the European Parliament.
All these bodies involve politicians democratically elected in their countries.
-The European Commission and the ECB where professionally consulting decision makers. These
institutions involve politically-nominated high officials, but basically consist of professional
staff.
-The decision making process was an urgent act, taken during a severe financial crisis.
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Thank You
E-mail: Nelliemunin@gmail.com
תוצאת תמונה עבור ‪farewell‬‏