EU parliament challenges

The European Parliament has been directly elected by European citizens for 30 years. Unlike national parliaments, which usually elect their heads of state, the European Parliament does not elect a pan-European government. This is why it has no real majority or opposition parties

"The factions and majorities among us form around issues," Klaus Haensch, a representative from Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD), explained. Hänsch has been a member of the European Parliament for 30 years, and was the Parliament’s president from 1994 to 1997.

Unlike other legislative bodies, media scandals and power struggles are not usually a feature of the European Parliament. Jacki Davis from the European Policy Center, a Brussels-based political think tank, contended that while the parliamentary debates might not always be particularly exciting, the European Parliament is very important because its members have a lot of power.

The members of the Parliament have a say in decisions regarding around 80 percent of all European laws and principles. An estimated 30 to 50 percent of all laws that affect the EU member states are directly codetermined by the European Parliament. The effects of this legislation on the daily lives of the 500 million EU citizens are significant, even if many voters are not aware of this fact.

More rights, but still not enough

The European Parliament is just one of the two chambers of the EU legislative body. The parliamentarians share power with the Council of the European Union (also known as the Council of Ministers), in which the various national governments are represented. Both chambers vote for bills drafted by the European Commission. However, the Parliament does not have the power to propose its own laws.

"With each treaty -- from Maastricht to Amsterdam to Nizza -- the Parliament has acquired new rights and power over new policy areas," Jacki Davis explained. Today only agricultural policy, foreign policy, justice policy and the health care system are excluded from the Parliament’s sphere of power.

Lots of parlamentarians but little time

For Member of Parliament Hans-Peter Martin, who doesn’t belong to any political faction, the Parliament still has too few rights. Lobbyists and bureaucrats influence a lot of decisions, he said. For example, the Parliament does not have its own scientific department to thoroughly prepare its members for making certain decisions.

The parliamentarians often rely on the opinions of lobbyists to make up for this lack of scientific briefing. But despite these shortcomings, it's still important to vote, Martin said. Because after all, the European Parliament is the only democratically elected EU institution.

In comparison to national parliaments in Europe, a single member of the European Parliament has less influence. This is mostly due to the institution's large size: 785 members from 27 EU member states. They are divided into seven factions, and these in turn are divided into national groups. The largest groups are the Conservatives, the Socialists and the Liberals.

The number of parliamentarians has increased tenfold since the Parliament’s establishment in the 1950s. Today there are few opportunites to make big, memorable speeches. In fact, their speaking time in debates is usually limited to just one minute.

Bernd Riegert / Euranet / ew

Editor: Trinity Hartman