Cooperation between the EU's institutions

KEY POINTS

• The EU’s various institutions must aim to:
  • promote the EU’s values (respect for human dignity, liberty, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities);
  • advance the EU’s objectives (the main ones being promoting peace, the EU’s values and the well-being of its citizens);
  • serve the interests of the EU, the general public and EU countries;
  • ensure the consistency, effectiveness and continuity of EU policies and activities.
• The institutions are:
  • the European Parliament;
  • the European Council;
  • the Council;
  • the European Commission;
  • the Court of Justice of the European Union;
  • the European Central Bank (ECB);
  • the Court of Auditors.
• Each institution operates within its own treaty powers, procedures and objectives and must cooperate with the others.
• The Parliament, Council and Commission cooperate closely among themselves and, under Article 295 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), may conclude interinstitutional agreements. Examples of such agreements include:
  • better law-making;
  • rules of conduct for European lobbyists and civil servants;
  • budget discipline and sound financial management.
• How the EU institutions work together may also be determined by other treaty articles such as the following:
  • Article 284 of the TFEU, which governs relations between the Council and the ECB. Under this article, the ECB president must be invited to participate in Council meetings when the bank’s objectives and tasks are on the agenda. The ECB’s annual report must be sent to the Parliament, the Council and the Commission, as well as to the European Council.
  • Article 134 of the TFEU, according to which EU countries, the Commission and the ECB work together in the context of the Economic and Financial Committee.
• However, how the institutions work and interact is also determined by:
  • practices that have evolved over the years;
  • the institutions’ respective rules of procedure; and
  • on a case-by-case basis, as in the case of an agreement between the ECB and the European Parliament on accountability and transparency in regard to European banking supervision. The conclusion of this agreement was specifically written into Article 20(8) of Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013 on the ECB’s tasks relating to prudential supervision of credit institutions.