President of the European Council
| President of the European Council | |
|---|---|
 Emblem | |
| Residence | Brussels, Belgium |
| Appointer | European Council by qualified majority |
| Term length | 2½ years, renewable once |
| Inaugural holder | Herman Van Rompuy |
| Formation | 1 December 2009 |
| Salary | €298,495.44 per year |
| Website | President of the European Council |
The President of the European Council (sometimes incorrectly referred to as the President of the European Union) is the person responsible for chairing and driving forward the work of the European Council, the institution which provides political direction to the European Union (EU). The president also represents the EU on the world stage.[1] The current president is Herman Van Rompuy.
From 1975 to 2009, the head of the European Council was an unofficial position (often referred to as President-in-Office) held by the head of state or government of the member state holding the semiannually rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union at any given time. However, since the Treaty of Lisbon, article 15 of Treaty on European Union states that the European Council appoints its president for a two-and-a-half year term, with the possibility of renewal once. Appointments, as well as the removal of incumbents, require a qualified majority.
On 19 November 2009, the European Council agreed that its first president under the Lisbon Treaty would be Herman Van Rompuy (European People's Party, Belgium). Van Rompuy took office when the Lisbon Treaty came into force on 1 December 2009 with a term stretching until 31 May 2012.[2]
History
The first European Council was held in 1961 as an informal summit, but only became formalised in 1974. The Presidency system was based on the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, with it being hosted by the member state holding the Council Presidency. As the European Council is composed of national leaders, it was chaired by the head of state or government of the Presidency state. This "President-in-Office" position was roughly defined beyond that and rotated along with the Council Presidency every six-months.[3][4][5]
Permanent post
The European Constitution, drafted by the European Convention, outlined the "President of the European Council" which would replace the role of the Council Presidency in the European Council.[6] The Constitution was rejected by voters during ratification but the changes to the European Council, including the position of President, was retained in the Treaty of Lisbon, which came into force on 1 December 2009.
The first President is expected to "set the job description" for future office holders[7] as there is no clear idea of how the post would evolve. One body of thought was that the President would stick to the administrative role as outlined by the treaty, a standard bearer who would simply chair meetings and ensure the smooth running of the body and its policies. This would attract semi-retired leaders seeking a fitting climax to their career and would leave most work to the civil service rather than wield power within the institutions.[8] However another opinion envisages a more pro-active President within the Union and speaking for it abroad. This post would hence be quickly fashioned into a de facto "President of Europe" and, unlike the first model, would be seen on the world stage as speaking for the EU. Persons connected to this position would be more charismatic leaders.[6] The appointment of Herman Van Rompuy (see below) indicated a desire to see the former style of President.
The Treaty of Lisbon doesn't define a nomination process for the President of the Council and several official and unofficial candidates were proposed. At the final European Council meeting on the treaty in Lisbon, on 19 November 2007, French President Nicolas Sarkozy set off public speculation on candidates by naming Tony Blair, Felipe González and Jean-Claude Juncker, and praising the three as worthy candidates[9] with Blair in particular being a long time front runner for the post. However, he faced large scale opposition for being from a large state outside the eurozone and the Schengen Area as well as being a leader who entered the Iraq War which had split Europe. Minor opposition to other leaders such as Juncker also led to their rejection.[citation needed]
Current President
On 19 November 2009, Herman Van Rompuy, at that time Prime Minister of Belgium, was chosen to be appointed as the first full-time President of the European Council. The formal decision on the appointment was made after the Treaty of Lisbon came into force, which was on 1 December 2009.[10] The British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, said that he had unanimous backing from the 27 EU leaders at the summit in Brussels on the evening of 19 November 2009. Mr Brown also praised Mr Van Rompuy as "a consensus builder" who had "brought a period of political stability to his country after months of uncertainty".[11] Mr Van Rompuy has a reputation as a coalition builder, having taken charge of the linguistically divided Belgian government and steered it out of a crisis.[citation needed] At a press conference after his appointment, Van Rompuy commented: "Every country should emerge victorious from negotiations. A negotiation that ends with a defeated party is never a good negotiation. I will consider everyone's interests and sensitivities. Even if our unity remains our strength, our diversity remains our wealth", he said, stressing the individuality of EU member states.[12]
Van Rompuy's first council meeting was an informal gathering in the Savoy Library in Leopold Park, rather than the more usual formal gathering in the Justus Lipsius building nearby. The meeting was in response to the Greek economic crisis where he advanced a seven point recovery plan. This immediately stepped into the economic policy sphere of the Commission President, although Van Rompuy has defined the Commission's role as the content of economic plans, and the European Council as guiding, dealing with means and being responsible for success. By this he is encouraging collective responsibilities from the leaders in the European Council now it is an institution like any other.[13]
Van Rompuy also quickly proposed that the European Council should meet monthly which would turn it into a form of cabinet government; something that would help it in dealing with the Greek economy and foreign affairs. However this may result in the failure of some leaders, probably the non-eurozone leaders, to attend. He has however not warmed relations with Parliament. Van Rompuy has made clear he is not accountable to MEPs and will not answer written parliamentary questions from them.[13]
Duties and powers
Pre-2009
The role of President-in-Office of the assembled European Council was performed by the head of state or government of the member state currently holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. This presidency rotated every six months, meaning there was a new President of the European Council twice a year. The presidency set agenda of the meetings, a competence that was misused to push national interests. The presiding country was allowed also to have additional negotiators at the table.[4][14][15]
The role as President-in-Office was merely a primus inter pares role among other European heads of state or government. Being primarily responsible for preparing and chairing the meetings of the European Council, the role had no executive powers and was in no sense equivalent to that of a head of state. However, the President-in-Office represented the European Council externally and reported to the European Parliament after its meetings as well as at the beginning and at the end of the presidency.[14][15]
Post-2009
The president's role is largely administrative, coordinating the work of the European Council, organising and chairing its meetings, and reporting to the European Parliament after each meeting; the president will also "at his level and in that capacity, ensure the external representation of the Union on issues concerning its common foreign and security policy, without prejudice to the powers of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security".[16] Some overlap between the roles of the President of the European Council, the President of the Commission, and the High Representative—notably in foreign policy—leaves uncertainty about how much influence the President of the European Council will acquire. There is further concern over whether the President will have sufficient personnel and resources to fulfil the duties of the post effectively and that, in lacking a ministry, the President might become a "play ball" between EU leaders.[17]
With the reorganisation of leading EU posts under the Lisbon Treaty, there was some criticism of each posts vague responsibilities. Ukrainian ambassador to the EU Andriy Veselovsky praised the framework and clarified it in his own terms: The President of the European Commission speaks as the EU's "government" while the new President of the European Council is a "strategist". The High Representative specialises in "bilateral relations" while the European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy deals in technical matters such as the free trade agreement with Ukraine. The President of the European Parliament meanwhile articulates the EU's values.[18]
The European Council President also extended his influence into financial policy, the most important area left to the rotating council presidency, with the rotating presidency seeing a greater decrease in power than previously planned.[19] Many of the changes introduced with the Lisbon Treaty need concretion through practical implementation by the current actors. The Spanish presidency unsuccessfully tried to challenge the European Council President's prominent post during the first rotating presidency of 2010,[20], while the second half of the year will see a Belgian rotating presidency marked by a weakened caretaker government which is unlikely to challenge Herman van Rompuy, himself a Belgian politician. The Belgian rotating presidency has announced it will be taking a "backrow seat"[21] with regards to both the Council President as well as the High Representative, thus fueling hopes for a more comunitarian character in both the council and foreign policy.
Privileges of office
Formal negotiations on the salary and privileges of the permanent presidency began in April 2008 as part of the draft of the 2009 EU budget. The outcome was that the President should enjoy the same conditions as the President of the Commission, with a basic salary of 138% of the highest civil service grade: that would be €24,874.62 per month (not including family and other allowances).[22][23][24][needs update]
The President receives a chauffeured car and around 20 dedicated staff members. He also has a housing allowance, rather than an official residence which was considered "too symbolic". Likewise, the idea of a private jet was also rejected for being symbolic and, as one diplomat pointed out, a discrepancy in privileges between the European Council and Commission presidents may only fuel rivalry between the two.[25]
The possibility of there being greater perks for the Council President than Commission President has prompted Parliament to threaten a rejection of the 2009 budget. It saw a large salary and extras as a symbolic signal that the post is intended to become more powerful, increasing intergovernmentalism at the Parliament's expense. With some in the Council suggesting a staff of up to 60, the Committee on Constitutional Affairs has indicated it may drop the gentlemen's agreement that Parliament and Council will not interfere in each other's budget.[26]
Democratic mandate
The lack of accountability to MEPs or national parliamentarians has also cast doubt as to whether national leaders will in practice stand behind the President on major issues.[17] Under the rotational system, the presidents simply had the mandate of their member states, while the new permanent president is chosen by the members of the European Council.[27]
There have been calls by some, such as former German interior minister and current minister of finance Wolfgang Schäuble[28], for direct elections to take place to give the President a mandate, this would strengthen the post within the European Council allowing for stronger leadership in addition to addressing the question of democratic legitimacy in the EU. However, this might cause conflict with Parliament's democratic mandate or a potential mandate for the Commission (see section below). To give a mandate to the European Council's President would signify a development of the Union's governance towards a presidential system, rather than a parliamentary system.[27]
Relationship with Commission
There has been disagreement and concern over competition between the President of the European Council Van Rompuy and the Commission President Barroso due to the vague language of the treaty. Some clarifications see Van Rompuy as the "strategist" and Barroso as a head of government. In terms of economic planning Van Rompuy saw the Commission as dealing with the content of the plan and the European Council as dealing with the means and implementing it. Despite weekly breakfasts together there is a certain extent of rivalry between the two yet-defined posts, including the High Representative.[18][13][29]
Although the President of the European Council may not hold a national office, such as a Prime Minister of a member state, there is no such restraint on European offices. For example, the President may be an MEP, or more significantly the Commission President (who already sits in the European Council). This would allow the European Council to concurrently appoint one person to the roles and powers of both President of the European Council and President of the European Commission, thus creating a single presidential position for the Union as a whole.[6]
Since the creation of the European Council presidency, President Van Rompuy and Commission President Barroso have begun to compete with each other as Van Rompuy has benefited from the general shift in power from the Commission to the Council yet with Barroso still holding the real powers. At international summits there was no agreement as to who should represent the EU, so they agreed to both go at the same time. The complicated situation has renewed some calls to merge the posts, possibly at the end of Barroso's term in 2014 or even as early as mid-2012 when Van Rompuy's present mandate ends. However some member states are expected to oppose the creation of such a high profile post.[29][13]
Were the post not to be combined, some believe that the dual-presidential system could lead to "cohabitation" and infighting between the two offices. While it is comparable to the French model, where there is a President (the European Council President) and Prime Minister (the Commission President), the Council President does not hold formal powers such as the ability to directly appoint and sack the Commission President, or the ability to dissolve Parliament. Hence while the European Council President may have prestige, he/she lacks power and while the Commission President has power, he/she lacks the prestige of the former.[30] Some believe this problem would be increased further if the Council President were to be strengthened by a democratic mandate, as mentioned above.[27]
See also
References
- ^ Treaty of Lisbon amending the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty establishing the European Community, Article 9 B
- ^ http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/en/ec/111607.pdf Official European Council statement on the measures taken regarding the implementation of the Treaty of Lisbon
- ^ Stark, Christine. "Evolution of the European Council: The implications of a permanent seat" (PDF). Dragoman.org. Retrieved 12 July 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b van Grinsven, Peter (2003). "The European Council under Construction" (PDF). Netherlands Institution for international Relations. Retrieved 16 August 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ Europa (web portal). "Consolidated EU Treaties" (PDF). Retrieved 27 June 2007.
- ^ a b c "SCADPlus: The Institutions of the Union: European Council". Europa (web portal). Retrieved 27 June 2007.
- ^ Goldirova, Renata (22 October 2007). "First names floated for top new EU jobs". EU Observer. Retrieved 22 October 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Iey Berry, Peter Sain (16 November 2007). "[Comment] The new EU president" standard bearer or shaker?". EU Observer. Retrieved 18 November 2007.
- ^ "CONFERENCE DE PRESSE DU PRESIDENT DE LA REPUBLIQUE, M. NICOLAS SARKOZY". France diplomatie. 19 October 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
- ^ "New leadership team for Europe". Council of the European Union. Retrieved 24 November 2009.
The formal decisions on these appointments will be taken once the Treaty of Lisbon has entered into force, on 1 December 2009.
- ^ "Belgian PM Van Rompuy is named as new EU president". Daily Telegraph. 19 November 2009. Retrieved 20 November 2009.
- ^ Henry Chu: European Union settles on a Belgian and a Briton for top posts. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
- ^ a b c d Duff, Andrew (23 February 2010) Who is Herman Van Rompuy?
- ^ a b "How does the EU work". Europa (web portal). Retrieved 12 July 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b "European Council". Europa (web portal). Retrieved 12 July 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "President of the European Council" (pdf). General Secretariat of the Council of the EU. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 24 November 2009.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ a b Magony, Honor (28 November 2007). "Unclear EU treaty provisions causing 'nervousness'". EU Observer. Retrieved 28 November 2007.
- ^ a b Rettman, Andrew (15 March 2010) Ukraine gives positive appraisal of new-model EU, EU Observer
- ^ http://euobserver.com/9/30236
- ^ EU-Observer: Spain ends invisible Presidency
- ^ EU-Observer: Belgian presidency sets parliament in its sight
- ^
"COUNCIL DECISION of 1 December 2009 laying down the conditions of employment of the President of the European Council" (pdf). EurLex. European Commission. Retrieved 20 June 2010.
The basic monthly salary of the President of the European Council shall be equal to the amount resulting from application of 138 % to the basic salary of an official of the European Union at grade 16 third step.
- ^ Basic salary of grade 16, third step is €18,025.09. 138% of €18,025.09 = €24,874,62
European Commission: Officials' salaries "Table: officials, Article 66". European Commission Civil Service. 1 July 2009. Retrieved 20 June 2010.{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help) - ^ "Regulation No 422/67/EEC, 5/67/Euratom of the Council" (pdf). EurLex. European Commission. 25 July 1967. Retrieved 20 June 2010.
- ^ Mahony, Honor (14 April 2008). "Member states consider perks and staff for new EU president". EU Observer. Retrieved 15 April 2008.
- ^ Mahony, Honor (22 April 2008). "MEPs to use budget power over EU president perks". EU Observer. Retrieved 22 April 2008.
- ^ a b c Leinen, Jo. "A President of Europe is not Utopian, it's practical politics". Europe's World. Retrieved 18 November 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "British Conservatives call for EU to return powers". EUobserver. 2 June 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
- ^ a b "A Van Barroso?". EU Observer. 15 April 2010. Retrieved 16 April 2010.
- ^ Hix, Simon; Roland, Gérard. "Why the Franco-German Plan would institutionalise 'cohabitation' for Europe". Foreign Policy Centre. Retrieved 1 October 2007.
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