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	EU E-Learning Units
HOME CONTACT E-Learning Unit 3: The EU Institutions and Modes of Governance Introduction The Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe Dissolving of the Pillar Structure Reforming the Union´s Competencies A Clear-Cut Catalogue of Competences? Categories of Competences Reforming the Procedures and Instruments Revision Procedures Legislative Procedures Budgetary Procedure A Revised Institutional Architecture The European Parliament Increase in Competence and Function With New Strength Towards a Bicameral System A Full-Fledged Parliament? The European Council An Expanded List of Tasks The President of the European Council The Council of Ministers Composition of the Council and its Presidency The New Majority Formula An Enhanced Ability? The Union Minister for Foreign Affairs The European Commission Reforms in the Light of European 'Leitideen' An Enhanced President of the Commission The College Perspectives Towards a New Institutional Balance? In a Fusion Trend? The TCE as a Further Step in the Evolution of European States? Further Readings .	II.2 Reforming the Union´s Competencies II.2.1 A Clear-Cut Catalogue of Competences? The issue of competences of the European Union and their separation from national competencies of member states had already been prominent in the Laeken Declaration and was intensely discussed by the Convention afterwards. The attribution of competences within the EU is generally based on the "principle of (limited) conferral". Thus, every single competence, which the EU disposes of, needs to be explicitly conferred by the member states and determined in the treaties, which has successively been done so far. Due to ad hoc rather than systematically taken decisions on conferral of competences, member states have created a dense and complex network of various EU-competences and corresponding procedures. The complexity is even increased by the so called 'article of conferral' - Art. 308 TEC. Therefore, a clear-cut 'catalogue of competences' was demanded, but could not be established to its full extend. On the one hand the '(limited) principal of conferral' remains to be the foundation of attribution of competences (Art. I-11 TCE), so that competences are explicitly determined for each policy area (part III TCE) by the Constitutional Treaty. On the other hand Art. I-12 TCE defines so called 'categories of competences', which define the attribution of competences to national and EU-level in general terms and assign them to specific policy areas. Even though, the differentiation between 'exclusive competences', 'competences shared with member states' and 'coordinating competences' seems to increase the transparency of the system, complexity remains due to the perpetuation of the 'principle of (limited) conferral'. Links: Laeken Declaration (2001)	Source: www.wl-lang.de/
GLOSSARY: 'Catalogue of Competences' The German rooted expression 'catalogue of competences' (Komptenzkataolog) describes the vertical distribution of political competences within the European multi-level-system. The multi-stage European governmental structures includes municipal and regional as well as national and European levels. The focal point of the catalogue of competences is the precise assignment of each level to its field of functions.

EU E-Learning Units

CONTACT

E-Learning Unit 3: The EU Institutions and Modes of Governance

Introduction
The Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe
1. Dissolving of the Pillar Structure
2. Reforming the Union´s Competencies
  1. A Clear-Cut Catalogue of Competences?
  2. Categories of Competences
3. Reforming the Procedures and Instruments
A Revised Institutional Architecture

II.2 Reforming the Union´s Competencies

II.2.1 A Clear-Cut Catalogue of Competences?

The issue of competences of the European Union and their separation from national competencies of member states had already been prominent in the Laeken Declaration and was intensely discussed by the Convention afterwards. The attribution of competences within the EU is generally based on the "principle of (limited) conferral". Thus, every single competence, which the EU disposes of, needs to be explicitly conferred by the member states and determined in the treaties, which has successively been done so far. Due to ad hoc rather than systematically taken decisions on conferral of competences, member states have created a dense and complex network of various EU-competences and corresponding procedures. The complexity is even increased by the so called 'article of conferral' - Art. 308 TEC. Therefore, a clear-cut 'catalogue of competences' was demanded, but could not be established to its full extend. On the one hand the '(limited) principal of conferral' remains to be the foundation of attribution of competences (Art. I-11 TCE), so that competences are explicitly determined for each policy area (part III TCE) by the Constitutional Treaty. On the other hand Art. I-12 TCE defines so called 'categories of competences', which define the attribution of competences to national and EU-level in general terms and assign them to specific policy areas. Even though, the differentiation between 'exclusive competences', 'competences shared with member states' and 'coordinating competences' seems to increase the transparency of the system, complexity remains due to the perpetuation of the 'principle of (limited) conferral'.

Links:

Laeken Declaration (2001)

Source: www.wl-lang.de/

GLOSSARY:

'Catalogue of Competences'

The German rooted expression 'catalogue of competences' (Komptenzkataolog) describes the vertical distribution of political competences within the European multi-level-system. The multi-stage European governmental structures includes municipal and regional as well as national and European levels. The focal point of the catalogue of competences is the precise assignment of each level to its field of functions.