CLIL CLIL CLIL INTERNATIONAL LAW EUROPEAN INSTITUTIONS How much do you know about EU institutions? Try this short quiz. 1. How many countries are there in the UE? a. 25 b. 26 c. 28 2. How often do EU citizens vote to elect the members of the EU Parliament? a. every 4 years b. every 5 years c. every 7 years 3. Which institution represents Europe internationally? a. the Parliament b. the Commission c. the Council 4. Which city is not a place of work of the EU Parliament? a. Luxembourg b. Berlin c. Strasbourg 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. exercise: to use. appoint: to nominate. take up: to start. resign: to give up a job or position. roughly: approximately. chair (a meeting): to preside, be in charge of. set: to decide. sensitive: delicate. uphold: to support, defend. implement: to carry out, administer. fund: money or resources for a particular purpose. allocate: to set apart for a special purpose. enforce: to compel obedience to. Read the text and check your answers. The European Parliament The European Parliament is elected by EU voters every 5 years and is one of the EU s main law-making institutions. Its main roles are to: debate and pass European laws, with the Council; scrutinise other EU institutions, especially the Commission, to make sure that they are working democratically; Strasbourg debate and adopt the EU s budget, with the Council. In many areas, such as consumer protection and the environment, the Parliament works together with the Council to decide the content of EU laws. This process is called ordinary legislative procedure . The Parliament must also give its permission to new countries to join the EU. The Parliament exercises1 influence on various institutions. When a new Commission is appointed2, its 28 members one from each EU country cannot take up3 office until Parliament has given its approval. Parliament can also check the activity of the Commission and ask it to resign4 during its period in office. The number of MEPs (Members of the European Parliament) for each country is roughly5 in proportion to its population. Under the Lisbon Treaty, no country can have fewer than 6 or more than 96 MEPs. At present there are 751 MEPs in total. The European Parliament has three places of work: Luxembourg (city), Brussels (Belgium), and Strasbourg (France). The European Council The European Council brings together the heads of state or government of every EU country, the Commission President and the European Council President, who chairs6 the meetings (typically held around 4 times a year, usually in Brussels). Its main roles are to: set7 the EU s general political direction and priorities; deal with complex or sensitive8 issues. Brussels 204