THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION－－FUNCTION, PROCESS AND FUTURE
纪文华
【关键词】THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
【全文】
The Council of the European union (hereinafter the Council) is the political and legislative organ of the EU, and play the dominant role given by the Treaty in EC affairs. Prior to the entry into force of Masstricht treaty in November 1993,the Council''s full title was the Council of the European communities (colloquially known as the Council of ministers). Following the entry into force of TEU, the Council decided that it should henceforth be called the ''Council of the European union. There is also another Council, which is called ''European Council''. The European Council is consist of heads of states or government of the member nations, a kinds of ultimate ministers, and Article 2 of the single European Act of 1987 formally recognizes their existence. In contrast to the European Council, the Council represents the member states. Article 146 EC provides that:"The Council shall consist of a representative of each member state at ministerial level , authorized to commit the government of that member states ." So, according to the provision, the national interests of each member state are represented on it. It is the principal and ultimate decision-making organ of EU. Sometimes the Council is regarded as ''the community legislator'', but I think this is doubly misleading .On the one hand, the community does not have a legislature but a legislative process to which other institutions and organs, besides the Council ,variously contribute ,on the other hand ,an analysis on the provision of the treaties conferring powers on the Council shows that its functions are by no means confined to legislating.
There is a tendency to equate community institutions with familiar national institutions, such as Council and European parliament---the upper and lower houses of the legislature, commission---the government, or to regard them as evolving naturally towards this kind of model, but I think this seems misconceived. The fact that the institutional system of the communities has to fit is; the continued existence of the member states as states in the full sense of international laws, and they still have prerogatives and symbols, self-consciousness and visibility to their own citizens and to the wider world. Although the TEU pledges the Union''s respect for ''the national identities of its member states'' , this fact will not change in a short run.
