• Homepage
• Overview of the Work of the Committee
• Membership
• Oireachtas Oversight of EU Decisions
• Cooperation with the EU Institutions
• Committee Debates
• Publications
• Press Releases
• Events
• Previous Meetings
• Contacts
• Links
• Previous Committee
• Live Webcasts of the Sub-Committee

• 
  
  

  On 1 July Belgium assumed the presidency of the EU, taking over from Spain. For six months, the main task of the country which holds the presidency is to organise and manage the work of the Council of the European Union where the member states are represented.
  The Spanish Presidency coincided with the beginning of a new phase for the EU, with a renewed Parliament and Commission and a new treaty in effect since 1 December. With this outlook, Spain, Belgium and Hungary have drawn up a work programme for the 18-month period (January 2010 to July 2011) during which they will hold the Presidency in succession, according to the new regulations which apply in Europe.
  It will be the first ‘trio’ of presidencies to be formalised and perform its functions in accordance with the Treaty of Lisbon. The aim of this new procedure is to provide the work and initiatives of the EU with more continuity.

Oireachtas Oversight of EU Decisions

Two key initiatives to strengthen Oireachtas scrutiny of EU business were introduced in 2002: pre-Council discussions between Government Ministers and Oireachtas Committees and the enactment of the European Union (Scrutiny) Act 2002.

The Council of Ministers of the European Union is the EU’s main decision-making body. It consists of government ministers from each of the 27 member states. Which Irish Minister participates in Council meetings depends on the subject under discussion. The Foreign Ministers’ Council meet in the General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC), which deals with general EU policy matters, such as EU enlargement and other common policies, and the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy, for example the EU’s relations with the Middle East and Africa.

Prior to meetings of the GAERC, the Minister for Foreign Affairs briefs the Joint Committee on European Affairs on the items for discussion and decision on the agenda of the Council meetings and the Government's approach in relation to these matters. This enables the Committee to make its views known in advance of the Minister’s participation in meetings of the Council.

The European Union (Scrutiny) Act lays down the legislative basis for parliamentary scrutiny of EU legislative proposals in the Houses of the Oireachtas. Under the Act the Government is legally obliged to lay copies of all EU legislative proposals before both Houses of the Oireachtas together with a statement of the Minister outlining the content, purpose and likely implications for Ireland of the proposed measure.

In 2007 the Houses of the Oireachtas established a Joint Committee on European Scrutiny. The Committee fulfills its role within the framework of the European Union (Scrutiny) Act by carrying out detailed scrutiny of EU legislatives proposals on behalf of the Parliament and reports on the implications of the proposals, setting out its conclusions and any recommendations, to both Houses of the Oireachtas. In the last Parliament, scrutiny of EU legislative proposals was carried out by a sub-committee of the Joint Committee on European Affairs.

An important feature of the EU Scrutiny system is the power of the Houses of the Oireachtas or a Parliamentary Committee to make recommendations to Ministers in relation to EU proposals which Ministers are legally obliged to take into consideration.