144-699: The Multiannual Financial Framework ( MFF ) of the European Commission , also called the financial perspective , is a seven-year framework regulating its EU annual budget . It is laid down in a unanimously adopted Council Regulation with the consent of the European Parliament . The financial framework sets the maximum amount of spendings in the EU budget each year for broad policy areas ("headings") and fixes an overall annual ceiling on payment and commitment appropriations. The common budget of
288-579: A Russian border guard admitted that the Russian Federal Security Service was enabling migrants to enter Finland. Because asylum seekers are usually required to be physically present in the EU country where they wish to request asylum, and there are few formal ways to allow them to reach Europe to do so, many paid smugglers for advice, logistical help and transportation through Europe, especially for sea crossings. Human traffickers charged $ 1,000 to $ 1,500 (€901 – €1352) for
432-560: A far-right political surge, the town remained peaceful and locals largely accepting. By 2020, most of the arrivals had moved on to bigger German cities for work or study; a small number settled in Sumte permanently. In Berlin, authorities housed refugees in temporary accommodations at the site of the decommissioned Tempelhof Airport , then developed a program of container housing known as Tempohomes, followed by Modular Accommodations for Refugees (Modulare Unterkünfte für Flüchtlinge); many of
576-471: A fence that had been under construction for several months, forcing migrants to pass through Croatia and Slovenia instead. Croatia tried to force them back into Hungary, which responded with military force. Croatian and Hungarian leaders each blamed each other for the situation and engaged in a bitter back-and-forth about what to do about the tens of thousands of stranded people. Three days later, Croatia likewise closed its border with Serbia to avoid becoming
720-505: A Director-General who is responsible to a Commissioner. Currently, there is one member per member state , but members are bound by their oath of office to represent the general interest of the EU as a whole rather than their home state. The Commission President (currently Ursula von der Leyen ) is proposed by the European Council (the 27 heads of state/governments) and elected by the European Parliament . The Council of
864-603: A European ship, prompted the commission to look into legislation against toxic waste. at that time did not even have a crime against shipping toxic waste; this led the Commissioners Franco Frattini and Stavros Dimas to put forward the idea of "ecological crimes". Their right to propose criminal law was challenged in the European Court of Justice but upheld. As of 2007, the only other criminal law proposals which have been brought forward are on
1008-729: A UK-financed fence was built along the A-216 highway in Calais . At the camp near Calais, known as the Jungle , riots broke out when authorities began demolishing the illegally constructed campsite on 29 January 2015. Amid the protests, which included hunger strikes, thousands of refugees living in the camp were relocated to France's "first international-standard refugee camp" at the La Liniere refugee camp in Grande-Synthe which replaced
1152-548: A budget of €1,074.3 billion in 2018 prices to address the EU's long-term priorities. It goes together with the Next Generation EU recovery package ( NGEU ) of €750 billion in grants and loans over the period 2021–2024 to meet the unparalleled socio-economic challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic . An overall of 30% of the total expenditure from MFF and NGEU is to target climate-related spending. The MFF will incorporate
1296-529: A budget of €18 million. A section of northeastern Croatia is believed to contain up to 60,000 unexploded land mines from the Croatian War of Independence in the 1990s. Refugees were feared to be at risk of unknowingly detonating some of these minefields as they crossed the area. However, there were no reported cases of this happening in 2015 or 2016. The number of people making the considerably more dangerous sea journey from northern Africa to Italy
1440-480: A catch-all label like 'migrants', and we should use them wherever possible." Al Jazeera , on the other hand, expressly avoided the term migrant, arguing it was inaccurate and risked "giving weight to those who want only to see economic migrants ". Some have taken issue with the framing of the phenomenon as a "crisis." Political scientist Cas Mudde has argued that the term reflects "more a matter of personal judgment than objective condition," writing that "[t]he EU had
1584-537: A commissioner. A commissioner's portfolio can be supported by numerous DGs; they prepare proposals for them and if approved by a majority of commissioners proposals go forward to the Parliament and Council for consideration. The Commission's civil service is headed by a Secretary General . The position is currently held by Ilze Juhansone . The rules of procedure of the European Commission set out
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#17327728006941728-516: A consequence, the public showed anxiety towards the sudden influx of immigrants, often expressing concerns over a perceived danger to European values. Political polarization increased, confidence in the European Union fell, and many countries tightened their asylum laws. Right-wing populist parties capitalized on public anxiety and became significantly more popular in many countries. There was an increase in protests regarding immigration and
1872-506: A deal was announced. Turkey agreed to significantly increase border security at its shores and take back all future irregular entrants into Greece (and thereby the EU) from Turkey. In return, the EU would pay Turkey 6 billion euros (around US$ 7 billion). In addition, for every Syrian sent back from Greece, the EU would accept one registered Syrian refugee living in Turkey who had never tried to enter
2016-539: A dedicated Directorate-General . The European Parliament can dissolve the College of Commissioners as a whole following a vote of no-confidence , which requires a two-thirds vote. Only the President can request the resignation of an individual Commissioner. However, individual Commissioners, by request of the council or Commission, can be compelled to retire on account of a breach of obligation(s) and if so ruled by
2160-694: A duty to ensure the treaties and law are upheld, potentially by taking member states or other institutions to the Court of Justice in a dispute. In this role it is known informally as the "Guardian of the Treaties". Finally, the Commission provides some external representation for the Union, alongside the member states and the Common Foreign and Security Policy , representing the Union in bodies such as
2304-400: A greater degree of politicisation within the Commission . The commission is divided into departments known as Directorates-General (DGs) that can be likened to departments or ministries . Each covers a specific policy area such as agriculture or justice and citizens' rights or internal services such as human resources and translation and is headed by a director-general who is responsible to
2448-455: A lack of political coordination at the European level, the distribution of countries was unequal, with some countries taking in many more refugees than others. The initial responses of national governments varied greatly. Many European Union (EU) governments reacted by closing their borders, and most countries refused to take in the arriving refugees. Germany would ultimately accept most of
2592-635: A likely candidate (in general, the elected candidate is determined, according to the results of the European election , as winner of the internal election into the dominant European party known as " spitzenkandidat "). While the European People's Party had won the European Parliament election, they had performed worse than expected and therefore nominated von der Leyen instead of Manfred Weber , their original candidate. On 9 September,
2736-557: A limit of 2,500 people per day, which initially stranded thousands of migrants in Croatia, Serbia and North Macedonia . In November, Slovenia began erecting temporary fences along the border to direct the flow of people to formal border crossings. Several countries, such as Hungary, Slovenia and Austria, authorized their armies to secure their borders or repel migrants; some passed legislation specifically to give armed forces more powers. EU officials generally reacted with dismay at
2880-613: A majority (17,664) of staff being based in the country. Communication with the press is handled by the Directorate-General Communication . The commission's chief spokesperson is Eric Mamer who holds the midday press briefings, commonly known as the "Midday Presser". It takes place every weekday in the commission's press room at the Berlaymont where journalists may ask questions to the Commission officials on any topic and legitimately expect to get an "on
3024-399: A majority of the unemployed being in the age range 15–24. This was reflected in the age range of the emigrants, roughly 50% of whom were youth between the age of 15–24. Detected illegal border crossings to the EU from Kosovo numbered 22,069 in 2014 and 23,793 in 2015. The anti-government protests of 2015 coincided with a surge in migrant numbers. The Syrian civil war began in response to
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#17327728006943168-519: A massive buildup of people had formed at the station. On 4 September, several thousand set off to make the 150 km journey towards Austria on foot, at which point the Hungarian government relented and no longer tried to stop them. In an effort to force the Austrian and German governments' hands, Hungary chartered buses to the Austrian border for both those walking and those who had stayed behind at
3312-654: A minor role. Some also crossed via the Central Mediterranean Sea. This path is a much longer and considerably more dangerous journey than the relatively short trip across the Aegean. As a result, this route was responsible for a large majority of migrant deaths in 2015, even though it was far less used. An estimated 2,889 died in the Central Mediterranean; 731 died in the Aegean sea. The EU Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) uses
3456-616: A number of Vice-presidents from among the commissioners. Vice-presidents manage policy areas involving multiple Commissioners. One of these includes the High Representative , who is automatically one of the Vice-presidents ex officio rather than by appointment and confirmation. Commonly referred to as the 'HR/VP' position, the High Representative also coordinates commissioners' activities involving
3600-601: A result. In 2008, Paul van Buitenen (the former auditor known from the Santer Commission scandal) accused the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) of a lack of independence and effectiveness. Barroso's first Commission term expired on 31 October 2009. Under the Treaty of Nice, the first Commission to be appointed after the number of member states reached 27 would have to be reduced to "less than
3744-473: A source of competition between areas of the Commission and Commissioners themselves. This also leads to an unusually high number of press releases, and is seen as a unique product of the EU's political set-up. There is a larger press corps in Brussels than Washington, D.C.; in 2020, media outlets in every Union member-state had a Brussels correspondent . Although there has been a worldwide cut in journalists,
3888-584: A stark change to the previous year, when most refugees and migrants landed in Italy from northern Africa. In fact, in the first half of 2015, Italy was, as in previous years, the most common landing point for refugees entering the EU, especially the southern Sicilian island of Lampedusa . By June, however, Greece overtook Italy in the number of arrivals and became the starting point of a flow of refugees and migrants moving through Balkan countries to Northern European countries, particularly Germany and Sweden. By
4032-524: A symbol of her government's refugee policy. Within ten days of Germany's decision to accept the refugees in Hungary, the sudden influx had overwhelmed many of the major refugee processing and accommodation centres in Germany and the country began enacting border controls and allowing people to file asylum applications directly at the Austrian border. Although Austria also accepted some asylum seekers, for
4176-505: A time the country effectively became a distribution centre to Germany, slowing and regulating their transit into Germany and providing temporary housing, food and health care. On some days, Austria took in up to 10,000 Germany-bound migrants arriving from Slovenia and Hungary. Germany's imposition of border controls had a domino effect on countries to Germany's southeast, as Austria and Slovakia successively enacted their own border controls. Hungary closed its border with Serbia entirely with
4320-465: A transit country. Slovenia kept its borders open, although it did limit the flow of people, resulting in occasionally violent clashes with police. In October, Hungary also closed its border with Croatia, making Slovenia the only remaining way to reach Austria and Germany. Croatia reopened its own border to Serbia and together with Slovenia began permitting migrants to pass through, providing buses and temporary accommodation en route. Slovenia did impose
4464-464: A visa from being allowed on aircraft, boats, or trains entering the Schengen Area, and caused them to resort to smugglers. Humanitarian visas are generally not given to refugees who want to apply for asylum. In September 2015, Europol estimated there were 30,000 suspected migrant smugglers operating in and around Europe. By the end of 2016, this number had increased to 55,000. 63 per cent of
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4608-418: A whole. If the European Parliament submits a negative opinion of a candidate, the President must either reshuffle them or request a new candidate from the member state to avoid the college's outright rejection by the European Parliament. Once the college is approved by parliament, it is formally appointed following a QMV vote by the European Council . Following the college's appointment, the President appoints
4752-625: Is illegal to drive from Russia to Norway without a permit, and crossing on foot is prohibited, some used a legal loophole and made the crossing by bicycle. A year later in 2016, Norway built a short 200 m fence at the Storskog border crossing, although it was viewed as a mostly symbolic measure. Some observers argued that the Russian government facilitated the influx in an attempt to warn European leaders against maintaining sanctions imposed after Russia's annexation of Crimea . In January 2016,
4896-495: Is not binding. The commission's powers in proposing law have usually centred on economic regulation. It has put forward a large number of regulations based on a " precautionary principle ". This means that pre-emptive regulation takes place if there is a credible hazard to the environment or human health: for example on tackling climate change and restricting genetically modified organisms . The European Commission has committed EU member states to carbon neutrality by 2050. This
5040-593: Is not such a mirror in creating a European civil society . The Treaty of Lisbon may go some way to resolving the perceived deficit in creating greater democratic controls on the commission, including enshrining the procedure of linking elections to the selection of the Commission president. Historically, the commission had indeed been seen as a technocratic expert body which, akin with institutions such as independent central banks , deals with technical areas of policy and therefore ought to be removed from party politics. From this viewpoint, electoral pressures would undermine
5184-615: Is opposed to weighting regulations for their effect on the economy. Thus, the Commission often proposes stricter legislation than other countries. Owing to the size of the European market, this has made EU legislation an important influence in the global market. On February 23, 2022, the European Commission published the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive which establishes a framework of due diligence for companies to identify actual or potential risks and harm to human rights and
5328-529: The Arab Spring protests of March 2011, which quickly escalated into a civil uprising . By May 2011, thousands of people had fled the country and the first refugee camps opened in Turkey. In March 2012, the UNHCR appointed a Regional Coordinator for Syrian Refugees, recognising the growing concerns surrounding the crisis. As the conflict descended into full civil war, outside powers , notably Iran , Turkey ,
5472-581: The Balkans and re-entering the EU through Hungary or Croatia . Hungary was required by EU law to register them as asylum seekers and attempted to prevent them from traveling on to other EU countries. At the same time, Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán began using fear of immigration as a domestic political campaign issue and stated his opposition to accepting long-term refugees. By August 2015, Hungary housed about 150,000 refugees in makeshift camps . Many had little desire to stay in Hungary; due to
5616-740: The Council of the European Union declared a list of candidate-commissioners, which are sent to Brussels by the governments of each member state and which had to be officially approved by the parliament. In September 2024, Von der Leyen revealed her new team of European Commissioners, marking a shift to a "leaner" and more interconnected structure. The lineup featured six executive vice-presidents (EVPs) from France, Finland, Estonia, Italy, Romania, and Spain. These EVPs, including Teresa Ribera and Stéphane Séjourné , were tasked with overseeing various clusters of Commissioners and steering key policy areas such as prosperity, security, and democracy. Raffaele Fitto
5760-643: The European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). However, their executives were called "Commissions" rather than "High Authorities". The reason for the change in name was the new relationship between the executives and the Council . Some states, such as France, expressed reservations over the power of the High Authority and wished to limit it by giving more power to the Council rather than the new executives. Louis Armand led
5904-537: The European Development Fund for the first time. As revenues for MFF and NGEU, the EU will establish new own resources by raising levies. Germany and the Frugal Four will benefit from increased national rebates of €53.2 billion. MFF and NGEU will cover seven areas providing the framework for the funding of 40 spending programs. This is topped-up by additional €12.5 billion agreed with
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6048-656: The German office suspended the Dublin Regulation for Syrians. Interpreting this to mean that Germany would begin accepting larger numbers of refugees many immigrants attempted to reach Germany from Hungary and southeastern Europe. They were met with a warm reception from the German crowds. On 1 September, Hungarian government closed outbound rail traffic from Budapest's Keleti station , which many refugees were using to travel to Austria and Germany. Within days,
6192-621: The High Representative by the European Council, each Commissioner is proposed by their member state (except for those states who provided the President and High Representative) in consultation with the Commission President and the Council of the European Union , who formally adopts the list of candidates. The President's proposed College of Commissioners is then subject to hearings at the European Parliament which will question them and then vote on their suitability as
6336-552: The Middle East and ISIL 's territorial and military dominance in the region due to the Arab Winter , as well as Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt ceasing to accept Syrian asylum seekers. The EU attempted to enact some measures to address the problem, including distributing refugees among member countries, tackling root causes of emigration in the home countries of migrants, and simplifying deportation processes. However, due to
6480-408: The Middle East . An estimated 1.3 million people came to the continent to request asylum , the most in a single year since World War II . They were mostly Syrians , but also included a significant number of people from Afghanistan , Pakistan , Iraq , Nigeria , Eritrea , and the Balkans . The increase in asylum seekers has been attributed to factors such as the escalation of various wars in
6624-544: The Research and Technological Development Policy . However, France's demand to lower the VAT in catering was refused. The MFF for 2014 to 2020 set a ceiling for expenditure at 1% of European Gross National Income, a reduction from the prior framework. Per the European Council , €959.51 billion in commitments and €908.40 billion in payments for the given timeframe were allotted for expenditure. The EU's expenditure in this period
6768-587: The United States and Russia funded and armed different sides of the conflict and sometimes intervened directly. By March 2013, the total number of Syrian refugees reached 1,000,000, the vast majority of whom were internally displaced within Syria or had fled to Turkey or Lebanon ; smaller numbers had sought refuge in Iraq and Egypt . Afghan refugees constitute the second-largest refugee population in
6912-611: The World Trade Organization . It is also usual for the President to attend meetings of the G7 . The commission is composed of a "College of Commissioners " of 27 members, including the President and vice-presidents. Even though each member is nominated on the basis of the suggestions made by the national governments, one per state, they do not represent their state in the commission. In practice, however, they do occasionally press for their national interest. Once proposed,
7056-464: The environment as well as establishing processes and standards to diminish these risks. The Directive is expected to be officially adopted in 2024 and then be incorporated into domestic laws within two years by all of the European Union member states. Recently the commission has moved into creating European criminal law . In 2006, a toxic waste spill off the coast of Côte d'Ivoire , from
7200-614: The first Commission of Euratom . Walter Hallstein led the first Commission of the EEC , holding the first formal meeting on 16 January 1958 at the Château of Val-Duchesse . It achieved agreement on a contentious cereal price accord, as well as making a positive impression upon third countries when it made its international debut at the Kennedy Round of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations. Hallstein notably began
7344-418: The intellectual property rights directive , and on an amendment to the 2002 counter-terrorism framework decision, outlawing terrorism‑related incitement, recruitment (especially via the internet) and training. Once legislation is passed by the Council and Parliament, it is the commission's responsibility to ensure it is implemented. It does this through the member states or through its agencies . In adopting
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#17327728006947488-596: The 2007 to 2013 perspective was fixed to 1.045% of the European GDP . UK Prime Minister Tony Blair accepted to review the British rebate , negotiated by Margaret Thatcher in 1984. French President Jacques Chirac declared that this increase in budget will permit Europe to "finance common policies" such as the Common Agricultural Policy – which represents about 44% of the EU's spending – or
7632-562: The 25-minute boat ride from Bodrum , Turkey to Kos . An onward journey, not necessarily relying on smugglers, to Germany was estimated to cost €3,000 – €4,000 and €10,000 – €12,000 to Britain. Airplane tickets directly from Turkey to Germany or Britain would have been far cheaper and safer, but the EU requires airlines flying into the Schengen Area to check that passengers have a visa or are exempted from carrying one ("carriers' responsibility"). This prevented would-be migrants without
7776-455: The Council decided otherwise. Membership would rotate equally and no member state would have more than one Commissioner. However, the treaty was rejected by voters in Ireland in 2008 with one main concern being the loss of their Commissioner. Hence a guarantee given for a rerun of the vote was that the council would use its power to amend the number of Commissioners upwards. However, according to
7920-457: The EC and into the dispirited Brussels Commission. In his first term, from 1985 to 1988, he rallied Europe to the call of the single market, and when appointed to a second term he began urging Europeans toward the far more ambitious goals of economic, monetary, and political union". The successor to Delors was Jacques Santer . As a result of a fraud and corruption scandal, the entire Santer Commission
8064-416: The EU (the European Council also holds individual national executive powers). However, it is the Commission that currently holds most of the executive power over the European Union . The Commission differs from the other institutions in that it alone has legislative initiative in the EU. Only the commission can make formal proposals for legislation: they cannot originate in the legislative branches. Under
8208-511: The EU illegally, up to a total of 72,000. If the process succeeded in dramatically reducing irregular immigration to a maximum of 6,000 people per month, the EU would set up a resettlement scheme by which it would regularly resettle Syrian refugees registered in Turkey and upon vetting and recommendation by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The EU also promised to institute visa-free travel to
8352-514: The EU in a year. News media sometimes misrepresent these figures as given by Frontex. Because the refugees entering Europe in 2015 were predominantly from the Middle East , the vast majority first entered the EU by crossing the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Greece by boat; Turkey's land border has been inaccessible to migrants since a border fence was constructed there in 2012. A number of Greek islands are less than 6 km (4 mi) from
8496-400: The EU's gross national income (approximately €4 billion) was intended to be used as last-resort instrument in reacting to unforeseen circumstances. Specific flexibility to tackle youth unemployment and strengthen research was giving an opportunity to spend an additional €2.543 billion on youth unemployment and research. In order to maintain the total annual ceilings and headings' allocation
8640-405: The EU, the legitimacy of the commission is mainly drawn from the vote of approval that is required from the European Parliament, along with its power to dismiss the body. Eurosceptics have therefore raised the concern of the relatively low turnout (often less than 50%) in elections for the European Parliament since 1999 . While that figure may be higher than that of some national elections, including
8784-509: The European Commission put forward an Anti-Racism Action Plan to tackle the structural racism in the European Union, including measures to address the lack of racial diversity among the European decision makers in Brussels, as denounced by the #BrusselsSoWhite movement. Migration crisis in Europe The 2015 European migrant crisis was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and migrants into Europe, namely from
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#17327728006948928-600: The European Commission. Juncker appointed his previous campaign director and head of the transition team, Martin Selmayr , as his chief of cabinet. During the Juncker presidency Selmayr has been described as "the most powerful EU chief of staff ever." In 2019, Ursula von der Leyen was appointed as President of the European Commission. She submitted the guidelines of her policy to the European Parliament on 16 July 2019, following her confirmation. She had not been considered
9072-589: The European Court of Justice (Art. 245 and 247, Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union). The Barroso Commission took office in late 2004 after being delayed by objections from the Parliament, which forced a reshuffle. In 2007 the Commission increased from 25 to 27 members with the accession of Romania and Bulgaria who each appointed their own Commissioners. With the increasing size of
9216-427: The European Parliament. The total of national rebates is 53.2 billion € funded by all Member States according to their GNI. European Commission The European Commission ( EC ) is the primary executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government , with a number of members of the Commission ( directorial system , informally known as "Commissioners") corresponding to two thirds of
9360-574: The European Union then nominates the other members of the Commission in agreement with the nominated President, and the 27 members as a team are then subject to a vote of approval by the European Parliament. The current Commission is the Von der Leyen Commission , which took office in December 2019, following the European Parliament elections in May of the same year . The European Commission derives from one of
9504-607: The European Union, which represents governments, the European Parliament, which represents citizens , the Economic and Social Committee , which represents organised civil society, and the Committee of the Regions , which represents local and regional authorities. Through Article 17 of the Treaty on European Union the commission has several responsibilities: to develop medium-term strategies; to draft legislation and arbitrate in
9648-442: The Mediterranean Sea in 2015. A single shipwreck near Lampedusa in April accounted for around 800 deaths. Apart from drownings, the deadliest incident occurred on 27 August 2015, when 71 people were found dead in an unventilated food truck near Vienna . Eleven of the smugglers responsible were later arrested and charged with murder and homicide in Hungary. The charges and trial took place in Hungary as authorities determined that
9792-405: The Parliament once again asserted itself in objecting to the proposed membership of the Barroso Commission. Owing to this opposition, Barroso was forced to reshuffle his College before taking office. The Barroso Commission was also the first full Commission since the enlargement in 2004 to 25 members; hence, the number of Commissioners at the end of the Prodi Commission had reached 30. As a result of
9936-434: The President delegates portfolios among each of the members. The power of a Commissioner largely depends upon their portfolio, and can vary over time. For example, the Education Commissioner has been growing in importance, in line with the rise in the importance of education and culture in European policy-making. Another example is the Competition Commissioner , who holds a highly visible position with global reach. Before
10080-403: The President of the European Commission, and although they are still proposed by the European Council; the European Parliament " elects " candidates to the office, rather than " approves " them as under the Treaty of Nice. The Barroso Commission is, in reaction to Euroscepticism , said to have toned down enforcement to increase integration. In 2014, Jean-Claude Juncker became President of
10224-421: The President of the European Commission. It has been noted by one researcher that the press releases issued by the commission are uniquely political. A release often goes through several stages of drafting which emphasises the role of the commission and is used "for justifying the EU and the Commission" increasing their length and complexity. Where there are multiple departments involved a press release can also be
10368-548: The Tempohomes and MUF are still in use as of 2022, and some have begun housing Ukrainian refugees as well. Because the vast majority of refugees arriving in Europe in 2015 passed through Turkey, the country's cooperation was seen as central to efforts to stem the flow of people and prevent refugees from attempting to make dangerous sea crossings. There was also a recognition that it would be unfair to expect Turkey to shoulder
10512-423: The Treaty of Lisbon, no legislative act is allowed in the field of the Common Foreign and Security Policy . In the other fields, the Council and Parliament can request legislation; in most cases the Commission initiates on the basis of these proposals. This monopoly is designed to ensure coordinated and coherent drafting of EU law . This monopoly has been challenged by some who claim the Parliament should also have
10656-502: The Turkish coast, such as Chios , Kos , Lesbos , Leros , Kastellorizo , Agathonisi , Farmakonisi , Rhodes , Samos and Symi . At one point, incoming refugees on some of these islands outnumbered locals. A small number of people (34,000 or 3% of the total) used Turkey's land borders with Greece or Bulgaria. From Greece, most tried to make their way toward through the Balkans to Central and Northern Europe . This represented
10800-562: The arrivals, as they were technically required to do according to EU rules. In early September, Denmark temporarily closed rail and road border crossings with Germany. After initial uncertainty surrounding the rules, Denmark allowed most of the people wishing to travel on to Sweden to do so. In the five weeks following 6 September, approximately 28,800 refugees and migrants crossed the Danish borders, 3,500 of whom applied for asylum in Denmark;
10944-495: The border closures, warning that they undermined the mutual trust and freedom of movement that the bloc was founded on and risked returning to a pre-1990s arrangement of costly border controls and mistrust. The European Commission warned EU members against steps that contravene EU treaties and urged members like Hungary to find other ways to cope with an influx of refugees and migrants. As winter set in, refugee numbers decreased, although they were still many times higher than in
11088-494: The circulation of the white nationalist conspiracy theory of the Great Replacement . However, despite the political consequences, the 2015 migrant crisis had a low but positive impact to the German economy. News organisations and academic sources use both migrant crisis and refugee crisis to refer to the 2015 events, sometimes interchangeably. Some argued that the word migrant was pejorative or inaccurate in
11232-581: The commission (66%) and concerning lack of transparency (36%). In 2010 the commission was sued for blocking access to documents on EU biofuel policy. This happened after media accused the Commission of blocking scientific evidence against biofuel subsidies. Lack of transparency, unclear lobbyist relations, conflicts of interests and excessive spending of the commission was highlighted in a number of reports by internal and independent auditing organisations. It has also been criticised on IT-related issues, particularly with regard to Microsoft . In September 2020,
11376-521: The commission can assume office, the college as a whole must be approved by the Parliament. Commissioners are supported by their personal cabinet who give them political guidance, while the Civil Service (the DGs, see below) deal with technical preparation. The President of the Commission is first proposed by the European Council , following a Qualified Majority Vote (QMV), taking into account
11520-420: The commission's lack of power over areas like foreign policy – that power is held by the Council of the European Union and the European Council, which some analysts have described as another executive. Considering that under the Treaty of Lisbon, the European Council has become a formal institution with the power of appointing the commission, it could be said that the two bodies hold the executive power of
11664-520: The commission's operation and organisation. There has been criticism from a number of people that the highly fragmented DG structure wastes a considerable amount of time in turf wars as the different departments and Commissioners compete with each other. Furthermore, the DGs can exercise considerable control over a Commissioner with the Commissioner having little time to learn to assert control over their staff. According to figures published by
11808-510: The commission's role as an independent regulator. Defenders of the Commission point out that legislation must be approved by the Council in all areas (the ministers of member states) and the European Parliament in most areas before it can be adopted, thus the amount of legislation which is adopted in any one country without the approval of its government is limited. In 2009 the European ombudsman published statistics of citizens' complaints against EU institutions, with most of them filed against
11952-555: The commission, 23,803 persons were employed by the commission as officials and temporary agents in September 2012. In addition to these, 9230 "external staff" (e.g. Contractual agents, detached national experts, young experts, trainees etc.) were employed. The single largest DG is the Directorate-General for Translation , with a 2309-strong staff, while the largest group by nationality is Belgian (18.7%), probably due to
12096-574: The commission, Barroso adopted a more presidential style of control over the college, which earned him some criticism. However, under Barroso, the commission began to lose ground to the larger member states as countries such as France, the UK and Germany sought to sideline its role. This has increased with the creation of the President of the European Council under the Treaty of Lisbon . There has also been
12240-412: The considerable press releases and operations such as Europe by Satellite and EuroparlTV leads many news organisations to believe they can cover the EU from these source and news agencies . The Commission shut down Presseurop on 20 December 2013, though the decision was criticised. As the commission is the executive branch, candidates are chosen individually by the 27 national governments. Within
12384-465: The consolidation of European law and started to have a notable impact on national legislation. Little heed was taken of his administration at first but, with help from the European Court of Justice , his Commission stamped its authority solidly enough to allow future Commissions to be taken more seriously. In 1965, however, accumulating differences between the French government of Charles de Gaulle and
12528-497: The context of people fleeing war and persecution because it implies most are emigrating voluntarily rather than being forced to leave their homes. The BBC and The Washington Post argued against the stigmatization of the word, contending that it simply refers to anyone moving from one country to another. The Guardian said while it would not advise against using the word outright, "'refugees', ' displaced people ' and ' asylum seekers ' ... are more useful and accurate terms than
12672-495: The deaths had occurred there. The Mafia Capitale investigation revealed that the Italian Mafia profited from the migrant crisis and exploited refugees. The first half of 2015 saw around 230,000 people enter the EU. The most common points of entry were Italy and Greece. From there, arrivals either applied for asylum directly or attempted to travel to Northern and Western European countries, mostly by traveling through
12816-870: The deaths of 20,000 people and displaced at least 2 million since 2009. Around 75,000 Nigerians requested asylum in the EU in 2015 and 2016, around 3 per cent of the total. In all, over 1 million refugees and migrants crossed the Mediterranean (mostly the Aegean Sea ) in 2015, three to four times more than the previous year. 80% were fleeing from wars in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan. About 85% of sea arrivals were in Greece (via Turkey) and 15% in Italy (via northern Africa ). The European Union's external land borders (e.g., in Greece, Bulgaria or Finland ) played only
12960-644: The end of 2015, about 80% of migrants had landed in Greece, compared to only 15% in Italy. Greece appealed to the European Union for assistance; the UNCHR European Director Vincent Cochetel said facilities for migrants on the Greek islands were "totally inadequate" and the islands were in "total chaos". Frontex's Operation Poseidon, aimed at patrolling the Aegean Sea , was underfunded and undermanned, with only 11 coastal patrol vessels, one ship, two helicopters, two aircraft, and
13104-617: The euro. In response to the scandal, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) was created. Following Santer, Romano Prodi took office. The Amsterdam Treaty had increased the commission's powers and Prodi was dubbed by the press as something akin to a Prime Minister. Powers were strengthened again; the Treaty of Nice , signed in 2001, gave the Presidents more power over the composition of the College of Commissioners. José Manuel Barroso became president in 2004:
13248-444: The executive power of the EU was held by the council: it conferred on the Commission such powers for it to exercise. However, the council was allowed to withdraw these powers, exercise them directly, or impose conditions on their use. This aspect has been changed by the Treaty of Lisbon, after which the Commission exercises its powers just by virtue of the treaties. Powers are more restricted than most national executives, in part due to
13392-410: The external relations and defence cooperation of the European Union. The von der Leyen Commission also created the position of more senior Executive Vice-presidents , appointed from the three largest political groups in the European Parliament. Unlike the other vice-presidents, their mission is to manage the incumbent Commission's top priority policy areas, for which they receive additional support from
13536-459: The financial and logistical burden of hosting and integrating millions of refugees on its own. In 2015, the European Commission began negotiating an agreement with Turkey to close its borders to Greece in exchange for money and diplomatic favours. In March 2016, after months of tense negotiations during which Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan repeatedly threatened to open Turkey's borders and "flood" Europe with migrants to extract concessions,
13680-640: The financial resources to deal with even these record numbers of asylum seekers, although for years it had neglected to build an infrastructure to properly take care of them." The most significant root causes of the wave of refugees entering Europe in 2015 were several interrelated wars, most notably the Libyan civil war , Syrian civil war and the 2014–2017 War in Iraq . In 2014, the EU member states counted around 252,000 irregular arrivals and 626,065 asylum applications,
13824-630: The first enlargement to the north in 1973. With that enlargement, the College of Commissioners membership increased to thirteen under the Ortoli Commission (the United Kingdom as a large member was granted two Commissioners), which dealt with the enlarged community during economic and international instability at that time. The external representation of the Community took a step forward when President Roy Jenkins , recruited to
13968-488: The first year after its accession to the European Union. Below are the ‘special instruments’ used for the MFF of this period: Emergency aid reserve, with annual amount of €280 million, was used to deal with unpredictable events such as financing humanitarian aid, managing civilian crisis and conducting protection operations in non-EU countries. EU solidarity fund , with annual budgeted amount of not more than €500 million,
14112-487: The five key institutions created in the supranational European Community system, following the proposal of Robert Schuman , French Foreign Minister, on 9 May 1950. Originating in 1951 as the High Authority in the European Coal and Steel Community , the commission has undergone numerous changes in power and composition under various presidents, involving three Communities. The first Commission originated in 1951 as
14256-435: The formula of one member for small states and two for larger states. The Rey Commission completed the Community's customs union in 1968 and campaigned for a more powerful, elected, European Parliament . Despite Rey being the first President of the combined communities, Hallstein is seen as the first President of the modern Commission. The Malfatti and Mansholt Commissions followed with work on monetary co-operation and
14400-715: The government's unwelcoming stance, squalid conditions in the camps, and their poor prospects of being allowed to stay. Over the course of 2015 and 2016, almost everyone who had lodged an asylum claim in Hungary left the country. On 21 August 2015, the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees was overwhelmed. This was attributed to the sheer mass of incoming asylum applications, the inherent complexity of determining whether applicants had previously claimed asylum in another EU country, and that almost all asylum applications by Syrians were being granted anyway Due to their lack of capacity to process applications
14544-648: The highest number since the 672,000 applications received in the wake of the Yugoslav Wars in 1992. Four countries – Germany, Sweden, Italy and France – received around two-thirds of the EU's asylum applications. Sweden, Hungary and Austria were among the top recipients of EU asylum applications per capita , when adjusted for their own populations, with 8.4 asylum seekers per 1,000 inhabitants in Sweden, 4.3 in Hungary, and 3.2 in Austria. The EU countries that hosted
14688-476: The increase in the number of states, the Amsterdam Treaty triggered a reduction in the number of Commissioners to one per state, rather than two for the larger states. Allegations of fraud and corruption were again raised in 2004 by former chief auditor Jules Muis. A Commission officer, Guido Strack , reported alleged fraud and abuses in his department in the years 2002–2004 to OLAF, and was fired as
14832-601: The increase of asylum seekers in the European region. Migration from Kosovo occurred in phases beginning from the second half of the 20th century. The Kosovo War (February 1998 – June 1999) created a wave. On 19 May 2011, Kosovo established the Ministry of Diaspora. Kosovo also established the Kosovo Diaspora Agency (KDA) to support migrants. The unemployment rate in Kosovo in 2014 was estimated at 30%,
14976-580: The inhabitants would be under strict surveillance. Many migrants tried to enter the United Kingdom , resulting in camps of migrants around Calais where one of the Eurotunnel entrances is located. In the summer of 2015, at least nine people died in attempts to reach Britain, including falling from trains, being hit by trains, or drowning in a canal at the Eurotunnel entrance. In response,
15120-508: The largest numbers of refugees at the end of 2014 were France (252,000), Germany (217,000), Sweden (142,000) and the United Kingdom (117,000). In 2014, the main countries of origin of asylum seekers, accounting for almost half of the total, were Syria (20%), Afghanistan (7%), Kosovo (6%), Eritrea (6%) and Albania . Most crossed the Mediterranean Sea from Libya. The overall rate of recognition of asylum applicants
15264-400: The latest parliamentary elections (any person from the largest party can be picked ); that candidate then faces a formal election in the European Parliament . Thus this serves as a form of indirect election . If the European Parliament fails to elect the candidate, the European Council shall propose another within one month. Following the selection of the President, and the appointment of
15408-404: The legislative process; to represent the EU in trade negotiations; to make rules and regulations, for example in competition policy; to draw up the budget of the European Union ; and to scrutinise the implementation of the treaties and legislation. The rules of procedure of the European Commission set out the commission's operation and organisation. Before the Treaty of Lisbon came into force,
15552-610: The most 'dynamic' leader until Jacques Delors . The three bodies, collectively named the European Executives , co-existed until 1 July 1967 when, under the Merger Treaty , they were combined into a single administration under President Jean Rey . Owing to the merger, the Rey Commission saw a temporary increase to 14 members—although subsequent Commissions were reduced back to nine, following
15696-635: The nation faced fluctuating levels of civil war amidst unending unrest. The increase in refugee numbers was primarily attributed to the Taliban presence within Afghanistan. Their retreat in 2001 led to nearly 6 million Afghan refugees returning to their homeland. However, after the Taliban insurgency against NATO-led forces and subsequent Fall of Kabul , nearly 2.5 million refugees fled Afghanistan. The Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria has resulted in
15840-409: The necessary technical measures, the commission is assisted by committees made up of representatives of member states and of the public and private lobbies (a process known in jargon as " comitology "). Furthermore, the commission is responsible for the implementation of the EU budget , ensuring, along with the Court of Auditors , that EU funds are correctly spent. In particular the commission has
15984-651: The nine-member " High Authority " under President Jean Monnet (see Monnet Authority ). The High Authority was the supranational administrative executive of the new European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). It took office first on 10 August 1952 in Luxembourg City. In 1958, the Treaties of Rome had established two new communities alongside the ECSC: the European Economic Community (EEC) and
16128-523: The number of Member States". The exact number of Commissioners was to be decided by a unanimous vote of the European Council , and membership would rotate equally between member states. Following the accession of Romania and Bulgaria in January 2007, this clause took effect for the next Commission. The Treaty of Lisbon, which came into force on 1 December 2009, mandated a reduction of the number of commissioners to two-thirds of member-states from 2014 unless
16272-401: The number of Member States, unless the European Council, acting unanimously, decides to alter this number. The current number of Commissioners is 27, including the President. It includes an administrative body of about 32,000 European civil servants. The commission is divided into departments known as Directorates-General (DGs) that can be likened to departments or ministries each headed by
16416-594: The off-year elections of the United States Congress , the fact that there are no direct elections for the position of Commission President calls the position's legitimacy into question in the eyes of some Eurosceptics. The fact that the commission can directly decide (albeit with oversight from specially formed 'comitology committees' ) on the shape and character of implementing legislation further raises concerns about democratic legitimacy. Even though democratic structures and methods are changing there
16560-491: The other member states on various subjects (British entry, direct elections to Parliament, the Fouchet Plan and the budget) triggered the "empty chair" crisis , ostensibly over proposals for the Common Agricultural Policy . Although the institutional crisis was solved the following year, it cost Étienne Hirsch his presidency of Euratom and later Walter Hallstein the EEC presidency, despite his otherwise being viewed as
16704-509: The posts of European Commissioner for External Relations with the council's High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy . This post, also a Vice-president of the Commission , would chair the Council of the European Union's foreign affairs meetings as well as the commission's external relations duties. The treaty further provides that the most recent European elections should be " taken into account " when appointing
16848-547: The presidency in January 1977 from his role as Home Secretary of the United Kingdom's Labour government, became the first President to attend a G8 summit on behalf of the Community. Following the Jenkins Commission , Gaston Thorn 's Commission oversaw the Community's enlargement to the south, in addition to beginning work on the Single European Act . The Commission headed by Jacques Delors
16992-509: The previous Basroch refugee camp . Germany has a quota system to distribute asylum seekers among all German states , but in September 2015 the federal states, responsible for accommodation, criticised the government in Berlin for not providing enough help to them. In Germany, which took in by far the highest number of refugees, the federal government distributes refugees among the 16 states proportionally to their tax revenue and population;
17136-631: The previous year. In January and February 2016, over 123,000 migrants landed in Greece, compared to about 4,600 in the same period of 2015. Sweden took in over 160,000 refugees in 2015, more per capita than any other country in Europe (other than Turkey). Well over half of these came to Sweden in October and November. Most entered Sweden by traveling through Germany and then Denmark; few wanted to apply for asylum in Denmark because of its comparatively harsh conditions for asylum seekers. There were occasionally scuffles as Danish police tried to register some of
17280-635: The record" answer for live TV. Such a situation is unique in the world. As an integral part of the Directorate-General for Communication, the Spokesperson's Service, in coordination with the Executive Communication Adviser in the President's Cabinet, supports the President and Commissioners so that they can communicate effectively. On political communication matters, the chief spokesperson reports directly to
17424-496: The refugees after the government decided to temporarily suspend its enforcement of the Dublin Regulation . Germany would receive over 440,000 asylum applications (0.5% of the population). Other countries that took in a significant number of refugees include Hungary (174,000; 1.8%), Sweden (156,000; 1.6%) and Austria (88,000; 1.0%). The crisis had significant political consequences in Europe. The influx of migrants caused significant demographic and cultural changes in these countries. As
17568-424: The rest continued to other Nordic countries . In November 2015, Sweden reintroduced border controls at the Danish border, although this did not reduce the number of arrivals as they still had the right to apply for asylum. Within hours of Swedish border control becoming effective, Denmark instituted border controls at the German border. Some bypassed the border controls by taking a ferry to Trelleborg instead of
17712-510: The right, with most national parliaments holding the right in some respects. However, the Council and Parliament may request the commission to draft legislation, though the Commission does have the power to refuse to do so as it did in 2008 over transnational collective conventions. Under the Lisbon Treaty, EU citizens are also able to request the commission to legislate in an area via a petition carrying one million signatures , but this
17856-405: The same, the amount was fully balanced out within and/or between headings. The framework did receive a number of amendments and changes during its effective period following a midterm review. Particularly, the budget was shifted towards cushioning labor impacts resulting from the migration crisis straining the budget at the time. The European Union's MFF for the period 2021-2027 is equipped with
18000-606: The smugglers were from Europe, 14 per cent from the Middle East, 13 per cent from Africa, nine per cent from Asia (excluding the Middle East) and one per cent from the Americas. On several occasions, unscrupulous smugglers caused the deaths of the people they were transporting, particularly by using poorly-maintained and overfilled boats and refusing to provide life jackets. At least 3771 refugees and migrants drowned in
18144-462: The spending limit of €58.70 billion. Mainly covered Union's activities on international level (humanitarian aid, development assistance). 5. Administration : with €61.63 billion limit on expenditure, which was decreased in amount of €2.5 billion in comparison with the previous MFF in order to consolidate public finances. 6. Compensations : ceiling in sum of €27 million was set to support Croatia in contributing less than gained benefits during
18288-450: The states themselves are required to come up with housing solutions. In 2015, this arrangement came under strain as many states ran out of dedicated accommodation for incoming refugees. Many resorted to temporarily housing refugees in tents or repurposed empty buildings. The small village of Sumte (population 102), which contained a large unused warehouse, famously took in 750 refugees. Although media and some locals feared racial strife and
18432-499: The station. Unwilling to resort to violence to keep them out, and faced with a potential humanitarian crisis if the huge numbers languished in Hungary indefinitely, Germany and Austria jointly announced on 4 September that they would allow the migrants to cross their borders and apply for asylum. Across Germany, crowds formed at train stations to applaud and welcome the arrivals. In the following three months, an estimated 550,000 people entered Germany to apply for asylum, around half
18576-493: The terms "illegal" and "irregular" border crossings for crossings of an EU external border but not at an official border-crossing point . These include people rescued at sea. Because many migrants cross more than one external EU border (for instance when traveling through the Balkans from Greece to Hungary), the total number of irregular EU external border crossings is often higher than the number of irregular migrants arriving in
18720-471: The total for the entire year. Though under pressure from conservative politicians, the German government refused to set an upper limit to the number of asylum applications it would accept, with Angela Merkel arguing that the "fundamental right to seek refuge ...from the hell of war knows no limit." She famously declared her confidence that Germany could cope with the situation with " wir schaffen das " (roughly, "we can manage this"). This phrase quickly became
18864-711: The train to Hyllie , The border controls were never fully lifted before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, which saw renewed border closures throughout Europe. In October 2015, the Slovenian government accused Croatian police of helping migrants bypass Slovene border controls and released a night time thermovision video allegedly documenting the event. After inspecting a refugee camp in Traiskirchen , Austria, in August 2015, Amnesty International noted inhabitants were receiving insufficient medical care and claimed Austria
19008-483: The treaties it still has to be fewer than the total number of members, thus it was proposed that the member state that does not get a Commissioner would get the post of High Representative – the so-called 26+1 formula. This guarantee (which may find its way into the next treaty amendment, probably in an accession treaty) contributed to the Irish approving the treaty in a second referendum in 2009. Lisbon also combined
19152-679: The world's top ten refugee-producing countries. Wars fueling the migrant crisis are the Syrian Civil War , the Iraq War , the War in Afghanistan , the War in Somalia and the War in Darfur . Refugees from Eritrea, one of the most repressive states in the world, fled from indefinite military conscription and forced labour . Below are the major regions of conflict that have resulted in
19296-565: The world. According to the UNHCR, there are almost 2.5 million registered refugees from Afghanistan. Most of these refugees fled the region due to war and persecution. The majority have resettled in Pakistan and Iran, though it became increasingly common to migrate further west to the European Union. Afghanistan faced over 40 years of conflict dating back to the Soviet invasion in 1979 . Since then,
19440-419: Was "violating human rights". In late November, Finnish reception centers were running out of space, which forced authorities to resort to refurbished shipping containers and tents to house new asylum seekers. Deputy prime minister Petteri Orpo announced that special repatriation centers would be established to house denied asylum seekers. While he stressed that these camps would not be prisons, he described
19584-488: Was 45 per cent at the first instance and 18 per cent on appeal although there were huge differences between EU states, ranging from Hungary (accepted 9% of applicants) to Sweden (accepted 74%). According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees , most of the people who arrived in Europe in 2015 were refugees fleeing war and persecution in countries such as Syria , Afghanistan , Iraq and Eritrea : 84 per cent of Mediterranean Sea arrivals in 2015 came from
19728-469: Was appointed despite criticism from European socialists over his hard-right affiliations. Other notable appointments included Kaja Kallas as EVP for Foreign and Security Policy, and Henna Virkkunen as EVP for Tech Sovereignty and Digital Technologies. The Commission also introduced new roles like the Commissioner for Defence and Security and the Commissioner for the Mediterranean. The commission
19872-590: Was comparatively low at around 150,000. Most of the refugees and migrants taking this route came from African countries, especially Eritrea , Nigeria , and Somalia . At least 2,889 people died during the journey. A few other routes were also used by some refugees, although they were comparatively low in number. One such route was entering Finland or Norway via Russia ; on a few days Arctic border stations in these countries saw several hundred "irregular" border crossings per day. Norway recorded around 6,000 refugees crossing its northern border in 2015. Because it
20016-559: Was designed for the cases of major disasters in any of the member states or in countries negotiating with EU regarding accession. Flexibility instrument, with fixed annual amount of €471 million, was dedicated to clearly identified needs out of the scope of the MFF ceilings. European globalization adjustment fund , with mobilization up to €150 million annually, aiming to support workers, who became unemployed because of globalization, economic crisis, etc., in finding new opportunities of employment. Contingency margin equals to 0.03% of
20160-399: Was forced by the Parliament to resign in 1999; a central role was played by Édith Cresson . These frauds were revealed by an internal auditor, Paul van Buitenen . That was the first time a College of Commissioners had been forced to resign en masse , and represented a shift of power towards the Parliament. However, the Santer Commission did carry out work on the Treaty of Amsterdam and
20304-505: Was in six categories or "headings" with respective ceilings for spending. 1. Smart and inclusive growth a. Competitiveness for growth and jobs: the ceiling for this program, supporting research and innovation, investment in trans-European networks and development of small and medium-sized enterprises, was €125.61 billion, which exceeded the previous ceiling for 37%. b. Economic, social and territorial cohesion: with ceiling in amount of €324.94 billion for this subheading. The main goal
20448-566: Was reduction of asymmetric levels of development of the EU's regions and expansion of the support of the Union's cohesion policy. 2. Sustainable growth , natural resources : the ceiling equals to €372.93 billion. Aimed covering environmental action, the common fisheries policy and the common agricultural policy (CAP). 3. Security and citizenship : the set limit in amount of €15.67 billion. Asylum and migration related actions were financed, as well as initiatives connected with internal security and external borders. 4. Global Europe:
20592-529: Was seen as giving the Community a sense of direction and dynamism. Delors and his College are also considered as the " founding fathers of the euro ". The International Herald Tribune noted the work of Delors at the end of his second term in 1992: "Mr. Delors rescued the European Community from the doldrums. He arrived when Europessimism was at its worst. Although he was a little-known former French finance minister, he breathed life and hope into
20736-407: Was set up from the start to act as an independent supranational authority separate from governments; it has been described as "the only body paid to think European". The members are proposed by their member state governments, one from each. However, they are bound to act independently – free from other influences such as those governments which appointed them. This is in contrast to the Council of
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