92-543: Leonard Clemence " Leo " Tindemans ( Dutch: [ˈleːjoː ˈtɪndəmɑns] ; 16 April 1922 – 26 December 2014) was a Belgian politician. He served as the prime minister of Belgium from 25 April 1974 until he resigned as minister on 20 October 1978. He was a member of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party. Tindemans was born in Zwijndrecht , Belgium, to a Catholic family. Tindemans
184-621: A President or his Commission, but the threat to do so has produced concessions to Parliament on the Commission's composition or on policy commitments. As described above, when the Barroso Commission was put forward, the Parliament forced the proposal to be withdrawn and changed to be more acceptable to Parliament. That pressure was seen as an important sign by some of the evolving nature of the Parliament and its ability to make
276-551: A delegate be assigned to represent European Union to the United States. Lastly on the foreign policy front, Tindemans advocated for the eventual creation of a common defense policy. On the economic and social policy front, Tindemans advocated for reigniting discussions about a common economic and monetary policy, which had stalled in Europe during the early 1970s recession. As part of this revival of talks, he also advocated for
368-464: A great deal of indirect influence, through non-binding resolutions and committee hearings , as a "pan-European soapbox " with the ear of thousands of Brussels-based journalists . There is also an indirect effect on foreign policy ; the Parliament must approve all development grants, including those overseas. For example, the support for post-war Iraq reconstruction, or incentives for the cessation of Iranian nuclear development , must be supported by
460-537: A member of the Cabinet the head of Cabinet continued to lead a ministerial department. The title of Prime Minister or Premier was used for the first time in 1918 in official documents and it is at this time that the position was assigned to its own cabinet. Only in 1970 the title was incorporated in the Belgian Constitution with the first state reform . Besides coordinating government policies,
552-416: A new government. After these consultations, the informateur reports to the king so that the king can find a suitable formateur , who is responsible for forming the government. Usually, it is the formateur of the federal government who then becomes prime minister. It usually takes several months of negotiations before the formateur is ready to accept a formal royal invitation to form a government. Per
644-591: A proposal by the European Commission . The Parliament is composed of 720 members (MEPs), after the June 2024 European elections, from a previous 705 MEPs. It represents the second-largest democratic electorate in the world (after the Parliament of India ), with an electorate of around 375 million eligible voters in 2024. Since 1979, the Parliament has been directly elected every five years by
736-562: A report to define what was meant by the term ' European Union .' Consulting not only reports drawn up by the European Parliament, European Commission and the European Court of Justice, Tindemans also sought advice from members of European governments and "other powerful forces in the various States". Tindemans deliberately sought to avoid using the term constitution, and instead referred to his proposals as "a new phase in
828-489: A text, which they do (or not) through successive readings up to a maximum of three. In its first reading, Parliament may send amendments to the Council which can either adopt the text with those amendments or send back a "common position". That position may either be approved by Parliament, or it may reject the text by an absolute majority , causing it to fail, or it may adopt further amendments, also by an absolute majority. If
920-420: Is 17. The European Parliament has legislative power in that the adoption of EU legislation normally requires its approval, and that of the Council, in what amounts to a bicameral legislature. However, it does not formally possess the right of initiative (i.e. the right to formally initiate the legislative procedure) in the way that most national parliaments of the member states do, as the right of initiative
1012-583: Is a prerogative of the European Commission. Nonetheless, the Parliament and the Council each have the right to request the Commission to initiate the legislative procedure and put forward a proposal. The Parliament is, in protocol terms, the "first institution" of the European Union (mentioned first in its treaties and having ceremonial precedence over the other EU institutions), and shares equal legislative and budgetary powers with
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#17327876756701104-624: Is an instrument which is applicable to a particular person or group. Institutions may also issue recommendations and opinions which are merely non-binding, declarations. The Parliament and the Council are also the Union's budgetary authority since the Budgetary Treaties of the 1970s and the Lisbon Treaty . The EU budget is subject to a form of the ordinary legislative procedure with a single reading giving Parliament power over
1196-414: Is expected, though not required, that the prime minister be fluent in both French and Dutch. The day after the federal elections , the incumbent prime minister offers the resignation of his government to the king. The king then asks the resigning government to continue as a caretaker government until a new government is formed. The king then consults a number of prominent politicians in order to ascertain
1288-537: Is reconquered by the Austrians. Since the independence of Belgium in 1830, governments have been designated with the name of the minister who formed the government as formateur , but that position did not have a specific status. Originally, from 1831 the king of the Belgians presided over the Council of Ministers, but when he was absent, the presidency was taken by the chef de cabinet (head of Cabinet), usually
1380-576: The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe . The liberals gave support after Barroso gave them a number of concessions; the liberals previously joined the socialists' call for a delayed vote (the EPP had wanted to approve Barroso in July of that year). Once Barroso put forward the candidates for his next Commission, another case of MEPs opposing a particular nominee arose. Bulgarian nominee Rumiana Jeleva
1472-552: The Bolkestein directive in 2006. In practice, most legislation is adopted at the first reading stage after the Parliament and the Council, having set out their initial positions, then negotiate a compromise text. These negotiations take place in so-called "trilogue" meetings, in which the Commission is also present. In a few areas, special legislative procedures apply. These include justice and home affairs, budget and taxation, and certain aspects of other policy areas, such as
1564-711: The European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR), and Renew Europe (Renew). The last EU-wide election was held in 2024 . The Parliament's headquarters are officially in Strasbourg , France, and has its administrative offices in Luxembourg City . Plenary sessions are normally held in Strasbourg for four days a month, but sometimes there are additional sessions in Brussels, while
1656-566: The European Council in 1992. It stated the Parliament would retain its formal seat in Strasbourg, where twelve sessions a year would be held, but with all other parliamentary activity in Brussels. This two-seat arrangement was contested by the Parliament, but was later enshrined in the Treaty of Amsterdam . To this day the institution's locations are a source of contention. The Parliament gained more powers from successive revisions of
1748-572: The European Union 's structures have evolved without a clear 'master plan'. Tom Reid of The Washington Post has said of the union that "nobody would have deliberately designed a government as complex and as redundant as the EU". Even the Parliament's three working locations , which have switched several times, are a result of various agreements or lack of agreements. Although most MEPs would prefer to be based just in Brussels, where it conducts
1840-581: The High Representative . MEPs did not manage to get everything they demanded. However, they got broader financial control over the new body. In December 2017, Politico denounced the insufficient racial diversity among Members of the European Parliament. The subsequent news coverage contributed to create the Brussels So White movement to campaign to rectify this situation. On gender balance, some 37 percent of MEPs were women in
1932-548: The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe or Pan-African Parliament which are appointed. After that first election, the parliament held its first session on 17 July 1979, electing Simone Veil MEP as its president. Veil was also the first female president of the Parliament since it was formed as the Common Assembly. As an elected body, the Parliament began to draft proposals addressing
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#17327876756702024-614: The Treaties of Rome . The Common Assembly was shared by all three communities (which had separate executives) and it renamed itself the European Parliamentary Assembly . The first meeting was held on 19 March 1958 having been set up in Luxembourg City, it elected Schuman as its president and on 13 May it rearranged itself to sit according to political ideology rather than nationality. This is seen as
2116-410: The citizens of the European Union through universal suffrage . Voter turnout in parliamentary elections decreased each time after 1979 until 2019 , when voter turnout increased by eight percentage points, and rose above 50% for the first time since 1994 . The voting age is 18 in all EU member states except for Malta , Belgium , Austria and Germany , where it is 16, and Greece , where it
2208-408: The government policy statement in the Parliament . The prime minister can also ask Parliament for a vote of confidence, which can even lead to the government's resignation in the case of a constructive vote of no confidence . Unless the prime minister resigns because of a personal matter, the whole government resigns with the prime minister's resignation. The prime minister also represents Belgium in
2300-545: The king of the Belgians often presided over the Council of Ministers, so the modern era of the "Premiership" started after World War I with Léon Delacroix . The political importance of the Crown has decreased over time, whereas the position of prime minister has gradually become more important. Alexander De Croo , a member of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats and son of prominent politician, Herman ,
2392-539: The premier of Belgium is the head of the federal government of Belgium , and the most powerful person in Belgian politics. The first head of government in Belgian history was Henri van der Noot in 1790, during the short-lived republic of the United Belgian States . Although Leaders of Government (French: Chefs de Cabinet ) had been appointed since the independence of the country, until 1918
2484-426: The 1980s, before it was given any formal right to veto their appointment. Since it became an elected body, the membership of the European Parliament has expanded when new nations have joined (the membership was also adjusted upwards in 1994 after German reunification ). Following this, the Treaty of Nice imposed a cap on the number of members to be elected: 732, later raised to 751 by the Treaty of Lisbon . Like
2576-539: The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht , the Member States gave the Parliament the right to approve or reject an incoming Commission. In the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam , they gave it the right to approve or reject an incoming President of the Commission. In 2004, following the largest trans-national election in history, the European Council proposed as Commission President a candidate, José Manuel Barroso , from
2668-564: The 2014-19 Parliament and 40 percent in the 2019-24 Parliament, a greater proposition than in most national Parliaments in Member States In January 2019, MEPs supported proposals to boost opportunities for women and tackle sexual harassment in the European Parliament. In 2022, four people were arrested because of corruption. This came to be known as the Qatar corruption scandal at the European Parliament . In October 2023,
2760-418: The Commission accountable, rather than being a rubber stamp for candidates. Furthermore, in voting on the Commission, MEPs also vote along party lines, rather than national lines, despite frequent pressure from national governments on their MEPs. This cohesion and willingness to use the Parliament's power ensured greater attention from national leaders, other institutions and the public – reversing
2852-539: The Commission's powers but did agree to respond within three months. Most requests are already responded to positively. During the setting up of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Parliament used its control over the EU budget to influence the shape of the EEAS. MEPs had aimed at getting greater oversight over the EEAS by linking it to the Commission and having political deputies to
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2944-473: The Commission; and the right to question members of those institutions (e.g. "Commission Question Time " every Tuesday). Regarding written and oral questions, MEPs voted in July 2008 to limit questions to those within the EU's mandate and ban offensive or personal questions. The Parliament also has other powers of general supervision, mainly granted by the Maastricht Treaty . The Parliament has
3036-551: The Constitution, the king's acts are only valid with the countersignature of a minister. For this reason, the outgoing prime minister countersigns the Act of Appointment of the new prime minister, and the new prime minister countersigns the Act of Resignation of the resigning prime minister. The king then appoints the other ministers and secretaries of state of the federal government , and their Acts of Appointment are countersigned by
3128-477: The Council (except on a few issues where special legislative procedures apply). It likewise has equal control over the EU budget . Ultimately, the European Commission, which serves as the executive branch of the EU, is accountable to Parliament. In particular, Parliament can decide whether or not to approve the European Council's nominee for President of the Commission , and is further tasked with approving (or rejecting)
3220-490: The Council does not approve these, then a " Conciliation Committee " is formed. The committee is composed of the Council members plus an equal number of MEPs who seek to agree a compromise. Once a position is agreed, it has to be approved by Parliament, by a simple majority. This is also aided by Parliament's mandate as the only directly democratic institution, which has given it leeway to have greater control over legislation than other institutions, for example over its changes to
3312-421: The Council has the power in some intergovernmental matters). In Community matters , this is a power uniquely reserved for the European Commission (the executive). Therefore, while Parliament can amend and reject legislation, to make a proposal for legislation, it needs the Commission to draft a bill before anything can become law. The value of a right of initiative has anyway been questioned by noting that in
3404-524: The EU treaties, notably through the extension of the ordinary legislative procedure (originally called the codecision procedure), and the right to approve international agreements through the consent procedure. In 1999, the Parliament forced the resignation of the Santer Commission . The Parliament had refused to approve the Community budget over allegations of fraud and mis-management in
3496-520: The EU's Commission-led international negotiations and have a right to information on agreements. Parliament did not secure an explicit vote over the appointment of delegation heads and special representatives for foreign policy, but it was agreed that they will appear before parliament after they have been appointed by the High Representative . Parliament wanted a pledge from the Commission that it would automatically put forward legislation when parliament requests. Barroso considered this an infringement on
3588-502: The European Commission. A notable example was on the Bolkestein directive in 2006, when the Parliament voted by a large majority for over 400 amendments that changed the fundamental principle of the law. The Financial Times described it in the following terms: That is where the European parliament has suddenly come into its own. It marks another shift in power between the three central EU institutions. Last week's vote suggests that
3680-548: The European Council having to make its proposal to Parliament in light of the results of the European elections. Barroso gained the support of the European Council for a second term and secured majority support from the Parliament in September 2009. Parliament voted 382 votes in favour and 219 votes against (117 abstentions) with support of the European People's Party , European Conservatives and Reformists Party and
3772-596: The European Parliament where he served two terms until he retired in 1999. During 1994–1995 he was chairman of the Tindemans group . Tindemans died on 26 December 2014 in Edegem , Antwerp , Belgium, aged 92. [REDACTED] Media related to Leo Tindemans at Wikimedia Commons Prime minister of Belgium The prime minister of Belgium ( Dutch : Eerste minister van België ; French : Premier ministre de Belgique ; German : Premierminister von Belgien ) or
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3864-399: The Parliament adopted a resolution to condemn "Hamas' despicable terrorist attacks against Israel". The Parliament and Council have been compared to the two chambers of a bicameral legislature. However, there are some differences from national legislatures ; for example, neither the Parliament nor the Council have the power of legislative initiative (except for the fact that
3956-566: The Parliament's committee meetings are held primarily in Brussels, Belgium. In practice, the Parliament works three weeks per month in Brussels and one week (four days) in Strasbourg. The Parliament, like the other EU institutions, was not designed in its current form when it first met on 10 September 1952. One of the oldest common institutions, it began as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). It
4048-549: The Parliament. Parliamentary support was also required for the transatlantic passenger data-sharing deal with the United States. Finally, Parliament holds a non-binding vote on new EU treaties but cannot veto it. However, when Parliament threatened to vote down the Nice Treaty, the Belgian and Italian Parliaments said that if it did so, they would veto the treaty on the European Parliament's behalf. With each new treaty,
4140-544: The President according to the treaties. Following the approval of the Commission President, the members of the Commission are proposed by the President in accord with the member states. Each Commissioner comes before a relevant parliamentary committee hearing covering the proposed portfolio. They are then, as a body, approved or rejected by the Parliament. In practice, the Parliament has never voted against
4232-499: The appointment of the Commission as a whole. It can subsequently force the current Commission to resign by adopting a motion of censure . The president of the European Parliament is the body's speaker and presides over the multi-party chamber. The five largest political groups are the European People's Party Group (EPP), the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), Patriots for Europe (PfE),
4324-589: The birth of the modern European Parliament, with Parliament's 50 years celebrations being held in March 2008 rather than 2002. The three communities merged their remaining organs as the European Communities in 1967, and the body's name was changed to the current "European Parliament" in 1962. In 1970 the Parliament was granted power over areas of the Communities' budget , which were expanded to
4416-512: The building became state property, after which it was furnished to function as a meeting place for the prime minister and his cabinet. European Parliament The European Parliament ( EP ) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions . Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts European legislation, following
4508-483: The bulk of its work, at John Major 's 1992 Edinburgh summit , France engineered a treaty amendment whereby the European Parliament's official seat is in Strasbourg. The body was not mentioned in the original Schuman Declaration . It was assumed or hoped that difficulties with the British would be resolved to allow the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to perform legislative tasks. A separate Assembly
4600-409: The commission. The two main parties took on a government-opposition dynamic for the first time during the crisis which ended in the Commission resigning en masse, the first of any forced resignation, in the face of an impending censure from the Parliament. The Parliament had always had the right to dismiss the European Commission in a vote of censure, but it initially had no role in its appointment. In
4692-542: The consolidation and modification of the snake . He proposed expanding the scope of monetary policy by establishing an internal monetary policy, budgetary policy, and plans for the control of inflation. Tindemans supported abolishing the remaining obstacles to free trade of capital that existed within the European Economic Community. Finally, Tindemans hoped for a citizen's Europe; he advocated for European civil rights, consumer rights, and protection of
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#17327876756704784-531: The creation of a single decision-making centre to handle these issues, and making foreign policy cooperation between member states a legal obligation – Tindemans felt that this role largely would lie within a strengthened Council. He argued for placing the interest of joint action above each country's own interests, and advocated for placing a delegate responsible for representing a collective Europe's decisions. In addition, Tindemans placed particular emphasis on strengthening Europe-United States relations, proposing that
4876-525: The different possibilities of forming a government. He usually consults the presidents of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate , the most important political parties, and other people of political and socio-economic importance. After the consultations, the king appoints an informateur who is in charge of collecting information from the different political parties about their demands for formation of
4968-444: The directly elected MEPs, in spite of their multitude of ideological, national and historical allegiances, have started to coalesce as a serious and effective EU institution, just as enlargement has greatly complicated negotiations inside both the Council and Commission. In 2007, for the first time, Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini included Parliament in talks on the second Schengen Information System even though, in this field at
5060-432: The entire budget (before 2009, its influence was limited to certain areas) on an equal footing to the Council. If there is a disagreement between them, it is taken to a conciliation committee as it is for legislative proposals. If the joint conciliation text is not approved by the Council, the Parliament may adopt the budget definitively, but only by a three-fifths majority. The Parliament is also responsible for discharging
5152-570: The environment. He also pushed for a European passport union, and creation of integrated educational systems. Finally, Tindemans encouraged broad institutional reform, pushing for increased powers to the European Parliament , and overall reform for the European Council , the Council of Ministers, and the European Commission . Due to economic conditions at the time, the Tindemans report failed to make an immediate impact. Despite this
5244-548: The first constitutional reform which saw Belgium start transforming into a federal state. In 1972 he became minister for agriculture (1972–1973). In 1973 he became deputy Prime Minister and minister for the budget (1973–1974). Tindemans served as Prime Minister of two Belgian governments, from 25 April 1974 to 20 October 1978. His first cabinet was a minority government formed by the Christian-democrats and liberals. When his first government fell in 1977, Tindemans won
5336-519: The fiscal aspects of environmental policy. In these areas, the Council or Parliament decide law alone after consulting the other (or with its consent). There are different types of European Union law#Legislation . The strongest act is a regulation , an act or law which is directly applicable in its entirety. Then there are directives which bind member states to certain goals which they must achieve. They do this through their own laws and hence have room to manoeuvre in deciding upon them. A decision
5428-489: The functioning of the EU. For example, in 1984, inspired by its previous work on the Political Community, it drafted the "draft Treaty establishing the European Union" (also known as the 'Spinelli Plan' after its rapporteur Altiero Spinelli MEP). Although it was not adopted, many ideas were later taken up in other treaties. Furthermore, the Parliament began holding votes on proposed Commission Presidents from
5520-479: The history of the unification of Europe which can only be achieved by a continuous process". Four major areas were outlined in the report: European foreign policy, European economic and social policies, European citizen rights, and the strengthening of existing European institutions. In regards to a common foreign policy, Tindemans argues that Europe must present itself united outward not only in security, tariffs and trade, but also in an economic sense. He advocated for
5612-507: The implementation of previous budgets based on the annual report of the European Court of Auditors . It has refused to grant discharge only twice, in 1984 and in 1998. On the latter occasion it led to the resignation of the Santer Commission ; highlighting how the discharge power gives Parliament a great deal of power over the Commission. Parliament also makes extensive use of its budgetary, and other powers, elsewhere; for example in
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#17327876756705704-435: The institution such as more speaking time for rapporteurs, increased committee co-operation and other efficiency reforms. The Lisbon Treaty came into force on 1 December 2009, granting Parliament powers over the entire EU budget , making Parliament's legislative powers equal to the Council's in nearly all areas and describing Parliament's vote on an incoming Commission President Commission President as an "election", with
5796-536: The issue of a uniform voting systems to be decided at a later date. For its sessions the assembly, and later the parliament, until 1999 convened in the same premises as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe : the House of Europe until 1977, and the Palace of Europe until 1999. In 1979, its members were directly elected for the first time . This sets it apart from similar institutions such as those of
5888-585: The largest political party (the EPP). The Parliament approved him by 431 votes to 251. However, when it came to the vote on the Commission as a whole, MEPs raised doubts about some of the nominees following their performance in the public hearings of them conducted by Parliament's committees. Most notably, the Civil Liberties committee rejected Rocco Buttiglione for the post of Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security over his views on homosexuality. That
5980-457: The national legislatures of the member states 85% of initiatives introduced without executive support fail to become law. Yet it has been argued by former Parliament president Hans-Gert Pöttering that as the Parliament does have the right to ask the Commission to draft such legislation, and as the Commission is following Parliament's proposals more and more Parliament does have a de facto right of legislative initiative. The Parliament also has
6072-501: The official list of participants. In 1976, during the founding Congress of the European People's Party in Brussels, he was elected first President of the new party, a role which gave him the important tasks of harmonising and finding consensus between the different leaders and member parties of the EPP and of leading the party during the first direct elections to the European Parliament in 1979. Tindemans received an Honorary Doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 1978. Tindemans
6164-643: The oldest or most influential minister. This position gradually became more prominent, and the minister with this title then soon acquired the competency to present the king with the proposed allocation of the various ministerial departments among the ministers. With the expansion of voting rights after World War I , more political parties started to win seats in parliament—especially the Belgian Socialist Party —and this made it impossible to achieve an absolute majority in parliament. Since then, coalition governments have been necessary, which has made
6256-407: The other institutions, the Parliament's seat was not yet fixed. The provisional arrangements placed Parliament in Strasbourg , while the Commission and Council had their seats in Brussels. In 1985 the Parliament, wishing to be closer to these institutions, built a second chamber in Brussels and moved some of its work there despite protests from some states. A final agreement was eventually reached by
6348-526: The power to set up a Committee of Inquiry, for example over mad cow disease or CIA detention flights – the former led to the creation of the European veterinary agency . The Parliament can call other institutions to answer questions and if necessary to take them to court if they break EU law or treaties. Furthermore, it has powers over the appointment of the members of the Court of Auditors and
6440-497: The powers of the Parliament, in terms of its role in the Union's legislative procedures , have expanded. The procedure which has slowly become dominant is the " ordinary legislative procedure " (previously named "codecision procedure"), which provides an equal footing between Parliament and Council. In particular, under the procedure, the Commission presents a proposal to Parliament and the Council which can only become law if both agree on
6532-425: The previous decline in turnout for the Parliament's elections. The Parliament also has the power to censure the Commission by a two-thirds majority which will force the resignation of the entire Commission from office. As with approval, this power has never been explicitly used, but when faced with such a vote, the Santer Commission then resigned of their own accord . There are other control instruments, such as:
6624-402: The prime minister is responsible for the proper execution of the coalition agreement . The prime minister also presides at meetings of the Council of Ministers and manages conflicts of competencies between the ministers. In addition, the prime minister represents the government coalition in public, both at home and abroad. It is the prime minister who maintains contact with the king and presents
6716-633: The prime minister. The official office of the prime minister is located at 16 Rue de la Loi (Wetstraat in Dutch, or "Law Street" in translation) among many notable Belgian government and European Union buildings in the centre of Brussels and around Brussels Park . The residence includes the Belgian Federal Cabinet , the Chancellery and the Council of Ministers . It functions as the nerve center of Belgian politics . The building
6808-410: The report generated a request from the Council of Foreign Ministers and the commission to create an annual progress report on the European Union. In addition, though quite optimistic and federalist in scope, several items which Tindemans advocated for eventually found themselves in the European Union, such as a common economic and foreign policy, as well as symbols for the European Union. In the 1970s he
6900-479: The requirement of Commission to submit reports to the Parliament and answer written and oral questions from MEPs; the requirement of the President-in-office of the Council to present its programme at the start of their presidency ; the obligation on the President of the European Council to report to Parliament after each of its meetings; the right of MEPs to make requests for legislation and policy to
6992-470: The setting up of the European External Action Service , Parliament had a de facto veto over its design as it has to approve the budgetary and staff changes. The President of the European Commission is proposed by the European Council on the basis of the European elections to Parliament. That proposal has to be approved by the Parliament (by a majority of members of the Parliament) who thereby "elect"
7084-646: The snap general election with 983,000 votes, still a record for any election in Belgium. This formed his second cabinet with the Christian-democrats, socialists and Flemish nationalists. His second government (1977–1978) fell due to the controversy surrounding the Egmont pact . He was awarded the Charlemagne Prize 1976. At the conclusion of the Paris Summit in 1974, Tindemans was tasked with devising
7176-548: The task of drawing up the draft treaty to establish a European Political Community . By this document, the Ad Hoc Assembly was established on 13 September 1952 with extra members, but after the failure of the negotiated and proposed European Defence Community (French parliament veto), the project was dropped. Instead, the European Economic Community and Euratom were established in 1958 by
7268-406: The task of forming a government by the appointed formateur more difficult. Consequently, the formateur increasingly gained greater respect, and much prestige. Thus the formateur became prominent as a position of leadership. As the ministers of the government now represented various political parties, there was a need for someone to coordinate the proceedings of the various ministers. The prime minister
7360-406: The time, MEPs only needed to be consulted on parts of the package. After that experiment, Frattini indicated he would like to include Parliament in all justice and criminal matters, informally pre-empting the new powers they were due to gain in 2009 as part of the Treaty of Lisbon . Between 2007 and 2009, a special working group on parliamentary reform implemented a series of changes to modernise
7452-403: The various international organisations, alongside the minister of foreign affairs . Due to the state reform , the prime minister acquired a number of additional tasks, such as keeping in check the relations between the different regions and communities of the country, and presiding at the deliberative committee that consists of the governmental representatives of all the federal entities . It
7544-479: The whole budget in 1975. Under the Rome Treaties, the Parliament should have become elected. However, the Council was required to agree a uniform voting system beforehand, which it failed to do. The Parliament threatened to take the Council to the European Court of Justice ; this led to a compromise whereby the Council would agree to elections, but with each Member State using its own electoral system, leaving
7636-480: Was a consultative assembly of 78 appointed parliamentarians drawn from the national parliaments of member states, having no legislative powers. The change since its foundation was highlighted by Professor David Farrell of the University of Manchester : "For much of its life, the European Parliament could have been justly labelled a 'multi-lingual talking shop'." Its development since its foundation shows how
7728-462: Was a regular Le Cercle participant (Johannes Grossmann, Die Internationale der Konservativen, München 2014, p. 473). He participated in at least one Bilderberg Conference in Aachen in 1980. He appears on the provisional list of participants for the 1967 Bilderberg Conference which means that he was invited and accepted the invitation. He either cancelled in the last minute or was omitted from
7820-534: Was affiliated with the CVP . At the time, the party was strong in the northern region of Flanders . Tindemans was elected to the Belgian Chamber of Representatives in 1961 and re-elected in 1965, 1968, 1971, 1974, 1977 and 1978. From 1965 to 1973 Tindemans also served as the mayor of Edegem . In 1968 Tindemans became minister tasked with the relations between the communities (1968–1972) during which he prepared
7912-701: Was appointed as new prime minister on 1 October 2020. He succeeded Sophie Wilmès . In 1790, the Sovereign Congress of the States of Belgium sat in Brussels and was composed of representatives from each of the eight provinces. Henri van der Noot served as President of the National Congress, retaining the title of Minister Plenipotentiary having previously held the title Minister Plenipotentiary of Brabant. This title will disappear when Belgium
8004-541: Was elected to the European Parliament with a record number of votes (983.000 votes, which is still a record for any election in Belgium) and was a member of that parliament from 1979 to 1981 (during which time he also was chairman of the CVP). With the general elections of 1981 Tindemans returned to the Belgian politics and became minister of foreign affairs (1981–1989). With the European elections in 1989 Tindemans went back to
8096-547: Was forced to step down by Parliament due to concerns over her experience and financial interests. She only had the support of the EPP which began to retaliate on left wing candidates before Jeleva gave in and was replaced (setting back the final vote further). Before the final vote on the Commission, Parliament demanded a number of concessions as part of a future working agreement under the new Lisbon Treaty. The deal includes that Parliament's president will attend high level Commission meetings. Parliament will have an observer seat in
8188-576: Was introduced during negotiations on the Treaty as an institution to counterbalance and monitor the executive while providing democratic legitimacy. The wording of the ECSC Treaty demonstrated leaders' desire for more than a normal consultative assembly by allowing for direct election and using the term "representatives of the people". Its early importance was highlighted when the Assembly was given
8280-529: Was now asserted as the actual head of government, and this is how the office of prime minister came into existence. Gradually, the head of Cabinet replaced the king more often during the first half of the twentieth century, and as such gained importance within government. As the Constitution requires the king to exercise his powers through the ministers, the prime minister became reckoned as the country's most important political figure and de facto chief executive. Nevertheless, given his newly acquired prominence, as
8372-718: Was originally erected as the so-called "Refuge House" by the Saint Gertrude Abbey of Leuven . It was designed by the Belgian-Austrian architect Louis Joseph Montoyer . At the time of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands (1815–1830), the building was planned to be used as the location for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 1830 it was purchased by Prince Eugène of Ligne , and from 1944,
8464-494: Was the first time the Parliament had ever opposed an incoming Commissioner and, despite Barroso's initial insistence upon Buttiglione, the Parliament forced Buttiglione to be withdrawn. A number of other Commissioners also had to be withdrawn or reassigned before Parliament voted to allow the Barroso Commission to take office. The Parliament also became more assertive in amending legislative proposals put forward by
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