| Treaties of the European Union |
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Front page of an official document containing the consolidated treaties and documents which comprise the EU constitution
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| Location | Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs |
| Purpose | Establishing the laws and principles under which the European Union is governed |
The Treaties of the European Union are a set of international treaties between the European Union (EU) member states which sets out the EU's constitutional basis. They establish the various EU institutions together with their remit, procedures and objectives. The EU can only act within the competences granted to it through these treaties and amendment to the treaties requires the agreement and ratification (according to their national procedures) of every single signatory.
There are two core functional treaties that lay out how the EU operates and a number of satellite treaties which are interconnected with them. The treaties have been repeatedly amended by other treaties over the 60 years since they first began. The modern amended versions are known as the "consolidated treaties".
Contents |
The two principal treaties on which the EU is based are the Treaty on European Union (TEU; Maastricht Treaty, effective since 1993) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU; Treaty of Rome, effective since 1958). These main treaties (plus their attached protocols and declarations) have been altered by amending treaties at least once a decade since they each came into force, the latest being the Treaty of Lisbon which came into force in 2009. Lisbon also made the Charter of Fundamental Rights legally binding, though that is not a treaty per se. The troubled ratification of Lisbon has meant there is little climate for further reform in the next few years beyond accession treaties, which merely allow a new state to join.
Following the preamble the treaty text is divided into six parts.
The first deals with common provisions. Article 1 establishes the European Union on the basis of the European Community and lays out the legal value of the treaties. The second article states that the EU is "founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities." The member states share a "society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity and equality between women and men prevail".
Article 3 then states the aims of the EU in six points. The first is simply to promote peace, European values and its citizen's well-being. The second relates to free movement with external border controls are in place. Point 3 deals with the internal market. Point 4 establishes the euro. Point 5 states the EU shall promote its values, contribute to eradicating poverty, observe human rights and respect the charter of the United Nations. The final sixth point states that the EU shall pursue these objectives by "appropriate means" according with its competences given in the treaties.
Article 4 relates to member states' sovereignty and obligations. Article 5 sets out the principles of conferral, subsidiarity and proportionality with respect to the limits of its powers. Article 6 binds the EU to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights. Article 7 deals with the suspension of a member state and article 8 deals with establishing close relations with neighbouring states.
Article 9 establishes the equality of national citizens and citizenship of the European Union. Article 10 declares that the EU is founded in representative democracy and that decisions must be taken as closely as possible to citizens. It makes reference to European political parties and how citizens are represented: directly in the Parliament and by their governments in the Council and European Council - accountable to national parliaments. Article 11 establishes government transparency, declares that broad consultations must be made and introduces provision for a petition where at least 1 million citizens may petition the Commission to legislate on a matter. Article 12 gives national parliaments limited involvement in the legislative process.
Article 13 establishes the institutions in the following order and under the following names: the European Parliament, the European Council, the Council, the European Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the Court of Auditors. it obliges co-operation between these and limits their competencies to the powers within the treaties.
Article 14 deals with the workings of Parliament and its election, article 15 with the European Council and its president, article 16 with the Council and its configurations and article 17 with the Commission and its appointment. Article 18 establishes the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and article 19 establishes the Court of Justice.
Title 4 has only one article which allows a limited number of member states to co-operate within the EU if others are blocking integration in that field.
Chapter 1 of this title includes articles 21 and 22. Article 21 deals with the principles that outline EU foreign policy; including compliance with the UN charter, promoting global trade, humanitarian support and global governance. Article 22 gives the European Council, acting unanimously, control over defining the EU's foreign policy.
Chapter 2 is further divided into sections. The first, common provisions, details the guidelines and functioning of the EU's foreign policy, including establishment of the European External Action Service and member state's responsibilities. Section 2, articles 42 to 46, deal with military cooperation (including mutual defence).
Article 47 establishes a legal personality for the EU. Article 48 deals with the method of treaty amendment; specifically the ordinary and simplified revision procedures. Article 49 deals with applications to join the EU and article 50 with withdrawal. Article 51 deals with the protocols attached to the treaties and article 52 with the geographic application of the treaty. Article 53 states the treaty is in force for an unlimited period, article 54 deals with ratification and 55 with the different language versions of the treaties.
The Treaty on the functioning of the European Union goes into deeper detail on the role, policies and operation of the EU. It is split into seven parts;[1]
In principles, article 1 establishes the basis of the treaty and its legal value. Articles 2 to 6 outline the competencies of the EU according to the level of powers accorded in each area. Articles 7 to 14 set out social principles, articles 15 and 16 set out public access to documents and meetings and article 17 states that the EU shall respect the status of churches under national law.[1]
The second part begins with article 18 which outlaws, within the limitations of the treaties, discrimination on the basis of nationality. Article 19 states the EU will "combat discrimination based on sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation". Articles 20 to 24 establishes EU citizenship and accords rights to it; to free movement, consular protection from other states, vote and stand in local and European elections, right to petition Parliament and the European Ombudsman and to contact and receive a reply from EU institutions in their own language. Article 25 requires the Commission to report on the implementation of these rights every three years.[1]
Part 3 on policies and actions is divided by area into the following titles: the internal market; the free movement of goods, including the customs union; agriculture and fisheries; free movement of people, services and capital; the area of freedom, justice and security, including police and justice co-operation; transport policy; competition, taxation and harmonisation of regulations (note Article 101 and Article 102); economic and monetary policy, including articles on the euro; employment policy; the European Social Fund; education, vocational training, youth and sport policies; cultural policy; public health; consumer protection; Trans-European Networks; industrial policy; economic, social and territorial cohesion (reducing disparities in development); research and development and space policy; environmental policy; energy policy; tourism; civil protection; and administrative co-operation.[1]
Part 4 deals with association of overseas territories. Article 198 sets the objective of association as promoting the economic and social development of those associated territories as listed in annex 2. The following articles elaborate on the form of association such as customs duties.[1]
Part 5 deals with EU foreign policy. Article 205 states that external actions must be in accordance with the principles laid out in Chapter 1 Title 5 of the Treaty on European Union. Article 206 and 207 establish the common commercial (external trade) policy of the EU. Articles 208 to 214 deal with cooperation on development and humanitarian aid for third countries. Article 215 deals with sanctions while articles 216 to 219 deal with procedures for establishing international treaties with third countries. Article 220 instructs the High Representative and Commission to engage in appropriate cooperation with other international organisations and article 221 establishes the EU delegations. Article 222, the Solidarity clause states that members shall come to the aid of a fellow member who is subject to a terrorist attack, natural disaster or man-made disaster. This includes the use of military force.[1]
Part 6 elaborates on the institutional provisions in the Treaty on European Union. As well as elaborating on the structures, articles 288 to 299 outline the forms of legislative acts and procedures of the EU. Articles 300 to 309 establish the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions and the European Investment Bank. Articles 310 to 325 outline the EU budget. Finally, articles 326 to 334 establishes provision for enhanced co-operation.[1]
Part 7 deals with final legal points, such as territorial and temporal application, the seat of institutions (to be decided by member states, but this is enacted by a protocol attached to the treaties), immunities and the affect on treaties signed before 1958 or the date of accession.[1]
There are 37 protocols, 2 annexes and 65 declarations that are attached to the treaties to elaborate details, often in connection with a single country, without being in the full legal text.
There are 65 declarations attached to the EU treaties. As examples, these include the following. Declaration 1 affirms that the charter, gaining legal force, reaffirms rights under the European Convention and does not allow the EU to act beyond its conferred competencies. Declaration 4 allocates an extra MEP to Italy. Declaration 7 outlines Council voting procedures to become active after 2014. Declaration 17 asserts the primacy of EU law. Declaration 27 reasserts that holding a legal personality does not entitle the EU to act beyond its competencies. Declaration 43 allows Mayotte to change to the status of "outermost region".
As well as the two main treaties, their protocols and the Charter of Fundamental Rights; the Treaty Establishing a European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) is still in force as a separate treaty.
Title one outlines the tasks of Euratom. Title two contains the core of the treaty on how cooperation in the field is to take place. Title three outlines institutional provisions and has largely been subsumed by the European Union treaties. Title four is on financial provisions and title five on the general and title six is on final provisions.[5]
| European Union |
This article is part of the series: |
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Policies and issues
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The treaties can be changed in three different ways. The ordinary revision procedure is essentially the traditional method by which the treaties have been amended and involves holding a full inter-governmental conference. The simplified revision procedure was established by the Treaty of Lisbon and only allows for changes which do not increase the power of the EU. While using the passerelle clause does involve amending the treaties, as such, it does allow for a change of legislative procedure in certain circumstances.
The ordinary revision procedure for amending treaties requires proposals from an institution to be lodged with the European Council. The President of the European Council can then either call a European Convention (composed of national governments, national parliamentarians, MEPs and representatives from the Commission) to draft the changes or draft the proposals in the European Council itself if the change is minor. They then proceed with an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) which agrees the treaty which is then signed by all the national leaders and ratified by each state.[6]
While this is the procedure that has been use for all treaties prior to the Lisbon Treaty, an actual European Convention (essentially, a constitutional convention) has only been called twice. First in the drafting of the Charter of Fundamental Rights with the European Convention of 1999–2000. Second with the Convention on the Future of Europe which drafted the Constitutional Treaty (which then formed the basis of the Lisbon Treaty). Previously, treaties had been drafted by civil servants.
The simplified revision procedure, which applies only to part three of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and cannot increase the powers of the EU, sees changes simply agreed in the European Council by a decision before being ratified by each state.[6] The amendments to protocol 36 and article 136 (both being ratified as of August 2011) both make use of the simplified revision procedure due to the small scope of their changes.
The treaties also contain a passerelle clause which allows the European Council to unanimously agree to change the applicable voting procedure for an area of legislation from a special legislative procedure to the ordinary legislative procedure, provided that no national parliament objects. This procedure cannot be used for area which have defence implication.[6]
Any reform to the legal basis of the EU must be ratified according to the procedures in each member state. All states are required to ratify it and lodge the instruments of ratification with the Government of Italy before the treaty can come into force in any respect. In some states, such as Ireland this is usually a referendum as any change to that state's constitution requires one. In others, such as Germany, referendums are constitutionally banned and the ratification must take place in its national parliament.
On some occasions, a state has failed to get a treaty passed by its public in a referendum. In the cases of Ireland and Denmark a second referendum was held after a number of concessions were granted. However in the case of France and the Netherlands, the treaty was abandoned in favour of a treaty that would not prompt a referendum. In the case of Norway, where the treaty was their accession treaty (hence, their membership), the treaty was also abandoned.
Treaties are also put before the European Parliament and while its vote is not binding, it is important; both the Belgian and Italian Parliaments said they would veto the Nice Treaty if the European Parliament did not approve it.[7]
| Signed In force Document |
1948 1948 Brussels Treaty |
1951 1952 Paris Treaty |
1954 1955 Modified Brussels Treaty |
1957 1958 Rome treaties |
1965 1967 Merger Treaty |
1975 N/A European Council conclusion |
1985 1985 Schengen Treaty |
1986 1987 Single European Act |
1992 1993 Maastricht Treaty |
1997 1999 Amsterdam Treaty |
2001 2003 Nice Treaty |
2007 2009 Lisbon Treaty |
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| Three pillars of the European Union: | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| European Communities: | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) | Treaty expired in 2002 | European Union (EU) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| European Economic Community (EEC) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Schengen Rules | European Community (EC) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| TREVI | Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters (PJCC) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| European Political Cooperation (EPC) | Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Unconsolidated bodies | Western European Union (WEU) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Treaty terminated in 2011 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Legend for below table: [Founding] - [Amending] - [Membership]
| Treaty | Established/Amended | Signed in | Signed on | Effective from | Ceased |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECSC Treaty source text | European Coal and Steel Community | Paris, FR | 18 April 1951 | 23 July 1952 | 23 July 2002[8] |
| Euratom Treaty source text | European Atomic Energy Community | Rome, IT | 25 March 1957 | 1 January 1958 | in force |
| EEC Treaty (Treaty of Rome) source text | European Economic Community | Rome, IT | 25 March 1957 | 1 January 1958 | in force |
| Netherlands Antilles Association Convention source text | Applied OCT status to the Netherlands Antilles | Brussels, BE | 13 November 1962 | 1 October 1964 | in force |
| Merger Treaty |
Amended Previous
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Brussels, BE | 8 April 1965 | 1 July 1967 | 1 May 1999[9] |
| First Budgetary Treaty |
Amended Previous
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Luxembourg, LU | 22 April 1970 | 1 January 1971 | in force |
| Acts of Accession |
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Brussels, BE | 22 January 1972 | 1 January 1973 | in force |
| Second Budgetary Treaty |
Amended Previous
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Brussels, BE | 22 July 1975 | 1 June 1977 | in force |
| Act of Accession | Enlarged to Greece | Athens, GR | 28 May 1979 | 1 January 1981 | in force |
| Greenland Treaty[10] | Secession of Greenland | Brussels, BE | 13 March 1984 | 1 January 1985 | in force |
| Acts of Accession | Enlarged to Spain and Portugal | Madrid, ES Lisbon, PT |
12 June 1985 | 1 January 1986 | in force |
| Schengen Agreement | Established open borders | Schengen, LU | 14 June 1985 | 26 March 1995 | in force |
| Single European Act source text |
Amended Previous
|
Luxembourg, LU The Hague, NL |
17 February 1986 28 February 1986 |
1 July 1987 | in force |
| Treaty of Maastricht source text (Treaty on European Union) |
European Union
Amended Previous
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Maastricht, NL | 7 February 1992 | 1 November 1993 | in force |
| Acts of Accession | Corfu, GR | 24 June 1994 | 1 January 1995 | in force | |
| Treaty of Amsterdam source text |
Amended Previous
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Amsterdam, NL | 1 October 1997 | 1 May 1999 | in force |
| Treaty of Nice source text |
Amended Previous
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Nice, FR | 26 February 2001 | 1 February 2003 | in force |
| Treaty of Accession 2003 | Athens, GR | 16 April 2003 | 1 May 2004 | in force | |
| Treaty of Accession 2005 | Enlarged to Bulgaria and Romania | Luxembourg, LU | 13 April 2005 | 1 January 2007 | in force |
| Treaty of Lisbon source text |
Amended Previous
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Lisbon, PT | 13 December 2007 | 1 December 2009 | in force |
| Protocol amending the Protocol on Transitional Provisions | Amending Protocol 36 | Brussels, BE | 23 June 2010 | 1 December 2011 | in force |
Due to the delay in the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty, the 2009 elections were held under the rules of the Nice Treaty, just before the EU began to operate under Lisbon rules. This involved the Parliament electing fewer members than it was allocated under Lisbon. In order to address the appointment of extra members to Parliament to serve until 2014, a protocol was drawn up on 23 June 2010 and was then ratified by member states (the protocol, like a full treaty, needed ratification by all members as it is a treaty amendment). The protocol brought the total number of seats allocated to each country up to those stated in Lisbon and allows for them to be appointed. However, Germany (which would have lost 3 seats under the Lisbon treaty) will keep its extra members until the next election.[11][12][13][14]
Despite a reluctance to pursue new treaties following the painful ratification of the Lisbon Treaty, there are a number of new amendments being processed or considered. An amendment to TFEU Article 136 allowing the creation of a bail-out mechanism is undergoing ratification since late 2010 (expected by 2013); a new treaty creating the aforementioned bailout mechanism which has been in ratification of eurozone-only states since mid-2011 (expected by mid-2013) is also in the process.
There are also expected treaties dealing with certain opt-outs promised during Lisbon negotiations (see section below) and also accession treaties to allow new members to join (next likely candidate to be Croatia in 2013).
| Treaties undergoing signing/ratification | |||||
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| Treaty | Establishing/Amending | Signed in | Signed on | Ratification | Expected |
| European Council Decision amending Article 136 of the TFEU | Amending Article 136 | Brussels, BE | 25 March 2011[15] |
0 / 27
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Jan. 2013 |
| Treaty establishing the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) | European Stability Mechanism | Brussels, BE | 11 July 2011[16] |
0 / 17
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Jul. 2013 |
| Treaty of Accession 2011 | Enlarging to Croatia | Brussels, BE | 9 December 2011[17] |
0 / 27
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1 July 2013 |
A treaty and treaty amendment are, as of 2011, undergoing ratification in order to establish the European Stability Mechanism (ESM). The ESM would replace the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism (EFSM) and is in response to the European sovereign debt crisis. It is planned to be ratified and enter force by 2013, when the EFSF and EFSM expire. A treaty amendment was required to give it legal legitimacy (as it was feared Germany's constitutional court could strike it down) and non-Eurozone states were excluded as the UK refused to participate in any fiscal integration.[18][19] Further amendments may follow once the final shape of the eurozone's economic governance is decided.
The simple two-line treaty amendment was agreed by the European Council on 16 December 2010. The amendment reads: "The member states whose currency is the euro may establish a stability mechanism to be activated if indispensable to safeguard the stability of the euro area as a whole. The granting of any required financial assistance under the mechanism will be made subject to strict conditionality." It is designed only to give basis to the bail out fund and calm the markets.[20] The text is being inserted into Article 136 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union as paragraph 3.[21] With the amendment allowing for the ESM's creation, the "Treaty Establishing the European Stability Mechanism" sets out the details of how the ESM would operate.[22]
On 14 September 2011 the Treaty concerning the Accession of the Republic of Croatia was finalised and made public. It was signed on 9 December 2011 in Brussels and should be enter force on 1 July 2013. The treaty will need to be ratified by the current 27 member states and by Croatia; which is planning a referendum for February 2012. The treaty is 250 pages long and provides for amendments to the treaties to add Croatian representatives into EU institutions (including transitional provisions before new elections take place) and outlines Croatia's various financial contributions. The document does not include monitoring mechanism of Croatia by the European Commission to ensure continued reform, as was the case with Bulgaria and Romania. Ireland's guarantees and the Czech Republic's opt-outs will be signed alongside the accession treaty (see below).[23][24][25][26][27]
As a result of the various compromises during the ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon, there are a number of protocols which leaders have stated will be added to the next treaty, probably the accession treaty of Croatia or Iceland no sooner than 2011. These protocols related to opt-outs and guarantees to Ireland and the Czech Republic in order to get support from their public and president respectively.[28][29] Following the rejection of the treaty by the Irish electorate in 2008, a number of guarantees (on security and defence, ethical issues and tax) were given to the Irish in return for a second attempt. On the second attempt in 2009 the treaty was approved. Rather than repeat the ratification procedure, the guarantees were merely declarations with a promise to append them to the next treaty.[28][30]
Czech President Václav Klaus refused to complete ratification of the treaty unless the Czech Republic was given an opt-out from the Charter of Fundamental Rights (as Poland and the United Kingdom had) due to his claim it could be used by Germans expelled from the Eastern bloc after the Second World War. Thus the Irish solution was used again to satisfy his demand.[29][31] These opt-outs will be signed and ratified along side Croatia's accession treaty (see section above), which should be signed by the end of 2011 and ratified by mid-2013.[27]
Following on from the success of the Treaty of Paris, efforts were made to allow West Germany to rearm within the framework of a European military structure in the form of a European Defence Community. The treaty was signed by the six members on 27 May 1952 and the Common Assembly began drafting a treaty for a European Political Community to ensure democratic accountability of the new army, but this treaty was abandoned when the Defence Community treaty was rejected by the French National Assembly on 30 August 1954.
Norway has tried to join the European Communities/Union on two occasions, on both occasions a national referendum returned a negative result leading Norway to turn down membership. The first treaty was signed in Brussels on 22 January 1972 and the second in Corfu on 24 June 1994.
The European Constitution was a treaty that would have repealed and consolidated all previous overlapping treaties (except the Euratom treaty) into a single document. It also made changes to voting systems, simplified the structure of the EU and advanced co-operation in foreign policy. The treaty was signed in Rome on 29 October 2004 and was due to come into force on 1 November 2006 if it was ratified by all member states. However, this did not occur, with France rejecting the document in a national referendum on 29 May 2005 and then the Netherlands in their own referendum on 1 June 2005. Following a "period of reflection", the constitution in that form was scrapped and replaced by the Treaty of Lisbon.
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