Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/298224
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 20 APRIL 2014 17 WHILE the European parliament has little or no powers on the is- sues which dominate the election for the European Parliament, it has power on important issues rarely mentioned by the Maltese. These include EU directives proposing a degree of tax harmo- nisation and a tax on financial transactions. While there is very little debate on these issues local- ly, these are high on the agenda of European political parties. Although the European Par- liament has little say on the fu- ture of European integration, the forthcoming election is being characterised by intense debate between eurosceptic populist par- ties and defenders of the European project. It is also characterised by a split between parties on the left who re- ject austerity measures and parties of the centre right who insist on the importance of fiscal rigour. An issue largely overlooked in Malta is that on the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Invest- ment Partnership, a trade agree- ment that is presently being ne- gotiated between the European Union and the United States which aims at removing trade barriers in a wide range of economic sec- tors to make it easier to buy and sell goods and services between the EU and the US. The treaty is opposed by the Greens and the radical left, who fear an erosion of workers' rights and environmental standards. The European Parliament has three main roles: debating and passing European laws, scrutinising other EU institutions – particularly the Commission – to make sure they are working democratically and debating and adopting the EU's budget. In many areas, such as consumer protection and the environment, Parliament works together with the Council (representing national governments) to decide on the content of EU laws and officially adopt them. This process is called 'Ordinary Legislative Procedure'. Under the Lisbon Treaty, the range of policies covered by the new ordinary legislative procedure has increased, giving Parliament more power to influence the content of laws in areas including agriculture, energy policy, immigration and EU funds. Parliament must also give its permission for other important decisions, such as allowing new countries to join the EU. Parliament exercises influence over other European institutions in several ways. When a new Commission is appointed, its 28 members – one from each EU country – cannot take up office until Parliament has approved them. If the members of the European Parliament disapprove of a nominee, they can reject the entire slate. Parliament can also call on the Commission to resign during its period in office. This is called a 'motion of censure'. Parliament keeps check on the Commission by examining reports it produces and by questioning Commissioners. Its committees play an important part here. MEPs look at petitions from citizens and sets up committees of inquiry. When national leaders meet for European Council summits, Parliament gives its opinion on the topics on the agenda. Parliament adopts the EU's annual budget with the Council of the European Union. Parliament also has a committee that monitors how the budget is spent, and every year passes judgement on the Commission's handling of the previous year's budget. Europe 2014 The powers of the European Parliament The missing issues