Welcome to European Parliamentary Research Service podcast on the European Parliament's legislative initiative.

The Commission proposes Parliament and Council decide. This has been the traditional approach to lawmaking in the European Union until now.

For the increasing need to put the citizens' voice at the heart of EU lawmaking via

the role of the European Parliament in the legislative procedure is challenging this assumption

and could open the door to a more democratic union.

Want to know more?

Stay with us.

In EU member states, the right to propose new laws is not exclusive to the government.

Parliaments can do that too.

But at EU level, this right is reserved almost entirely for the European Commission.

The European Parliament has special initiative rights when it comes to its organisation, functions and the European elections, but in all other matters,

the Commission has almost an absolute monopoly. So why is that? To understand this, we need to go back to

post-war Europe and the mistrust of the political process that the war had generated. So when the

idea of a European community began to shape, everyone agreed that the common interest

would be better served by an impartial and neutral authority

composed of experts rather than politicians.

However, even if it doesn't have a formal right to propose new laws,

the European Parliament, as well as the Council,

have the right to invite the Commission to do so.

Now, this doesn't create an obligation on the Commission's side, but if it fails to follow the Parliament's request, it needs to come up with good reasons to justify why within three months.

Any member of the European Parliament has the right to table the legislative proposal, but this needs the backing of an absolute majority of all members in plenary.

And over the years, the Parliament has gained a commitment from the Commission on its follow-up to Parliament's legislative initiatives.

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