The evolution of the European Parliament as an institution in the legislation of the European Union and the status of its members – selected issues

The article presents the evolution of the mandate of a Member of Parliament from the beginning of its development as an institution of the European Union. PE began to take shape already in 1949 due to the changes that followed as a result of the formation of the European Communities.It is believed that, its benchmark was a Consultation Assembly of the Council of Europe which was brought into being in 1949. Moreover, its beginnings can be associated with Paris Treaty signed on 18 April 1951. Under this treaty the European Union of Coal and Steel was created. European Parliament Deputies` status was assigned by the Decision of Council of the European Union concerning an election of members of the European Parliament in general elections (76/787/EWWiS, EWG, Euratom), Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Communities, the Regulations of the European Parliament and the European Parliament decision on the adoption of the status of Members of the European Parliament. The purpose of this article is to show the changes that have since the beginning of the formation of the EP followed in EU legislation, in relation to the EP and how legislation is shaped mandate of its members. The basic thesis of this article is how the process of evolution PE over the years, has changed its position in the EU institutional system, and how over the years, regulated the issue of the mandate and status of its deputies. The article is also of evolutionary political position of the EP and the status of its members. The analysis, applicable to several common problems associated with the evolution of EU legislation, the institution of free mandate of MEP over the years.

European Parliament election 2014 in Lithuania –  participation of Polish minority

The article deals with the issues of the elections to the European Parliament (EP) in Lithuania, which took place in may 2014 year. Author’s research interest is the Polish minority in Lithuania, the largest ethnic group after the Lithuanians in the country. For many years, the representatives of the Polish minority were actively involved in different types of elections. At first by the Union of Poles in Lithuania (ZPL), and then by the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania (AWPL). The aim of the paper was to analyze the results of elections in Lithuania, with particular focus on the Vilnius region and AWPL participation. The main research material were the results of the elections presented by the Main Election Commission in Lithuania as well as documents related to the topic.

Complaints against the validity of Polish elections to the  EU Parliament and their consideration in 2014 year

The election protests concerning Polish elections to the European Parliament from 2014 year focused on a number of specific issues. Noteworthy is the number of them – 64. So far, in Polish European elections of 2014 year brought them the most. Still, a large percentage of judgments in election protests are those, in which The Supreme Court shall not act upon a complaint filed by a person not entitled to do so based on the grounds laid down in electoral code. This may indicate the ignorance of people who made such a remedy on the timing and the grounds of his lodge.

The article presents the problem of the functioning of factions within the European Parliament and the formation of coalitions between individual political groups basing on the Rules of Procedure and data from the seventh term of the EP. The article involves an analysis of the principles for forming factions as specified in the Rules of Procedure of the EP and the consequences for the cooperation of national parties in the Parliament arising from these regulations. In the second part of the article, matters concerning coalition formation between political groups within the EP are discussed together with the phenomenon of ‘grand coalitions’, related definitional problems and the functioning of the entire political system of the EU in this context.

Celem artykułu jest analiza wyborów do Parlamentu Europejskiego, które odbywały się w dniach 22 – 25.05.2014 r. W wyborach tych ponad 100 mandatów zdobyli eurosceptycy, przeciwnicy idei wspólnotowych. Pomimo że euroentuzjaści wciąż stanowią większość, konsekwencje ostatnich wyborów nie pozostaną bez echa. Niniejszy artykuł wskazuje na przyczyny takiego rozłożenia mandatów oraz skutki wyborów dokonanych przez obywateli poszczególnych państw Unii Europejskiej.

It is without any doubt that one of the most important elements of every democratic political system is a Parliament, that is, a collective authority elected in direct elections, which is simultaneously an emanation of will of citizens as a sovereign. Over the years of the technological development of societies and evolution of the economic cooperation amongst states, its role and scope of responsibilities have gradually grown. The European Parliament is one of the key elements of the institutional system of the European Union, and thus, the only body, the composition of which is elected in direct election. This body, as a forum for universal representation by the elected deputies from the member states, brings together views and positions not only of the representatives but also of their electorate. The parliament is also an expression of the multinational EU community, its voice and its desire to have influence on the fate of the entire EU.
This article presents the evolution of the European Parliament and of the election law concerning this body, since its formation as an institution of the European Union until now. The purpose of this article is to present changes which have taken place in the EU legislation in respect of the electoral law, on the basis of which members of the parliament are elected, since the formation of the EP. The main subject of this article covers following issues: how the evolution process of the parliament has looked like over the years, how its position in the institutional architecture of the EU has been evolving and how it has been endeavoured to harmonize electoral procedures to this body over the years. The article is about the evolutionary political position of the EP. The article focuses on selected aspects of unification of the electoral procedure for the election to the EP due to their path-breaking character and importance of the procedure being currently in force.

This article addresses the problem of the EP’s role in the process of multi-level governance illustrated with the example of EU expansion policy through the accession of the West Balkan states. As an effect of the European integration process, resulting in the transfer of decision-making competences from the state level to the transnational level, nation-states have lost their monopolistic position in the European decision-making process. This has enabled the formation of multi-level political system within the EU. Within the system, there is a multi-level governance model, with the EP as its crucial element. This article reveals an important role of the EP as a transnational decision-making centre, which with its specific competences (giving consent to the accession of a country to the EU, giving consent to sign international agreements crucial for the integration process, budget rights, co-decisions on the form of the EU law with an ordinary law making procedure) considerably forms the policy of the EU in relation to the Balkan countries. The explanation of the policy’s functioning and its outcomes are based on the concept of multi-level governance, which is analyzed herein in depth.