Council of the European Union facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Council of the European Union Bulgarian: Съвет на Европейския съюз Croatian: Vijeće Europske unije Czech: Rada Evropské unie Danish: Rådet for Den Europæiske Union Dutch: Raad van de Europese Unie Estonian: Euroopa Liidu Nõukogu Finnish: Euroopan unionin neuvosto French: Conseil de l'Union européenne German: Rat der Europäischen Union Greek: Συμβούλιο της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης Hungarian: Az Európai Unió Tanácsa Irish: Comhairle an Aontais Eorpaigh Italian: Consiglio dell'Unione europea Latvian: Eiropas Savienības Padome Lithuanian: Europos Sąjungos Taryba Maltese: Kunsill tal-Unjoni Ewropea Polish: Rada Unii Europejskiej Portuguese: Conselho da União Europeia Romanian: Consiliul Uniunii Europene Slovak: Rada Európskej únie Slovene: Svet Evropske unije Spanish: Consejo de la Unión Europea Swedish: Europeiska unionens råd
History
Founded	1 July 1967; 58 years ago (1967-07-01)
Preceded by	Special Council of Ministers of the ECSC Council of the EAEC Council of the EEC
Leadership
Presidency	Belgium Since 1 January 2024
Secretary General	Thérèse Blanchet Since 1 November 2022
High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy	Josep Borrell, PES Since 1 December 2019
Structure
Seats	28
Committees	10 configurations Agriculture and fisheries Competitiveness Economic and financial affairs Education, youth, culture and sport Employment, social policy, health and consumer affairs Environment Foreign affairs General affairs Justice and home affairs Transport, telecommunications and energy
Motto
United in Diversity
Meeting place
Europa building Brussels, Belgium
Constitution
Treaties of the European Union

The Council of the European Union is a very important part of the European Union (EU). It is often just called "the Council". It is one of the main groups that makes laws for the EU. Think of it like one of the two "houses" of a parliament, working with the European Parliament. Together, they look at ideas for new laws from the European Commission. They can change these ideas, approve them, or say no to them.

The Council of the European Union is special because it brings together ministers from each EU country. These ministers represent their country's government. So, when they meet, they share their country's views on different topics.

The Council meets in 10 different groups, called "configurations". Each group focuses on a different topic. For example, if they are talking about farming, the ministers in charge of agriculture from each of the 28 EU countries will meet.

How the Council Works

Who Leads the Council?

The job of leading the Council changes every six months. A different EU country takes on the "Presidency" (the leadership role). The ministers from that country will lead the meetings and help set the agenda. To make sure things run smoothly, three countries work together for 18 months, sharing common goals.

However, there's one exception: the group that deals with foreign affairs. This group is led by the EU's High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. This person helps guide the EU's actions around the world.

Making Decisions

When the Council makes decisions, they usually vote. Most of the time, they use a system called "qualified majority voting". This means that at least 55% of the member countries must agree, and these countries must represent at least 65% of the total EU population. For some very important decisions, all countries must agree (this is called "unanimity").

Often, the Council and the European Parliament have to agree on a law together. This is called the "ordinary legislative procedure". It means both groups have equal power in making laws and deciding on the EU's budget.

Helping the Council Work

The General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union is like the Council's support team. It helps organize meetings, prepares reports, translates documents, and keeps everything running smoothly. The head of this team is called the Secretary-General.

A Look Back: Council's History

The Council has been around for a long time, changing as the EU grew. It started in 1952 as the "Special Council of Ministers" for the European Coal and Steel Community. Back then, it had less power.

Over time, as more European communities were formed, new Councils appeared. In 1967, these different Councils joined together to form one "Council of the European Communities". In 1993, it officially became the "Council of the European Union".

One famous event was the "empty chair crisis" in 1965. France stopped attending Council meetings because of disagreements. This showed that the Council needed to find better ways to work together.

More recently, the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009 made big changes. It gave more power to the European Parliament. It also made the European Council (which is made up of national leaders) a separate institution. This treaty also gave the High Representative the job of leading the foreign affairs meetings.

The Council's journey has been about sharing power more and more with the European Parliament. They sometimes have different ideas, but they work together to make laws for the EU.

What the Council Does

The Council's main job is to help make and approve laws for the EU. It works with the European Parliament to do this. The European Commission suggests new laws, and then the Council and Parliament decide if they should become real laws.

The Council also helps decide how the EU's money (the budget) is spent. It has a bigger say than the Parliament in areas like foreign policy and how countries manage their economies together. The Council represents the governments of all EU countries and is based in the Europa building in Brussels.

How Laws Are Made

Simplified illustration of how the Council and Parliament work together to make laws.

Making laws in the EU involves the Council, the Parliament, and the Commission. Most laws follow a process called the "ordinary legislative procedure".

Here's how it generally works:

• The Commission suggests a new law.
• The Parliament looks at it and might suggest changes.
• If the Council agrees with the changes, the law is approved.
• If not, the Council suggests its own version.
• The Parliament then looks at the Council's version. If they agree, it's approved. If not, they might suggest more changes or even reject it.
• If they still can't agree, a special "Conciliation Committee" tries to find a compromise. If they succeed, both the Council and Parliament must approve the final text. If not, the idea for the law is dropped.

There are different types of EU laws:

• Regulations are like direct laws that apply to everyone in the EU.
• Directives set goals for countries, but each country can decide how to reach those goals with their own laws.
• Decisions are for specific people or groups and apply directly to them.
• Recommendations and opinions are just advice and are not legally binding.

Foreign Affairs

The Council also plays a big role in the EU's foreign policy. It decides on "common positions" which are like shared EU stances on issues like human rights in other countries. It also agrees on "joint actions" where EU countries work together on specific tasks, like clearing landmines. These decisions help the EU act as one on the world stage.

Budget Decisions

The Council and the Parliament together decide on the EU's budget, which is a huge amount of money (around 155 billion euros). They have equal power over the entire budget. If they disagree, a special committee tries to find a solution. If they still can't agree, the Parliament can make the final decision on the budget. The Council also helps coordinate the economic plans of all EU countries.

How the Council is Organized

The Rotating Presidency

The Presidency of the Council is not one person, but a whole country's government. Every six months, a different EU country takes on this role. This means that ministers from that country will lead the meetings for their specific area. For example, if it's Spain's turn to hold the Presidency, the Spanish Minister of Education would lead the Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council meetings.

The Presidency's job is to organize the Council's work, set the agenda, and help solve disagreements. They also represent the Council within the EU and sometimes represent the EU to other countries around the world.

Different Council Groups

Even though it's called "the Council" (singular), it actually meets in different groups, or "configurations". Each group focuses on a specific topic. Here are the ten main groups:

• General Affairs Council (GAC): This group makes sure all the other Council groups work together smoothly. It also prepares for meetings of the European Council (the leaders of EU countries).
• Foreign Affairs Council (FAC): This group handles the EU's relationships with other countries and its security. It's led by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.
• Economic and Financial Affairs (Ecofin): This group brings together finance ministers to discuss money matters, including the EU budget and issues related to the euro currency.
• Agriculture and Fisheries (Agrifish): Ministers in charge of farming and fishing meet here to discuss policies related to food, farming, and fisheries.
• Justice and Home Affairs (JHA): This group includes justice and interior ministers. They deal with things like crime, security, and civil protection.
• Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs (EPSCO): Ministers discuss jobs, social protection, health, and consumer rights in this group.
• Competitiveness (COMPET): This group focuses on making the EU more competitive in areas like industry, research, and even space policy.
• Transport, Telecommunications and Energy (TTE): Ministers discuss transport, communication, and energy policies.
• Environment (ENV): Environment ministers meet to talk about protecting the environment.
• Education, Youth, Culture and Sport (EYC): This group brings together ministers dealing with education, culture, youth, and sports.

There's also the Political and Security Committee (PSC), which brings together ambassadors to discuss international situations and security policies. The European Council is another important group, made up of the national leaders (like presidents or prime ministers) of each EU country. They set the overall direction for the EU.

Support Team

The General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union is the permanent team that supports all the Council's work. They prepare for meetings, draft documents, and handle translations. The Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) is another important group. It's made up of ambassadors from each country who meet every week to prepare the Council's work and deal with the Parliament on new laws.

Where the Council Meets

Since 2017, the Europa building, seen here, has been the main meeting place for the Council.

The Council's main home is in Brussels, Belgium. However, in April, June, and October, some meetings are held in Luxembourg City.

Since 2017, the Council of the European Union and the European Council have their official headquarters in the Europa building in Brussels. This building has a very unique "lantern" shape where the main meeting room is located. They also still use the nearby Justus Lipsius building.

Images for kids

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  The main meeting room in the Europa building.