The evolution of the European parliament: Structures, powers, and membership

This research aims to explain the degree to which the European Parliament (EP) has evolved from a consultative body into a full legislative actor central to the process of European integration. It does so by examining the historic development of the EP and the transformation of its membership. Through an analysis of the changes in European Union (EU) Treaties' provisions and the expansion of the EP's legislative powers and internal Rules of Procedures, the study suggests that the EP's ability to influence legislation and negotiate policy outcomes with other EU institutions, most notably the European Commission and the Council of Ministers, has been enhanced. The study traces the development of EP membership from what was seen as an amateur institution to a highly professional and specialized European legislator through an analysis of the evolution of the sociological characteristics of the Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) during the 1979-2004 legislatures. Recent data gathered through self-administered questionnaires and face-to-face interviews with MEPs portray the EP as an institution with increasingly high attendance rates, lower levels of membership turnover and increasing Euro party cohesion. Despite these trends, however, the research points out the existence of several limitations to the full development of the EP as an institution and to its ability to influence EU policies. These constraints exist both in the institutional set-up of the EP and in the roles, behaviors and attitudes of its members. The research points both to the existence of EU Treaty provisions which limit the powers of the EP, and to the presence of an EU electoral process still controlled by national political parties. Despite the socializing role the EP plays with its membership, the research suggests that MEPs still retain important levels of identification with their national political parties and member countries. Future research should look at the question of how the EP will develop both as an institution and in terms of its expanded membership as a result of the 2004 accession of ten new member countries and a newly elected cohort of MEPs.