The democratic and parliamentary control of the European Council and Eurozone summits

This report was written upon request of the European Parliament by a team of researchers managed by Notre Europe – Jacques Delors Institute and TEPSA. The authors analyse the democratic control of the European Council in all 27 Member States, identify seven different models of control and formulate twelve policy recommendations.

The European Council is increasingly central to the governance of the European Union. Even if national parliaments have originally focused their involvement in EU affairs on the ordinary legislative process, most of the chambers have started to develop specific activities, before or after European summits. From ex-ante influence to ex-post accountability, seven different models of control have been identified. Beyond their differences rooted in national democratic systems, they call for twelve recommendations listed in this report.