The European Commission 2004-09: A politically weakened institution?

The Barroso Commission is coming to an end. At this stage it is impossible to foresee when the end will be or if the new (old) Commission President will be (re)elected in July 2009 by the new European Parliament. Nevertheless, based on the survey results of experts in 25 EU member states, the following picture of the European Commission emerges:

First, the Commission remains at the centre of European decision-making process. At the same time however, its
political position seems to have weakened since 2004. The national capitals’ perception is that it has lost out vis-à-vis other institutions, especially the Council of Ministers.

Within the Council the Commission is perceived as being largely dependent on bigger member states. This view is shared by both the bigger (especially France and Germany) and smaller nations.

Second, the Commission seems to be losing political leadership in the Union. It is more and more perceived as serving the interests of the larger member states, sometimes even at the expense of smaller ones. The dominant perception is that among the European institutions the
lowest common denominator is no longer determined as it was by the Council, because the Commission is increasingly anticipating nationalpositions at an earlier stage and taking theminto account at the preparatory level. Hence, it
is no longer the institution that seeks the higher
standards of ‘Community interest’ – this may well
be the role for the new European Parliament.

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