Appointment of the European Commission as an indicator of European integration development

Abstract

The article examines the evolution of the European Commission appointment procedure in the context of the institutional balance between the Council of the EU, the European Parliament and the European Commission. The growing influence of the European Parliament on the appointment of the Commission and the nomination of its President is described as an indicator of the development of integration because it demonstrates how the EU supranational institutional system moves closer to the institutional systems of nation states. The European Parliament has gained power similar to national parliaments. The European elections’ results are taken into account during appointment of the European Commission. Despite remaining existing differences between the EU institutional system and national institutions, the author attempts to apply the Sartori concept in order to examine the dynamics of the EU institutional balance. As Sartori described, interaction between parties in national parliaments and governments and gradual transformation towards party government, similar tendencies could be found on the European level. The analysis of the theoretical interpretations, legal basis and practical experience of the European Commission’s appointment enables the author to determine the increased role of the European Parliament vis-à-vis other institutions and the growing importance of the European parties. The current procedure demonstrates a shift from the technocratic functional approach to an ideological approach leading to a growing importance of European politics.