Suggestions for amendments to the text of the Articles of the Treaty
AMENDMENT FORM
Suggestion for amendment of Article 18:
By Mr. Péter Balázs, Mr. Hannes Farnleitner, Ms. Sandra Kalniete, Mr. Jan Kohout, Mr. Ivan Korčok, Mr. Rytis Martikonis, Mr. Lennart Meri, Mr. Dimitrij Rupel, Ms. Teija Tiilikainen
Status : - Members.
Article 18 : The European Commission
- The European Commission shall safeguard the general European interest. It shall ensure the application of the Constitution, and steps taken by the institutions under the Constitution. It shall also exercise coordinating, executive and management functions as laid down in the Constitution.
- Except where the Constitution provides otherwise,
Union the legal acts of the Union shallcan be adopted only on the basis of a Commission proposal.
- 2a. The Commission shall operate as a College and all of its Members shall be equal. Its decisions are taken by a majority of its members. The Commission shall adopt its Rules of Procedure.
The Commission shall consist of a President and up to fourteen other members. It may call on the help of Associate Commissioners.
In carrying out its responsibilities, the Commission shall be completely independent. In the discharge of their duties members of the Commission shall neither seek nor take instructions from any government or other body. Each Member State undertakes to respect this principle and not to seek to influence the Members of the Commission in the performance of their tasks.
The Commission shall include a national of each Member State, of whom one shall be the President and one the Union-s Foreign Minister. When the Commission consists of 27 Members, its functioning shall be subject to an evaluation by the European Council. If, on the basis of this evaluation, the European Council decides that the number of members of the Commission shall be less than the number of Member States, the number of Commissioners shall be chosen according to a rotation system based on the principle of equality, the implementing arrangements for which shall be adopted by the Council, acting unanimously.
These shall be based on the principles as set out in Article Z of Part Two.
The Commission, as a body, shall be responsible to the European Parliament, which may pass a censure motion on the Commission. If the motion of censure is carried by a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, representing a majority of the members of the European Parliament, the members of the Commission shall resign as a body. With the approval of the College, the President of the Commission shall be entitled to ask the European Parliament for a vote of confidence. If the vote of no-confidence is adopted by a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, representing a majority of the Members of the European Parliament, the Members of the Commission shall resign as a body.
