The European Commission


Johannes Claudius Juncker
President of the EU Commission 		The European Commission acts as the "civil service" and the executive body of the European Union.
The main roles of the Commission are to -
  • propose legislation to be supported by the co-legislators, the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers.
  • enforce European law, if necessary through the European Court of Justice.
  • implement the budget and EU policies.
  • represent the EU outside Europe (e.g. negotiating trade agreements between the EU and other countries.
The Council of Ministers and the Parliament can request legislation, but only the Commission can formally put it forward.
The Commissioners (essentially the "cabinet") are put put forward by the governments of the 28 Member States, but they are required to operate in the interests of the European Union as a whole, not in the national interests of individual states. In this respect the Commission differs from the Parliament, the European Council and the Council of Ministers.
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