The European Council:

Agenda Setting in Ebbs and Flows

Sammy Carey
POL 147A - Professor Sen
18 November, 2016
 The European Council is one of the seven institutions of the European Union, but more
importantly it is the institution that has received the most reform over the last two decades beginning
namely with the Maastricht Treaty. Although the European Council did not gain a formal status in the
European Union until the Treaty of Maastricht in 1992, it has been an informal part of the European Union
since 1974 to help provide a forum for the heads of state or government to convene about EU policy. In
more recent years, with the Lisbon Treaty, the European Council gained recognition as one of the EU
institutions and has more control of the overall direction of the European Union. The European Council
now has the capacity to "identify major issues to be dealt with by the Council and European Parliament as
co-legislators, or they may invite the European Commission to put forward specific proposals on specific
issues." 1 More specifically, the European Council has three main powers within the European Union,
which includes guiding the policy agenda of the new areas of EU activity, making major institutional
decisions, and providing formal EU decision-making. Even though the European Council contributes to
each of these areas in significant ways, in this essay, the scope will be narrowed down to just the new
areas of the European Union activity, which includes economic governance, foreign affairs, employment
and social policy coordination, justice affairs, and global decision-making forums. More specifically, the
extent of the effect of the European Council on the specific policy process of the European Union will only
be explored regarding the policies of the European Employment Strategy, the Eurozone crisis resolutions,
and the Common Foreign and Security Policy portfolios. This essay merely skims the surface of the
European Council's ability to influence the direction of the European Union through their
intergovernmental system not only between the national and European Union level but also through the
European Union's institutions themselves. No matter how brief in scope it will provide valuable insight into
the ways in which the European Council can affect the schematic aims of the European Union.
To begin the evaluation of the European Council upon the direction of the European Union, this
essay will first consider the Employment and Social Coordination efforts of the EU in specific reference to
the European Employment Strategy, which proves to be more of a common method of influencing policy
agenda. In the early 1990s, the European member states recognized that there was consistently high
unemployment across the European Union and an inability of individual nations to deal with the issue. To
respond to the rising problem, the European Council put together a request for a White Paper on Growth,
Competitiveness and Employment from the Commission to allow them "to adopt a common action plan
for labor market activation and employment policy reforms, whose substantive content largely anticipated
that of the EES."2 Thus from this action plan arose the demand for the Commission, the European Union
and Member State governments to add a necessary component to the Treaty in 1996 to allow for the
addressing of unemployment issues in addition to the aims of the single market and currency. Following
the Amsterdam Treaty, the European Employment Strategy was adopted by the European Union to
ensure that "responsibility for policy in the field of employment, social affairs and inclusion is shared
between the EU and its member countries", thus giving the Commission the powers to coordinate national

1 The European Council: The Strategic Body of the EU, 3.

2 Zeitlin, "A Decade of Innovation in EU Governance", 131.

policies, promote best practices, and make laws in areas such as rights at work or social security
schemes.3 It was expected that this was "achieved through an open method of coordination, which
involved establishing policy guidelines, setting benchmarks, concrete targets and a monitoring system to
evaluate progress."4 As the strategies were implemented by national governments and reinforced by
policies drafted by the legislation and passed by the Council and the European Parliament, the European
Council would frequently revisit the effects of policies made and create new objectives for the institutions
of the European Union to pursue. Eventually the European Employment Strategy came into full effect and
is a strategic force in the European Union's market due to the influence and evaluations of the European
Council upon the policy agenda of the European area as a whole.
Next, a thorough analysis of how the European Union worked towards solutions with the
Eurozone crisis provides keen information about the developments of all policies within the EU and the
leadership role the European Council plays, especially in times of urgency. At the recognition of the crisis
occurring, the European Council called for a summit to be held to discuss the agenda of the European
Union moving forward with its current situation and ultimately to adopt the Treaty for Stability,
Coordination, and Governance5. The European Council's "plans agree[d] at the summit include[d] a
compact for growth earmarking €120 billion to support growth in the EU, a single supervisory mechanism
for European banks, and a possibility of their deficits recapitalizations."6 Following the summit, the heads
of government and state were able to make decisions to work together to stabilize the monetary union
through their individual state's actions as well as help with the creation of new jobs in their national
sectors.7 In addition to the general guidelines for the European Commission to implement with hopeful
support from the Council and the European Parliament, the European Council sought to "call for stepping
up of reforms to reach the Europe 2020 targets" in its March 2014 conclusions to help facilitate the 'smart,
sustainable and inclusive growth' laid out in the Commission's communication.8 In this manner, the
European Council was able to show its support of recommendations made by the Commission and
Council, as well as gain the likes of both for the agenda it was hoping to further. Ultimately, the main effect
of the Eurozone crisis upon the European Union system was the deepening of the economic and political
interdependences as well as creating a 'new awareness of co-responsibility among Europe's leaders' 9,
both within the European Council and within the whole EU system. Following the Eurozone Crisis, the
role of the European Council in regards to economic governance can be defined as not being a full

3 "Employment, Social Affairs, & Inclusion".

4 O'Connor, "Policy Coordination", 346.

5 Wessels, "The European Council as a Crisis Driven 'government economique'", 4.

6 "European Council: Meps Warn New Laws".

7 "European Council: Meps Warn New Laws".

8 European Council, European Council Conclusions.

9 Wessels, "The European Council as a Crisis Driven 'government economique'", 12.

functioning economic government nor holding necessary competences to deal fully with situations, but
rather holding the capacity to create institutional reforms and collective action to deal with economic
issues.
Another area in which the European Council's hand assists with that is important to explore is
regarding the Common Foreign and Security Policy within the foreign affairs realm of the new areas of
European Union activity. It is important to note that, just as with the Eurozone Crisis, the European
Council's role is constantly being manipulated to adapt to the specific role needed to maintain policy
movement within the European Union. In decision making of the Common Foreign and Security Policy,
the rules and procedures define that only the European Council and Council are necessary, for no
legislative acts may be adopted. The European Council is deemed with the task of determining the
"strategic interests and objectives of the Union [which] may concern the relations of the Union with a
specific country or region or may be thematic in approach."10 Other than defining the objectives, the only
other task the European Council has upon this policy is defining the duration and the means available to
the Union by the member states. All the rest of the actions or positions are voted upon within the Council
of the EU. Following this unanimous vote, the Common Foreign and Security Policy is passed unto the
High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy for implementation of all decisions made.11 When
analyzing the contribution that the European Council makes to the Common Foreign and Security Policy,
it is important to recognize that the objectives set at the beginning with the defined time and means are
key to what the Council of the EU can actually implement because without the minister's respective heads
of government or state support, no policy would actually be able to be carried out at the member states'
level which is absolutely necessary for defensive actions due to a non-existent EU military complex. As
Youri Devuyst states, "the European Council is itself a contributing factor fostering twenty-seven unilateral
or sub-EU initiatives by Member States with a greater diplomatic tradition and capacity."12 At the end of
the Common Foreign and Security Policy's route, it can be noted that the starting actor is the European
Council, the drafting institution is the Council of the EU, and the implementing character is the High
Representative. In this realm, the European Council holds a prime stake in the policy agenda.
Through the analysis of these three specific policies, a careful line can be followed that the
European Council has many roles in its contribution to the European Union's agenda which may be
defined or which may be constantly evolving. On a whole, the European Council operates as an
intergovernmental institution that helps set necessary goals and objectives for the European Union,
provides the support of the nation they precede over, and adapts to the changing times within the
European area. Although one of the most recent formal developments, the European Council plays its
part within the European Union on a highly impactful level as it intertwines itself into the direction of
Europe's integration and implementation of ideas.

10 Moussis, "Decision-making in CFSP Matters".

11 "Foreign and Security Policy at the EU Level".

12 Devuyst, "The European Council and the CFSP after the Lisbon Treaty", 327.
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