The European Commission

Role and Composition

The European Commission is the EU's executive branch. It has 27 commissioners — one from each member state — each responsible for a policy area (trade, competition, climate, etc.). The Commission President is proposed by the European Council and confirmed by the European Parliament.

The Commission has three key roles:

1. Legislative initiative: Only the Commission can propose new EU legislation. Neither the Parliament nor the Council can introduce bills.
2. Guardian of the treaties: It ensures member states comply with EU law, and can take them to the Court of Justice.
3. Executive function: It implements EU policies, manages the budget, and represents the EU internationally (especially on trade).

How a Commission Is Formed — and Removed

The Commission is appointed for a five-year term following each European Parliament election. The process runs in stages: the European Council proposes a candidate for President 'taking account' of the election results; the Parliament elects that candidate by an absolute majority; member states nominate one commissioner each; nominees face grilling in public Parliament hearings; and finally the whole College is approved (or rejected) in a single vote.

Worked example: the von der Leyen Commissions

After the 2019 election, Ursula von der Leyen was proposed and elected President, and Parliament's hearings forced three nominated commissioners to be replaced before the College could take office in December 2019. She was re-elected for a second term in July 2024 following that year's election — a concrete demonstration that Parliament's approval is real leverage, not a rubber stamp.

Parliament can also dismiss the entire Commission through a motion of censure. In 1999 the Santer Commission resigned en masse to pre-empt such a vote amid fraud and mismanagement allegations — the clearest proof that the Commission is politically accountable to the elected Parliament.

The Commission's Powers in Practice

The Commission is unusual because it combines functions that national systems normally split between separate bodies. The table below maps each role to a concrete power and a real example.

Because of its competition and trade powers in particular, the Commission is one of the most consequential regulators on Earth — its decisions routinely shape the behaviour of the world's largest companies.