The Institutions of the European Union

The Institutions of the European Union is the key text for anyone wishing to understand the functions, powers, and composition of the EU's institutions. Written and edited by a team of leading international experts, the text offers a comprehensive analysis and explanation of all the most important organisations and their roles in the governance and management of the EU. The fifth edition has been substantially revised, featuring a range of newly authored chapters, and including coverage of the most important developments affecting the institutions of the European Union as they contend with the changing dynamics of European integration. Up-to-date chapters examine current challenges, including the rise of populism and how it is wielded by politicians to target EU institutions, the climate emergency and the EU's bold new policy commitments to make the Union climate neutral by 2050, as well as the response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Authoritative yet accessible, The Institutions of the European Union is the best guide to how institutions work together to provide political direction, manage the European Union, govern policies, and integrate contrasting interests within the EU.

1 - Why EU Institutions Matter: Five Dimensions of EU Institutional Politics
2 - The History of EU Institutions: Six Decades of Institutional Change
3 - The European Council: The Union's Supreme Decision-Maker
4 - The Council of the European Union: Co-legislator, Coordinator and Executive Power
5 - The European Commission: From Collegiality to Presidential Leadership
6 - The European Parliament: Powerful but Fragmented
7 - The Court of Justice: A Quiet Leader
8 - The European Commission: The Cabinets and the Services
9 - European Union Agencies: Explaining EU Agency Behaviour, Processes, and Outputs
10 - The Court of Auditors and the European Ombudsman: The EU's 'Watchdogs'
11 - The Institutions of Economic and Monetary Union: From the Euro Crisis to COVID-19
12 - The Institutions of Justice and Home Affairs: Integrating Security Interests
13 - The Institutions of the Common Foreign and Security Policy: Between Intergovernmentalism and Supranationalism
14 - The Committee of Permanent Representatives: Integrating Interests and the Logics of Action
15 - European Parties: A Powerful Caucus in the European Parliament and Beyond
16 - The Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of Regions: Consultative Institutions in a Multichannel Democracy
17 - EU Institutional Politics: Growing Wiser?

Dermot Hodson is Professor in Political Economy at Birkbeck, University of London, and a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe, Bruges. He has published extensively on European integration and governance, and is the co-author of The Transformation of EU Treaty Making: The Rise of Parliaments, Referendums and Courts (Cambridge University Press, 2018) Uwe Puetter holds the Professorship for Empirical Research on Europe at Europa-Universität Flensburg, and is Visiting Professor at the College of Europe in Bruges. He is a specialist in European Union governance, and the author of The European Council and the Council. New Intergovernmentalism and Institutional Change (Oxford University Press, 2014) Sabine Saurugger is a Professor of Political Science, Director of Sciences Po Grenoble-UGA, and a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe, Bruges. She is an honorary member of the Institut universitaire de France (IUF), and has published extensively on European integration, public policies, and the relationship between law and politics John Peterson was formerly a Professor of International Politics at the University of Edinburgh