Common Assembly

Common Assembly. The Common Assembly was the parliamentary body of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), established in 1952. It represented a foundational step in the development of European integration, providing a forum for delegates from member states to debate and oversee the executive High Authority. Though its powers were consultative, it laid crucial institutional groundwork for the directly elected European Parliament.

History

The Common Assembly was formally established by Article 21 of the Treaty of Paris (1951), which created the European Coal and Steel Community. Its inaugural session was held in Strasbourg on 10 September 1952, with Paul-Henri Spaak of Belgium elected as its first President. The creation of the assembly was championed by figures like Robert Schuman and Jean Monnet, who saw parliamentary oversight as vital to the supranational project. Key early debates focused on the policies of the High Authority under its first president, Jean Monnet, concerning the common market for coal and steel. The assembly's existence was a direct response to the desire for democratic legitimacy within the new community structure, distinct from the purely intergovernmental Council of Europe.

Composition and structure

The Common Assembly was composed of 78 delegates appointed annually by the national parliaments of the six founding member states: Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Seats were allocated roughly by population, with France, Germany, and Italy each receiving 18 delegates. Members did not sit in national blocs but formed political groups based on ideology, notably the Christian Democratic Group and the Socialist Group. The assembly was led by a President, with notable figures including Alcide De Gasperi and Hans Furler also serving in this role. Its administrative functions were managed by a Secretariat-General headed by Hans Nord.

Powers and functions

The powers of the Common Assembly were primarily supervisory and consultative. Its most significant power was the ability to pass a motion of censure, requiring a two-thirds majority, to force the collective resignation of the High Authority. It exercised this right once, in a symbolic 1955 vote related to transport policy. The assembly received and debated the annual General Report from the High Authority, adopting resolutions and opinions. It could also pose written and oral questions to the High Authority, a practice that established early forms of parliamentary scrutiny. While it had no legislative power, its debates influenced community policy in areas like cartel regulation and industrial policy.

Relationship with other EU institutions

The Common Assembly interacted directly with the executive High Authority, to which it provided democratic oversight. Its relationship with the intergovernmental Special Council of Ministers was less formal, though it could offer opinions to the council. The assembly shared its seat in Strasbourg with the Council of Europe, and some individuals, like Paul-Henri Spaak, were active in both bodies. Its successor, the European Parliamentary Assembly, established by the Treaty of Rome, would later gain a more defined relationship with the European Commission and the Council of the European Union.

Evolution and reform

The role and scope of the Common Assembly expanded with the creation of two additional communities under the Treaty of Rome in 1957: the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community. The Merger Treaty of 1965 formally consolidated the executives but the parliamentary body had already been transformed. On 19 March 1958, following the Treaty of Rome, the Common Assembly was succeeded by the European Parliamentary Assembly, which served all three communities. This new assembly, with increased membership, gradually gained budgetary powers through the Treaty of Luxembourg and eventually direct election following the Act concerning the election of the representatives of the Assembly by direct universal suffrage in 1979, becoming the modern European Parliament.