Conference of Community and European Affairs Committees of Parliaments of the European Union
Encyclopedia
The Conference of Community and European Affairs Committees of Parliaments of the European Union (COSAC) is a conference of Members of the European Parliament
(MEPs) and national Members of Parliament (MPs) who are drawn from parliament
ary committee
s responsible for European Union
affairs.
. The conference is mainly intended for personal contacts between Members of National Parliaments and MEP
s, and for exchanges of information. COSAC may however also adopt contributions addressed to the EU institutions.
COSAC has now gained the right to submit contributions and examine proposals on EU law relating to Justice and Home Affairs
and will see its role expand under the Treaty of Lisbon
with provisions for increased involvement of national parliaments in EU affairs
.
acronym for "Conférence des organes spécialisés dans les affaires communautaires et européennes des parlements de l'Union européenne". It is known by similar terms such as the Conference of European Community Affairs Committees and under the Treaty of Lisbon
COSAC's name is listed as the "conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs".
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
(MEPs) and national Members of Parliament (MPs) who are drawn from parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
ary committee
Committee
A committee is a type of small deliberative assembly that is usually intended to remain subordinate to another, larger deliberative assembly—which when organized so that action on committee requires a vote by all its entitled members, is called the "Committee of the Whole"...
s responsible for European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
affairs.
History and role
COSAC was founded in 1989 on a proposal of Laurent Fabius, then President of the French National Assembly and at the same time an MEP on the European Parliament's Constitutional Affairs Committee. It meets twice a year in the member state that holds the rotating EU PresidencyPresidency of the Council of the European Union
The Presidency of the Council of the European Union is the responsibility for the functioning of the Council of the European Union that rotates between the member states of the European Union every six months. The presidency is not a single president but rather the task is undertaken by a national...
. The conference is mainly intended for personal contacts between Members of National Parliaments and MEP
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
s, and for exchanges of information. COSAC may however also adopt contributions addressed to the EU institutions.
COSAC has now gained the right to submit contributions and examine proposals on EU law relating to Justice and Home Affairs
European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom & Security
The Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship is a post in the European Commission. The current commissioner is Viviane Reding....
and will see its role expand under the Treaty of Lisbon
Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon of 1668 was a peace treaty between Portugal and Spain, concluded at Lisbon on 13 February 1668, through the mediation of England, in which Spain recognized the sovereignty of Portugal's new ruling dynasty, the House of Braganza....
with provisions for increased involvement of national parliaments in EU affairs
National parliaments of the European Union
The national parliaments of the European Union are those legislatures responsible for each member state of the European Union . They have a certain degree of institutionalised influence which was expanded under the Treaty of Lisbon to include greater ability to scrutinise proposed EU...
.
Name
COSAC is a FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
acronym for "Conférence des organes spécialisés dans les affaires communautaires et européennes des parlements de l'Union européenne". It is known by similar terms such as the Conference of European Community Affairs Committees and under the Treaty of Lisbon
Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon of 1668 was a peace treaty between Portugal and Spain, concluded at Lisbon on 13 February 1668, through the mediation of England, in which Spain recognized the sovereignty of Portugal's new ruling dynasty, the House of Braganza....
COSAC's name is listed as the "conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs".
List of European affairs committees
| State | Committee |
|---|---|
 Belgium |
Advisory Committee on European Affairs Advisory Committee on European Affairs The Advisory Committee on European Affairs is a committee of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives. The committee consists of 10 Representatives, including the President of the Chamber of Representatives, and 10 Belgian Members of the European Parliament. It is chaired by the President of the... and Federal Advisory Committee on European Affairs Federal Advisory Committee on European Affairs The Federal Advisory Committee on European Affairs is a joint committee of the Federal Parliament of Belgium. It consists of the members of the Advisory Committee on European Affairs of the Chamber of Representatives, which is composed of 10 Representatives and 10 Belgian Members of the European... (includes MEPs) |
 Early Modern France |
The Committee in Charge of European Affairs (lower house) |
 Germany |
Committee on the Affairs of the European Union (lower house) and the Committee on European Union Questions (upper house) (also, the Chamber for European Affairs in the upper house) |
 Italy |
Committee on European Union Policies (lower house) and Committee on European Union Policies (upper house) |
 Poland |
European Union Affairs Committee (lower house) European Union Affairs Committee (upper house) |
 Kingdom of Romania |
The Committee on European Affairs (lower house) and European Affairs Committee (upper house) |
 Spain |
Joint Commission for the European Union |
 Sweden |
The Committee on EU Affairs |
 United Kingdom |
European Scrutiny Committee European Scrutiny Committee The European Scrutiny Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the Committee is to assess the legal and political importance of each EU document, and decide which EU documents are debated... (lower house) and European Union Committee European Union Committee The European Union Committee is a select committee of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Its terms of reference are "To consider European Union documents and other matters relating to the European Union". Much of the scrutiny is conducted by the seven subcommittees, each... (upper house, includes sub-committees) |
See also
- European AssizesEuropean AssizesThe European Assizes was a one-off² assembly of the European Parliament and the national parliaments of the member states of the European Union in Rome in 1990 ahead of the intergovernmental negotiations that were to result in the Treaty of Maastricht....
- National parliaments of the European UnionNational parliaments of the European UnionThe national parliaments of the European Union are those legislatures responsible for each member state of the European Union . They have a certain degree of institutionalised influence which was expanded under the Treaty of Lisbon to include greater ability to scrutinise proposed EU...
- List of national parliaments of the member states of the European Union
- Joint parliamentary meeting on the Future of EuropeJoint parliamentary meeting on the Future of EuropeThe Joint parliamentary meeting on the Future of Europe is a meeting of parliamentarians from the European Parliament and from the national parliaments of the member states of the European Union on the topic of the future of the European Union. The first of these meetings occurred on...