The Passerelle Clause is a clause within treaties of the European Union

Treaties of the European Union

The Treaties of the European Union are a set of international treaties between the European Union member states which sets out the EU's constitutional basis. They establish the various EU institutions together with their remit, procedures and objectives...

 that allows the European Council

European Council

The European Council is an institution of the European Union. It comprises the heads of state or government of the EU member states, along with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council, currently Herman Van Rompuy...

 to unanimously decide to replace unanimous voting in the Council of Ministers

Council of the European Union

The Council of the European Union is the institution in the legislature of the European Union representing the executives of member states, the other legislative body being the European Parliament. The Council is composed of twenty-seven national ministers...

 with qualified majority voting (QMV) in specified areas with the previous consent of the European Parliament

European Parliament

The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...

, and move from a special legislative procedure to the ordinary legislative procedure. “Passerelle” means “overpass

Overpass

An overpass is a bridge, road, railway or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway...

” in the French language.

Certain matters in the Council of Ministers are decided by unanimous voting and certain by qualified majority voting. The distinction is laid down in treaties and cannot normally be changed without a new treaty. Under the Passerelle Clause, voting on certain areas can switch from unanimity to QMV if the European Council unanimously approves this. The decision cannot be later reversed without treaty change.

Passerelle provisions

Before the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty there were only four passerelle provisions:

• on police and judicial cooperation established by the Maastricht Treaty
  Maastricht Treaty
  The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992 by the members of the European Community in Maastricht, Netherlands. On 9–10 December 1991, the same city hosted the European Council which drafted the treaty...
  
   in 1992;
• on immigration and asylum, social policy and the environment established by the Treaty of Nice
  Treaty of Nice
  The Treaty of Nice was signed by European leaders on 26 February 2001 and came into force on 1 February 2003. It amended the Maastricht Treaty and the Treaty of Rome...
  
   in 2001.

In 2004 the European Council

European Council

The European Council is an institution of the European Union. It comprises the heads of state or government of the EU member states, along with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council, currently Herman Van Rompuy...

 used the Passerelle Clause to move to QMV on asylum and immigration.

After the 2009 Lisbon Treaty further passerelle provisions were added:

• The Common Foreign and Security Policy
  Common Foreign and Security Policy
  The Common Foreign and Security Policy is the organised, agreed foreign policy of the European Union for mainly security and defence diplomacy and actions. CFSP deals only with a specific part of the EU's external relations, which domains include mainly Trade and Commercial Policy and other areas...
  
  ;
• The budget
  Budget
  A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
  
  ;
• All other policies except defence.

A decision of the European Council to use either of these provisions can only come into effect if, six months after all national parliaments had been given notice of the decision, none object to it.

Criticism

In 2006 a United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 House of Commons

British House of Commons

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...

 committee faced cross-party protests from the European Parliament

European Parliament

The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...

 by referring to the Passerelle Clause as the "Gangplank

Walking the plank

Walking the plank was a form of murder or torture thought to have been practiced by pirates, mutineers and other rogue seafarers. The victim was forced to walk off the end of a wooden plank or beam, the final six feet of which extended over the side of a ship...

 Clause". The coalition

Coalition government

A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...

 agreement entered into between the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties

Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition Agreement

The Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition Agreement was a policy document drawn up following the 2010 general election in the United Kingdom...

 following the 2010 General Election in the United Kingdom included an undertaking to amend the 1972 European Communities Act

European Communities Act 1972 (UK)

The European Communities Act 1972 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom providing for the incorporation of European Community law into the domestic law of the United Kingdom. It is not to be confused with the Irish law of the same name, Act No...

 so that any further use of passerelle clauses would require primary legislation

Primary legislation

Primary legislation is law made by the legislative branch of government. This contrasts with secondary legislation, which is usually made by the executive branch...

 in the UK. This agreement led to the approval of the 2011 European Union Act.

See also

• Revision procedures for the Treaty of Lisbon
• Legislature of the European Union
• 2011 European Union Act

External links

• UK Parliamentary Reply