Julina Mintel, Nicolai von Ondarza: Consensus per video? – Decision-making in the Council of the EU during the Covid-19 pandemic
Working Paper Research Division EU/Europe 2021/ No. 05, December 2021, 12 PagesThe Covid-19 pandemic had a sweeping impact on working methods across Europe and the world. This transition is particularly challenging for the EU, whose institutions are based on constant exchange between representatives from different EU countries and EU institutions, and whose ability to find compromises relies not only on formal procedures, but also a host of informal meetings, exchanges and negotiations at the margins of EU meetings.
At the same time, the pandemic required an urgent response at the national and European level. Using a data-driven approach, we took a deeper look into how the forced changes in working methods impacted the work of the Council of the EU. The analysis shows that while the Council was able to conduct most of its work under the pandemic constraints, it adopted considerably fewer legal acts. Joint law-making with the European Parliament was particularly strongly affected. Within the Council, even via video member states were able to find consensus on most issues. However, the growing East-West split was particularly strong in the voting in the Council in 2020/21.
Source – SWP: Consensus per video?