Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Employment – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 9 Gorffennaf 1991.
Mr Michael Irvine
, Ipswich
12:00,
9 Gorffennaf 1991
Will my right hon. and learned Friend confirm that the European Commission has introduced the social action programme under the provisions of article 100A with a view to making it possible for the programme to be enacted by a qualified Majority only? Does he agree that article 100A is not the appropriate article? What steps is he taking to challenge the European Commission on that point?
The European Commission is the politically independent institution that represents and upholds the interests of the EU as a whole. It is the driving force within the EU’s institutional system: it proposes legislation, policies and programmes of action and it is responsible for implementing the decisions of Parliament and the Council.
Like the Parliament and Council, the European Commission was set up in the 1950s under the EU’s founding treaties.
The term "majority" is used in two ways in Parliament. Firstly a Government cannot operate effectively unless it can command a majority in the House of Commons - a majority means winning more than 50% of the votes in a division. Should a Government fail to hold the confidence of the House, it has to hold a General Election. Secondly the term can also be used in an election, where it refers to the margin which the candidate with the most votes has over the candidate coming second. To win a seat a candidate need only have a majority of 1.
