Preşedinţia permanentă a Consiliului European - beneficii şi riscuri
The Permanent Presidency of the European Council – Benefits and Risks

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to study the effects of the introduction of a permanent Presidency of the European Council through the Lisbon Treaty. This measure affects the EC itself, the way it relates to other institutions and to the citizens, as well as the EU as a whole. The main areas which we can expect this change to have a positive impact on are efficiency, democratic control and visibility. Efficiency is a result of the fact that the resources at the President’s disposal can be better used in a longer mandate. Furthermore, deliberation as an appointment method enhances democratic control due to the European Council President’s increased accountability. The visibility of the EC may gain from this permanent office, but there is also the risk that confusion may arise because of the many similarly representative offices in the EU institutional framework. To this I add that the permanent Presidency of the EC helps strengthen the supranational – as opposed to the intergovernmental – nature of the institution.

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