EU Parliament Comes Into Own

The elections to the European Parliament over the weekend, in which the right-leaning parties scored big gains, have dealt a blow to the left-leaning governments of key European Union countries, especially Britain and Germany. That will not make decision-making in Europe easier, considering that most of the important issues are decided in London or Bonn. But it will strengthen the democratic rule of the European Union by increasing the Parliament’s independence from national capitals and allowing it to forge a common European policy.

A more powerful and independent EU Parliament is also likely to pose a greater challenge to the United States. As the 626-member assembly has gained in power, it has become more protectionist. Particularly vexing for Southern California’s movie industry is the Parliament’s call for draconian limits on imports of U.S. television programs. This Eurocentrism could make it harder to settle other transatlantic trade disputes, including those over European banana import restrictions, a ban on U.S. beef treated with hormones and the simmering controversy over genetically altered food.

The Parliament has come a long way since the 1980s, when it served as a repository for European political has-beens and misfits. Its only real power then was to approve--usually rubber-stamp--annual budgets. That began changing in the early 1990s when Europe decided to unify and set up a common currency. In two historic documents--the Maastricht and Amsterdam treaties--the European Parliament gained a say in some 80% of EU decisions and joint decision-making power over nearly half of European policies, including employment, social welfare, consumer protection and health.

The Parliament flexed its new political muscle earlier this year when it forced the European Commission out of office, accusing it of cronyism and fraud. The commission, a bulging bureaucracy in Brussels charged with the day-to-day running of the European Union, was until then unchallenged in its poor and wasteful management of expensive European programs.

The EU treaties gave the Parliament powers it never had before, and the election set it on a political course different from that of most EU capitals. The United States had better take note.