Early warning system
The rejected Constitution included an early-warning mechanism for subsidiarity control. The system allows national parliaments to object to Commission proposals within six weeks of its publication on the grounds that it breaches the principle of subsidiarity (that is to say that if a given objective may be achieved better at a local level the EU should not interfere). If these "reasoned opinions" represent at least 1/3 of the votes allocated to national parliaments and their chambers, the Commission must review the draft legislation. The Commission may then decide whether to maintain, amend or withdraw its proposal. This means that they can potentially ignore the concerns articulated by national parliaments and press forward with its proposal without making any amendments.
Since September 2006, the Commission has committed itself to send all proposals for new legislation to all national parliaments, asking for their comments on possible breach with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality.
The 2007 Treaty (the revised Constitution) includes a new art. 8 C TEU and an amended protocol on subsidiarity. If "reasoned opinions" are submitted by at least a simple majority of the votes allocated to the national Parliaments, the proposal must be reviewed. After such review, the Commission may decide to maintain, amend or withdraw it. If the Commission decides to maintain the proposal, a majority in the European Parliament or 55 % of the member states in the Council may oppose it. Yet this will not change the decision-making procedure since all laws need the support of 55 % of the member states anyway.
Links
See also the EU Constitution and the report of the Working Group "Subsidiarity" of the Convention: http://european-convention.eu.......er.asp?lang=EN&Content=WGI
