focus of the Parliament, like the Commission, is on Increased European integration. Instead of sitting according to state origin, the members sit in the Parliaments chamber according to political group. This creates an environment based more on political party issues rather than the issues of Member States. This environment is similar to that of the national parliaments throughout the Member States. For example an issue on foreign policy may be looked at in a Liberal and Realist view as opposed to the views of France or Germany. Although there is somewhat of a separation of state and a focus on integration, the Parliament still remains somewhat Intergovernmental. A study in 1996 showed that representation in the Parliament was actually focused on the members’ own country rather than “Europe as a whole”. Rather than focusing on European political issues, the elections conducted to elect the members of the Parliament still remain to be focused on domestic politics. These domestic opinions reflect the claim that the Parliament has strayed away from European issues (Gallagher 105-111) Unlike the Commission and Parliament the Council of the European Union and The European Council are similar to an Intergovernmental organization. In essence the Council of the European Union represents the individual governments and views of each of the Member States. The European Council, which is separate from the Council of the European Union, also signifies an Intergovernmental organization. The Council is made up of 15 members, each a head of government represents each Member State. Advocates of a Supra-national European Union resent the power of the European Council and its decisions. Both of the Councils are accountable to no one. The Council seems to present the idea that Member States and their governments are the main focus of the EU rather than the views of the Parliament and the Commission. The European Council “gives th...
