Category: GA preparations Breda 2021

  • Information European Union

    Information European Union

    The European Union 

    The European Union has 28, soon to be 27, Member States. It is a supranational organisation with the ability to create legislation which all members must obey. It is the primary platform for European cooperation. Knowledge of the specific details of how the EU functions is not directly relevant for most of our topics. Instead, this section will cover the actions the main EU institutions can take. 

    European Council – Setting the strategy
    Role: Defines the EU’s general political direction and priorities;
    Members: Heads of state or government from each member state, the president of the European Council and the president of the European Commission;
    Actions you can ask the European Council to take:

    •  Decide on the direction for the EU and EU foreign policy; 
    •  Ask the European Commission to initiate proposals for legislation. 

    European Parliament – The voice of the people
    Role: Directly elected legislative arm of the EU;
    Members: 751 directly elected members;
    Actions you can ask the European Parliament to take:

    • Amend and adopts the proposed legislative acts; 
    • Supervise other institutions; 
    •  Ask the European Commission to propose legislation; 
    •  Debate on international agreements. 

    European Commission – Promoting the common interest
    Role: Executive arm of the EU that proposes laws, policies agreements and promotes the Union’s general interests; it is the political leadership of the Union;
    Members: College of Commissioners, one from each member state – each commissioner is assigned a specific policy area;
    Actions you can ask the European Commission to take: 

    • Propose legislation to Parliament and the Council; 
    • Represent the EU internationally; 
    • Negotiate international agreements; 
    • Implement EU policies. 

    Council of the European Union – The voice of the member states
    Role: Deciding on policies and adopting legislation, coordinating actions among the member states; Members: Government representatives on a ministerial level from each member state; 

    Actions you can ask the Council of the European Union to take:

    • Pass legislation together with the Parliament; 
    • Coordinate actions among the member states; 
    • Conclude international agreements. 

    Competences of the European Union
    In some policy areas, the EU has exclusive competence, which means that decisions are taken at EU level. In other policy areas, there is shared competence between the Union and the member states. This means that if legislation is passed at EU level, then these laws have priority. If no legislation is adopted at EU level, then the individual member states may legislate at national level. Note that there is often a nuance in the overlap between these. For example, although fisheries is a shared competence, the conservation of fisheries is an exclusive competence. In all other policy areas, the decisions remain with the member states.

  • Explanation GA Procedure

    Explanation GA Procedure

    General Rules

    Before the GA

    1. Join the Zoom call at 8:50 and mute yourself
    2. Join your committee voice channel on discord

    During GA

    You can talk with your committee in the discord voice call while you’re in the zoom call.

    Points

    If you want to make a point, tell your chair. They will “raise their hand” on zoom. Once the (vice)president tells your committee to speak, unmute yourself. You may then speak.

    Direct responses

    If you want to use a direct response to a point made, tell your chair (via the voice channel on discord). He will inform the (vice)president. A Direct Response should refer to the core of the last point made and not just be on the same topic. The Direct Response can only be raised two times per round of debate. If a Direct Response is misused, it still counts as used.

    Other

    There is no dress code for the event, we encourage everyone to wear whatever makes them feel comfortable and confident! 

    GA Procedure

    1. The Chair of the General Assembly reads out the topic
    2. A representative of the proposing Committee delivers a defence speech from the “podium” for a maximum of three minutes
    3. Two delegates from other Committees deliver position speeches from the “podium” for a maximum of 1.5 minutes each
    4. A representative of the proposing Committee responds to the position speeches from the “floor” for a maximum of two minutes 
    5. The open debate begins
      1. The first round begins with up to six points from other Committees from the “floor” for a maximum of forty-five seconds per point
      2. A representative of the proposing Committee responds to the first round from the “floor” for a maximum of two minutes
      3. The second round begins with up to six points from other Committees from the floor for a maximum of forty-five seconds per point
      4. A representative of the proposing Committee responds to the second round from the “floor” for a maximum of two minutes
      5. The third round begins with up to six points from other Committees from the floor for a maximum of forty-five seconds per point
      6. A representative of the proposing Committee responds to the third round from the floor for a maximum of two minutes
      7. The fourth round begins with up to six points from other Committees from the floor for a maximum of forty-five seconds per point
      8. A representative of the proposing Committee responds to the fourth round from the floor for a maximum of two minutes
    6. One or two representatives of the proposing Committee delivers the summation speech from the podium for a maximum of three minutes
    7. There is a one minute break to confer for voting purposes
    8. All delegates submit their vote for the resolution
    9. The Chair of the General Assembly announces the results of the vote

    Open answers on the procedure:

    • GA will primarily be held on zoom. Everyone will join the zoom call
    • Chairs and delegates can communicate on discord voice or written channels, while being muted on the zoom call
    • Getting point during open debate etc, is done by the chair raising their hand on zoom on behalf of the committee
    • Everyone is able to unmute themselves to speak
    • It’s encouraged to have your camera on, especially when delivering speeches and points
    • Direct responses will be done via chat directly to the board member in charge of logistics
    • Votes are counted by chairs speaking up and the total is announced by the board

    Speeches

    Defence speech

    This speech is used by the proposing committee to explain the proposed resolution. It is used to explain the underlying goals and motives of the committee and to show how the current resolution is an efficient way to reach those goals. It is more factual and logical than emotional.

    Position speech

    After the defence speech, two committees will be recognised to deliver one position speech each. One of these will be in favour, and one against the proposed resolution. The speeches should support/disagree with the goals of the committee and/or the general direction of the resolution. They should not consist of a list of points.

    Summation speech

    The summation speech will consist of two main parts delivered by a member of the proposing committee. The first speaker will summarise the debate, while the rest of the time will be used to convince the Assembly to vote in favour of the proposed resolution.