What are the EU treaties?

The main EU treaties are the Consolidated Versions of the Treaty on European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. They were developed by the member states, signed by their highest representative (in our case, King Charles if we rejoin), and ratified by their parliaments (in our case, a vote in Westminster).

How powerful is the Commission?

The Commission is the EU's civil service. It reports directly to the EU parliament.

The Commision develops legislation in accordance with the instructions given to it in the treaties and with the advice and guidance it gets from the parliamentary committees of MEPs, from national bodies, and from experts, specialists, and others including ordinary EU citizens.

See the EU's "Have your say" portal for citizen involvements.

What is an "exclusive EU competence"?

This is something that the member states' governments agree to do together, without having individual national legislation on the topic.

The areas of exclusive competence are (1) customs union (2) competition rules in the internal market (3) Eurozone monetary policy (4) marine conservation (5) common commercial policy and (6) international agreements.

These are all areas of policy and law where member states would not anyway be able to act separately. These things need to be developed and agreed by all member states together if they are to work at all.

What is a "shared competence"?

This is something that the member states' governments agree to do partly individually and partly in cooperation with the other member states.

The areas of shared competence are (a) internal market (b) social policy (c) economic, social, and territorial cohesion (d) agriculture and fisheries (e) environment (f) consumer protection (g) transport (h) trans-European networks (i) energy (j) freedom, security and justice (k) public health

Is the EU democratic?

Yes. But not to the extent of being able to override national sovereignty.  Three democratic groups control the EU bureaucracy.

The European Council consists of heads of member states (eg.PM's) and sets the EU's political direction.

The Council of the EU consists of government ministers of member states. Each is authorized to exercise that member's sovereignty, by voting on its behalf.

The EU parliament consists of MEPs. Their job is to represent their constitutents' interests and to hold the entire EU to account.

The EU can only legislate in areas in which the member states have given it "competence". See FAQ's on exclusive and shared competence.

Legislation can only be passed if both the Council and the Parliament agree. So yes, the EU is democratic, and the EU parliament and the Council of the EU cannot override national sovereignties.

How do EU laws get made?

Somebody - almost anybody - makes a suggestion to the Commission. It could be the Commission itself, MEPs, ministers or civil servants or ambassadors or EU citizens individualy. A petition by a million EU citizens from a required number of member states is guaranteed to be heard.

The Commission checks that the topic is within an EU competence. If so, it sets in motion consultations and other processes needed. Consultations will typically go through one or more of the MEPs' parliamentary committees. During and after this, the Commission develops proposed legislation, trying to ensure that it will satisfy all members' governments.

Alert member states will know all this. Even so, the Commission ensures that the national parliaments of all member states are informed of proposals a minimum of 8 weeks before they are put to the vote in the EU.

The proposals are then put to the Council (ministers of member states) and in most cases to the Parliament (MEPs), who vote independently on the matter. Only if both these bodies agree can the proposal become law.
   

What does the ECJ do?

The ECJ (Court of Justice of the EU) settles arguments that can arise between citizens and the union or its various parts, or between members or members and the union, or between different parts of the EU bureacracy.

Like in the UK, the ECJ has built up "case law" over the years. This is part of the "acquis". Settled cases can be found on the ECJ's website. The types of arguments the ECJ settles are those which arise from differing interpretations of the treaties, or of EU case law.

The ECJ's power comes, not from the ECJ itself, but from the treaties that the member states' governments signed up to.

Will we have to join the Euro?

No. The conditions for rejoining the EU are the Copenhagen criteria. Only 20 of the 27 current member states use the euro as their sole legal tender.  The 20 might prefer us to join, but it would be up to us, not them.