Qualified Majority Voting (QMV) is a voting procedure employed in the Council of the European Union for some decisions, under which each member state has a fixed number of votes.
To pass a vote by QMV, these conditions apply:
- gathered 232 out of the total of 321 votes (72.27%)
- is backed by a majority of member states
- these countries represent at least 62% of the EU population
If the new Treaty establishing a constitution for Europe comes into force, blocking decisions will be much harder: Under this new rule, a QMV decision will require a 'double majority' of only 55% of member states representing 65% of citizens.
Use of QMV vs unanimity
At present, QMV is used to pass many decisions, while others require unanimity among all Council members. Under the proposed Treaty establishing a constitution for Europe, which has to be ratified by member states before it can enter into force, decisions in about 20 more policy areas will be taken using QMV, leaving only sensitive issues such as tax, social policy, defense and foreign policy subject to unanimity.
It is argued that this change will be necessary in order to streamline decision-making and prevent gridlock in a newly enlarged European Union. Some commentators have seen the change as a loss of sovereignty from individual member states, since it effectively abolishes the national veto in many secondary areas.
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