Justice and Home Affairs Council

Agenda Item 1: Recognizing Hybrid Threats to the European Union in order to Consolidate Collective Defense Mechanisms via Reiterating the Equilibrium among Centralized and Local Governments

Agenda Item 2: Procurement of Legal Repercussions upon the Instrumentalization of Ordinances​

Under-Secretary-General: Zehra Yıldırım

Academic Assistant: Tuna Unutmaz

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Introduction to the Justice and Home Affairs Council

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The Justice & Home Affairs Council (JHA) is a sub-council to the Consilium just as the Foreign Affairs Council, Economic and Financial Council and the Competitiveness Council. Within the meetings of these councils, as obvious under their names, the relevant ministers partake in the preliminary meetings and discuss topics under their specialty. Given the bilateral composition of the JHA, the preliminary meetings -depending on the agenda- the sub-council may either gather twenty-seven ministers of justice or ministers of family and home affairs or even a combination of both. Such ministerial gatherings are inseparable motives for the Ordinary Legislative Procedure. Hence, the domain of the Justice & Home Affairs Council establishes a forum to uphold topics namely; visa and border security, migration and asylum, cybersecurity, fundamental and citizens’ rights and fighting crime. Furthermore; once the sub-councils have reached an internal conclusion, their decisions gradually be carried to the plenary meetings of the Consilium and thus deliver an eventual stance in order for the continuum of the OLP.
 

Introduction to the Agenda Items

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1) Discussions of the first agenda will embark on consolidating practical legal cooperation in response to hybrid threats, further including impactful coordination through interinstitutional relations, apter assistance and reliable cross-border evidence-sharing. Simultaneously, ministers of justice across the EU Member States will evaluate the need for greater alignment in how such jeopardies are defined and crisis management plans are implemented between centralized and local governments. Therefore legal responses remain coherent and predictable. In this context, particular diligence must be given to maintaining a balanced institutional framework, one that enables effective coordination at the EU level while prolonging the respect towards sovereign authority and discretion of national and local judicial bodies, especially in areas such as prosecution, investigation, and the use of exceptional legal measures.
 

2) In this agenda, it hereby raises repercussions and provides reflections on the legal consequences to be arisen when ordinances are utilized in ways that extend beyond their intended regulatory function, despite the absence of EU OLP’s scope upon secondary legislative acts. Moreover, ministers will examine how such practices interact with EU law, constitutional principles and fundamental rights; as well as the circumstances in which they may give a catalysis to judicial review, state liability or infringement procedures. The discussion also acknowledges the practical oppression encountered by governments, especially in times of crisis. In this regard, the agenda complements broader concerns about executive neglect by highlighting how the misconduct of legislative transactions are capable of diluting and undermining parliamentary provisions, thereby reinforcing the need for clearer safeguards, oversight and shared standards across the Union.