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The '''European Parliament''' is one of the [[parliament|parliamentary]] [[legislature|legislative]] bodies of the [[European Union]]. Its membership consists of directly elected [[Members of the European Parliament]] (MEPs), from each of the 27 EU member-states. There are currently 785 members, elected for five-year terms. Tthe President is, since 14 July 2009, the Liberal Conservative [[Polish]] MEP [[Jerzy Buzek]], who represents the [[European People's Party]].<ref>[http://www.europarl.europa.eu/parliament/public.do?language=en Welcome to the European Parliament] - European Parliament website</ref> The number of representatives per country is roughly determined by population, but the exact numbers were negotiated in treaties.

The '''European Parliament''' is one of the [[parliament|parliamentary]] [[legislature|legislative]] bodies of the [[European Union]]. Its membership consists of directly elected [[Members of the European Parliament]] (MEPs), from each of the 28 EU member-states. There are currently 785 members, elected for five-year terms. Tthe President is, since 14 July 2009, the Liberal Conservative [[Polish]] MEP [[Jerzy Buzek]], who represents the [[European People's Party]].<ref>[http://www.europarl.europa.eu/parliament/public.do?language=en Welcome to the European Parliament] - European Parliament website</ref> The number of representatives per country is roughly determined by population, but the exact numbers were negotiated in treaties.

Parliament's powers have gradually grown with the entry into force of the Single European Act (1986), the Maastricht Treaty (1993) and the Treaty of Amsterdam (1999). Parliament shares decision-making power on an equal footing with the Council in many areas under the Community Pillar to which the "co-decision procedure" applies. The European Parliament is one of the two branches with budgetary authority &ndash; the Council is the other. The signature of the EP president brings the overall EU budget into effect.  

Parliament's powers have gradually grown with the entry into force of the Single European Act (1986), the Maastricht Treaty (1993) and the Treaty of Amsterdam (1999). Parliament shares decision-making power on an equal footing with the Council in many areas under the Community Pillar to which the "co-decision procedure" applies. The European Parliament is one of the two branches with budgetary authority &ndash; the Council is the other. The signature of the EP president brings the overall EU budget into effect.