The assent procedure is one of the legislative procedures of the European Community, the 1st of the Three pillars of the European Union. The European Union is unique among international organisations in having a complex and highly developed system of internal law which has direct effect within the legal systems of its member states. ... The European Community (EC), most important of three European Communities, was originally founded on March 25, 1957 by the signing of the Treaty of Rome under the name of European Economic Community. ... The Treaty of Maastricht which established the European Union, divided EU policies into three main areas, called pillars. ...

Under this procedure, the Council of the European Union must obtain Parliament's assent before certain important decisions can be taken. It was introduced by the Single European Act. Parliament may accept or reject a proposal but cannot amend it. The Council of the European Union forms, along with the European Parliament, the legislative arm of the European Union (EU). ... The European Parliament is the parliamentary body of the European Union (EU), directly elected by EU citizens once every five years. ... The Single European Act (SEA) was the first major revision of the Treaty of Rome. ...

The procedure is the same as in the case of consultation, except that Parliament cannot amend a proposal: it must either accept or reject it. Acceptance ("assent") requires an absolute majority of the vote cast.

The areas covered by the assent procedure are:

• specific tasks of the European Central Bank (ECB);
• amending the statutes of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) / European Central Bank;
• the Structural Funds and Cohesion Funds;
• the uniform electoral procedure for the European Parliament;
• certain international agreements;
• the accession of new member states;
• approval of the President and the other members of the Commission

Following the entry into force of the Treaty of Amsterdam, Parliament's assent is also required in the event of sanctions being imposed on a Member State for a serious and persistent breach of fundamental rights under the new Article 7 of the EU Treaty. The European Central Bank (ECB) (French: Banque Centrale Europeénne, German: Europäische Zentralbank) is the Central Bank of the EU (the Eurozone precisely) and in charge of monetary policy for the 12 EU countries that currently use the Euro currency. ... The European System of Central Banks (ESCB) is composed of the European Central Bank (ECB) and the national central banks (NCBs) of all 25 EU Member States. ... Structural Funds and Cohesion Funds are funds allocated by the European Union for two related purposes: support for the poorer regions of Europe, and support for integrating European infrastructure, especially in the transport sector. ... Accession (from Lat. ... The Amsterdam Treaty (in full: Treaty of Amsterdam amending the Treaty of the European Union, the Treaties establishing the European Communities and certain related acts) which was signed on October 2, 1997, and entered into force on May 1, 1999, made substantial changes to the Treaty on European Union which... Sanctions is the plural of sanction (see also penalty). ... A fundamental is something that cannot be built out of more basic things, which other things are built upon. ... The Maastricht Treaty (formally, the Treaty on European Union) was signed on 7 February 1992 in Maastricht between the members of the European Community and entered into force on 1 November 1993, under the Delors Commission. ...

In its opinion on the 2000 Intergovernmental Conference the European Commission argued in favour of extending the procedure to the conclusion of agreements with significant economic and commercial implications at world level. An Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) is the formal procedure for negotiating amendments to the founding treaties of the European Union. ... The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive body of the European Union. ...