Laws written by the Commission are discussed and changed by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union . The European Union has seven institutions : the European Parliament , the Council of the European Union , the European Commission , the European Council , the European Central Bank , the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Court of Auditors . Competencies in scrutinising and amending legislation are divided between the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union while executive tasks are carried out by the European Commission and in a limited capacity by the European Council ( not to be confused with the aforementioned Council of the European Union ) .