Module 1 · Council of Europe vs the EU
A critical exam distinction. The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 27 Member States; the Council of Europe (CoE) is an international organisation of 46 Member States with no legislative power of its own. All 27 EU states are in the Council of Europe, but not vice versa. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) (Strasbourg) belongs to the CoE, not the EU.
The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 27 Member States (the UK exited on 1 Jan 2020, dropping it from 28 to 27). Its privacy instruments include the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU (CFREU) - sometimes called the "constitution of the EU" - the TFEU, the Lisbon Treaty, the GDPR and the ePrivacy Directive.
The Council of Europe (CoE) is an international organisation (NOT an EU body) of 46 Member States. Its mission is to "promote democracy, human rights and the rule of law." It has no legislative ability of its own but influences law through conventions and treaties members agree to. The CoE developed the ECHR, the ECtHR and Convention 108.
| Council of Europe (CoE) | European Union (EU) | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | International organisation (not an EU body) | Economic and political union |
| Members | 46 Member States | 27 Member States (28 before Brexit) |
| Role | Promote democracy, human rights, rule of law; no legislative power of its own | Makes directly binding law (e.g. the GDPR) |
| Key instruments | ECHR, Convention 108, creates the ECtHR | , TFEU, Lisbon Treaty, GDPR, ePrivacy Directive |
| Court | European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) - Strasbourg | Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) - Luxembourg |
All 27 EU Member States are members of the Council of Europe, but not vice versa. The ECtHR is not part of the EU; it examines data protection via Article 8 ECHR.