Talk:Institutional seats of the European Union/GA2

GA Review

Below suggestions for improvement by Noble Story.

Lead;

"The institutions of the European Union are not concentrated in a single capital city, they are instead based across three cities, Brussels, Luxembourg and Strasbourg, with further agencies and other bodies spread further out."

How about a little introduction? Maybe explaining exactly what functions the institutions serve? And, use a semicolon after "city" and a maybe put parentheses around the three cities.

"However Brussels has become the primary seat, hosting a seat, of not the main or only seat, of each major institution and now the European Council."

"Of not the main or only seat..." What does that mean? I really can't tell.

"However a final agreement between member states was reached in 1992 and later attached to the Treaty of Amsterdam."

Comma needed after "However".

"Despite this, the seat of the European Parliament remains an issue to this day (as of 2008). "

1. Didn't you just say it has been a political dispute? 2. If you say "to this day", saying "as of 2008" is redundant.

"Parliament has its work divided between all three major cities, which is seen as a problem due to the large amount of MEPs, staff and documents which need to be moved."

How about saying "The work of the parliament is divided..."? And what are MEPs?

"As the location of the major seats have been enshrined in the treaties of the European Union, Parliament has no right to decide its own seat unlike other national parliaments."

1. Use singular, not plural. 2. "Enshrined" doesn't seem the right word here. Maybe "set out in the treaties" or something like that. 3. Use a comma after "its own seat".

"The European Central Bank's seat had to symbolise its independence from political control, and thus be located in a city not already hosting a national government or European institution."

Keep the tense consistent.

Sorry for any delay in correcting these, am tad busy. Fixed most but: 2008 is after to this day for MOS reasons, if it was just to this day then if this article is not updated upon its resolution then it is incorrect but "as of 2008" sounds like it has become an issue from then on. Further down, "use singular" - on what word? All seem correct. - J Logan ^t: 21:51, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Locations;

"The treaties of the European Union outline the locations of the following institutions; The European Parliament has its seat in Strasbourg, hosting 12 monthly plenary sessions (including budget session). Brussels would host additional sessions and committees. Luxembourg would host the Secretariat of the European Parliament. The Council of the European Union has its seat in Brussels, except during April, June, and October, when meetings are held in Luxembourg. The European Commission also has its seat in Brussels, although some departments are hosted by Luxembourg. The European Court of Justice, Court of First Instance, and Court of Auditors are based in Luxembourg along with the European Investment Bank. The Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions are entirely based in Brussels while the European Central Bank is based in Frankfurt and Europol is the only agency to have its seat fixed by the treaties, in the Hague."

OK, first of all use a colon after "the following institutions". Second of all, the tense is all over the place. Use past, present, future, or something, but keep it consistent. Third, could this be converted into a table, maybe? There's a lot of text here.

Sorted again except for the table, we already something similar linked to the map.- J Logan ^t: 21:54, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Non-fixed seats;

"However some problems have been encountered with this."

"With this" what? Clarify what this is.

"For example; Frontex, the new border agency, has had problems recruiting skilled experts because many do not want to live in the agency's host city, Warsaw, due to its relatively low wages and standard of living."

Use a comma at the beginning, not a semicolon.

Fixed.'- J Logan ^t: 22:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

History;

"These institutions later started to concentrate themselves in the latter city."

Can institutions concentrate themselves?

Well kind of, where their decision making elements have the choice to. But fixed.- J Logan ^t: 22:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Beginning;

Isn't the beginning section just a summary of the below sections? I think probably it could be deleted.

"The ECSC was founded by the Treaty of Paris (1951), however there was no decision on where to base the institutions of the new community."

Use a semicolon, not a comma.

"The seat was contested with Liège, Luxembourg, Strasbourg and Turin all considered."

Use a comma after "contested"

"While Saarbrücken had a status as a "European city", the ongoing dispute over Saarland made it a problematic choice."

What exactly is a "European city"?

Sorted. Regarding the beginning, that is kind of the point. I keep getting notices saying the top section should be an intro of the information in the subsections.'- J Logan ^t: 22:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Provisional agreement;

"On 7 January 1958 it was decided that Brussels, Luxembourg, and Strasbourg would again be provisional venues until a final decision."

Use a comma after an introductory phrase.

"The discretion of the exact meeting place of the new Councils was given to the President, in practice this was to be in the Château of Val Duchesse until the autumn of 1958, at which point it move to 2 Rue Ravenstein in Brussels."

Who is the President? Also, this sentence could be split up. It's not very grammatical right now, though.

"Meanwhile the ECSC Council was still based in Luxembourg, where it held its meetings in the Cercle Municipal on Place d’Armes. Its secretariat moved on numerous occasions but between 1955 and 1967 it was housed in the Verlorenkost district of the city."

Comma needed after "meanwhile" and after "occasions" and after "1967". Also, I don't think you should use "where" in this case,

"On 21 June 1958 the Parliamentary Assembly recommended to the Council that the Assembly should have its seat in the same place where the other organisations are based, although plenary sessions might be held elsewhere."

Use a comma after the introductory phrase.

"The provisional arrangement was reiterated on 8 April 1965 with the Decision on the provisional location of certain institutions and departments of the Communities."

Decision on the provisional location of certain institutions and departments of the Communities seems to be a title for something. For what?

"In 1971 the Council and its secretariat moved into the Charlemagne building, next to the Commission's Berlaymont, but the Council rapidly ran out of space and administrative branch of the secretariat moved to a building at 76 Rue Joseph II and during the 1980s the language divisions moved out into the Nerviens, Frère Orban and Guimard buildings."

This sentence is a run-on. Split it up.

All sorted.- J Logan ^t: 22:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Edinburgh agreement;

"The Decision on the location of the seats of the institutions and of certain bodies and departments of the European Communities outlined that the Parliament shall be based in Strasbourg, where it must hold "twelve periods of monthly plenary sessions, including the budget session". However, additional sessions may be held in Brussels, which is where committees must also meet while the secretariat must remain in Luxembourg."

Put the tense in the past.

"However this agreement dropped the provision from the 1965 decision which gave priority to Luxembourg for any new judicial and financial bodies."

Put a comma after "However" and after "decision".

Sorted.- J Logan ^t: 22:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Central bank;

"Frankfurt had to compete with numerous other cities, including London, Paris, Amsterdam, Luxembourg, Lyon, Barcelona and even Basel (in Switzerland, outside even the European Union)."

Why do you need a reference right after Paris? Also, change the text in the parentheses to "which was outside the European Union".

"The advantages of hosting the Bank were in dispute."

Use "also" here. And who or what were disputing the advantages?

There is a reference after Paris because it is not covered by the reference at the end. Rest is sorted.- J Logan ^t: 22:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Recent history;

"However its staff was still increasing so it continued to rent Frère Orban building to house the Finnish and Swedish language divisions, later it started to rent further buildings in Brussels."

Use a comma after "However" and "increasing", and a semicolon after "divisions".

Sorted. Thanks for the very thorough grilling there! - J Logan ^t: 22:16, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Lead;

"As the location of the major seats have been enshrined in the treaties of the European Union, Parliament has no right to decide its own seat, unlike other national parliaments."

The sentence basically says "the location...have been enshrined." The verb should be singular.

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Non-fixed seats;

"However some problems have been encountered with basing agencies in the eastern states. "

Comma after "however".

"In addition, plans to place the headquarters of Galileo in Prague has met with opposition over security concerns that the city would not be safe enough for such a sensitive agency."

I think you should use past tense.

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

History;

"Two further communities were created in 1957 and again a provisional agreement laid out that the Assembly would meet in Strasbourg, the Courts in Luxembourg but the Commissions and Councils were split between Luxembourg and Brussels."

Put a comma after "Luxembourg". Also, I think maybe it would be best grammatically to say "a provisional agreement laid out that the Assembly would meet in Strasbourg, the Courts would meet in Luxembourg, and the Commissions and Councils would be split between Luxembourg and Brussels."

"As various agreements were reached, activities in Luxembourg gradually shifted to Brussels and the Parliament, although bound to remain in Strasbourg, also started to work in Brussels while the courts remained in Luxembourg"

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

What was "bound to remain in Strasbourg" and what "also started to work in Brussels"?

Read again: "and the Parliament, although bound to remain in Strasbourg, also started to work in Brussels"- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"In 2002 the European Council, having previously rotated between different cities, decided to base itself in Brussels."

Put a comma after the year.

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Beginning;

"The ECSC was founded by the Treaty of Paris (1951); however there was no decision on where to base the institutions of the new community.'

Comma after "however".

"The treaties allowed for the seat(s) to be decided by common accord of governments and at a conference of the ECSC members on 23 July 1952 no permanent seat was decided."

Put a comma after "governments".

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Provisional agreement;

"Strasbourg would retain the Assembly, Luxembourg the Court and both Brussels and Luxembourg would host meetings of the Councils and Commissions (or High Authority).'

Put a comma after "Court'.

But you don't put a comma before an and in a list unless you're using the US system.- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"In practice this was to be in the Château of Val Duchesse until the autumn of 1958, at which point it move to 2 Rue Ravenstein in Brussels."

Put a comma after "practice', and say "it would move..."

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"Meanwhile, the ECSC Council was still based in Luxembourg, it held its meetings in the Cercle Municipal on Place d’Armes.'

Put a conjuction between the two clauses.

I just changed it to holding if that works.- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"Its secretariat moved on numerous occasions, but between 1955 and 1967, it was housed in the Verlorenkost district of the city."

What city was it?

Clarified- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"On 21 June 1958, the Parliamentary Assembly recommended to the Council that the Assembly should have its seat in the same place where the other organisations are based, although plenary sessions might be held elsewhere.'

Keep the tense consistent (past tense).

They are, the latter is their recommendation - not a separate comment.- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"The Assembly also nominated three cities to be the seat of the institutions; Brussels, Strasbourg and Milan. However, no permanent agreement was reached."

Maybe you should put the cities in parentheses and then combine the sentences.

"The Commission would first be based on Avenue de la Joyeuse Entrée/Blijde Inkomstlaan, before moving to the Breydel building on the Schuman roundabout, and then its present location in the Berlaymont building."

Keep the tense consistent (past tense).

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Edinburgh agreement;

"However, additional sessions may be held in Brussels, which is where committees must also meet while the secretariat must remain in Luxembourg."

Keep the tense consistent with the rest of the paragraph.

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Central Bank;

"Frankfurt meanwhile was criticised as symbolising German dominance, although the Deutsche Bundesbank had effectively been running the Communities currencies for the previous years, while Luxembourg has a banking tradition that wasn't so careful."

I think you can eliminate "meanwhile".

"Others, such as the former head of the Bundesbank Karl Otto Pöhl, favoured a small country with a stable country."

"Small country with a stable country?"

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Recent history;

"Furthermore, a building next to Justus Lipsius, Résidence Palace, is currently being renovated as the future seat of the Council and European Council.[2] The Council will occupy the new building from 2013."

Maybe you can combine these sentences.

"In 2007, the new situation became a source of contention with the European Council wanting to sign the Treaty of Lisbon in Lisbon."

Put a comma after "contention".

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"The idea, mirrored with the "travelling circus" of the European Parliament..."

First of all, traveling only has one l. In any case, describing the Parliament as a "traveling circus" would seem to be just a POV.

No, its two (UK spelling, which is used here). Travelling circus is the label applied to the situation with the Parliament, see the sections below, hence the quotation marks.- J Logan ^t: 20:44, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

European Parliament;

"He, along with Green co-leader Monica Frassoni, called for a debate on the issue which was being blocked by President Hans-Gert Pöttering."

Put a comma afert "issue". Also, use past tense.

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"The trips between the cities are seen by the public as "a money-wasting junket hugely enjoyed by journalists, MEPs and researchers" when in fact it is "a money-wasting junket loathed by journalists, MEPs and researchers" according to Gary Titley, MEP (PES)..."

You're a very general statement (the trips are seen by the public) yet only quoting one person. I think you need more references than just one person talking, or delete it.

The fact they are seen that way by the public is in a quotation attributed to him, it is not claimed to be universal fact in the article itself based on one man.- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Strasbourg as a single workplace;

"They also argue that Strasbourg offers more independence for Parliament, away from the other institutions and lobby groups in Brussels."

Who are they? Unclear pronoun reference here.

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"The news media would also no longer be able to use shortcuts such as "Brussels decided..." rather than discuss the detail of the decision markers. Media would also have to be based in Strasbourg and hence might provide better coverage of the Council of Europe."

Say "If the Parliament is located in Strasbourg, then the new media...".

Done with light adjustment- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Brussels as a single workplace;

"Third party organisations are also based in the city, including NGOs, trade unions, employers' organisations and the highest concentration of journalists in the world—also due to the presence of NATO in the city in addition to the large presence of Union institutions."

Put a comma after "employers' organisations. Also, say "and Brussels has the highest concentration..."

Again, not UK grammar, no comma before the final and in the list. Plus, I don't seen why Brussels needs to be repeated again there.- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

"One signatory to the petition was Commission Vice President Margot Wallström; she supported the campaign stating that "something that was once a very positive symbol of the EU reuniting France and Germany has now become a negative symbol—of wasting money, bureaucracy and the insanity of the Brussels institutions"."

Put a comma after "campaign".

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Action;

"All the same, the government has stated that the issue might be addressed if France was offered something of equal value."

All the same is rather informal. Use some other introduction.

Also, I think that Actions and Opinions can probably be combined.

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Alternative uses for buildings;

"The year before, the proposed European Institute of Technology had been touted as a university to take over the building."

Say "the university".

"The Institute could also be merged with European Research Council and be based there."

That seems like a suggestion. Maybe, "It has been proposed that the Institude be merged..."?

Done- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Noble Story (talk) 03:06, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

Thanks again, I hope everything is in order now.- J Logan ^t: 20:57, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

Final GA Review

Review of Location of European Union institutions

1. Is it reasonably well written?

   A. Prose quality:

   B. MoS compliance:

2. Is it factually accurate and verifiable?

   A. References to sources:

   B. Citation of reliable sources where necessary:

   C. No original research:

3. Is it broad in its coverage?

   A. Major aspects:

   B. Focused:

4. Is it neutral?

   Fair representation without bias:

5. Is it stable?

   No edit wars, etc:

6. Does it contain images to illustrate the topic?

   A. Images are copyright tagged, and non-free images have fair use rationales:

   B. Images are provided where possible and appropriate, with suitable captions:

7. Overall:

   Pass or Fail:

After the necessary cleanup, this article is now a GA. Noble Story (talk) 07:59, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Thank you for your time and thorough attention, it is much appreciated.- J Logan ^t: 16:55, 14 April 2008 (UTC)