An international parliament or supranational legislature is a branch of an
intergovernmental organization
Globalization is social change associated with increased connectivity among societies and their elements and the explosive evolution of transportation and telecommunication technologies to facilitate international cultural and economic exchan ...
that is similar to a parliament, thus establishing a hybrid system of
intergovernmentalism
In international relations, intergovernmentalism treats states (and national governments in particular) as the primary actors in the integration process. Intergovernmentalist approaches claim to be able to explain both periods of radical change i ...
and
supranationalism. These could be based on a predecessor
inter-parliamentary institution or a newly established organization-level legislature.
International parliaments generally do not have
legislative power
A legislature is an deliberative assembly, assembly with the authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country or city. They are often contrasted with the Executive (government), executive and Judiciary, ...
s; an exception is the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adop ...
, which has legislative powers in the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been ...
.
Such branches of intergovernmental organizations are typically established in order to provide for representation of
citizen
Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection".
Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...
s, rather than
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government ...
s who are represented in other bodies within the organization. The assembly can be composed of members of the national legislatures (whose members are
directly elected in
most cases) or of its own
directly elected members, further strengthening the
supranationalism of the organization.
List of international parliaments
{{Incomplete list, date=February 2011
See also
*
Parliamentary assembly
*
Inter-Parliamentary Union
The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU; french: Union Interparlementaire, UIP) is an international organization of national parliaments. Its primary purpose is to promote democratic governance, accountability, and cooperation among its members; other ...
*
International Parliament for Safety and Peace
*
List of legislatures by country
Supranational legislatures