As the European Parliament's 10th legislative term enters its second year, the institution's legislative machinery is in a period of strategic recalibration. Analysis of the current legislative pipeline from the European Parliament's open data reveals a parliamentary body that is methodically building its committee structures and establishing policy priorities before launching major legislative initiatives. This report examines the state of legislative propositions, committee readiness, and the political dynamics shaping the Parliament's legislative agenda for 2026.
Recent Legislative Proposals
Legislative Activity Assessment: 10th Parliamentary Term
The current legislative cycle shows a measured approach to new proposals. Committees are in the process of completing their organizational phase and are beginning to receive referrals from the European Commission. The ENVI Committee (Environment, Public Health and Food Safety) reports five active legislative files currently under consideration, with 15 documents produced and 10 meetings held during the current assessment period. Two committee reports have been adopted, and 40 amendments have been processed with an adoption rate of approximately 51 percent.
Cross-Committee Legislative Coordination
Parliamentary committees including ITRE (Industry, Research and Energy), ECON (Economic and Monetary Affairs), LIBE (Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs), and IMCO (Internal Market and Consumer Protection) are each managing active legislative portfolios. Committee productivity scores indicate moderate engagement levels across the Parliament, with legislative output quality scores averaging above 60 percent. The Parliament's cross-committee coordination on overlapping policy files — particularly in digital policy, green transition, and economic governance — will be critical for legislative efficiency in the coming months.
Ordinary Legislative Procedure (COD) Pipeline
Under the Ordinary Legislative Procedure (COD), the most common route for EU legislation, proposals progress through Commission initiation, committee referral, committee vote, plenary reading, and potentially trilogue negotiations with the Council. Current pipeline monitoring indicates the Parliament is in a transitional phase, with many files at early procedural stages. The budget procedure (BUD) and consultation procedure (CNS) tracks are also active, though the bulk of anticipated legislative activity will flow through the COD procedure as new Commission proposals are formally transmitted.
Legislative Pipeline Overview
The legislative pipeline currently reflects the early-term pattern typical of new parliamentary mandates. With the 10th term having commenced following the 2024 European elections, committees have spent the initial period establishing rapporteurships, defining work programmes, and conducting exploratory hearings. This preparatory phase is expected to yield a significant increase in legislative activity as the Commission's work programme for 2025-2026 generates new proposals requiring parliamentary scrutiny.
Key indicators from parliamentary data show committee workload intensity at manageable levels, with an average of five active legislative files per committee. The amendment processing rate — a key measure of legislative engagement — indicates that committees are actively shaping the texts they receive, with success rates around 51 percent for tabled amendments. This suggests robust deliberative processes rather than rubber-stamping of Commission proposals.
Impact Assessment
The current state of legislative propositions in the European Parliament reveals a body in its strategic preparation phase. While the pipeline shows limited throughput at present, this is consistent with the cyclical pattern of EU legislative activity where early-term periods focus on institutional setup and mid-term periods see legislative output peak.
Political group dynamics will play a decisive role in determining the pace and direction of legislative output. The five major political groups — EPP, S&D, Renew Europe, Greens/EFA, and ECR — demonstrate similar levels of voting discipline and parliamentary engagement, with attendance rates averaging approximately 88 percent. This high baseline participation suggests that when major legislative files reach the plenary, they will benefit from broad parliamentary engagement.
For stakeholders monitoring the EU's legislative trajectory, several policy domains warrant close attention: environmental regulation and the green transition, digital governance including artificial intelligence regulation, sustainable finance frameworks, and internal market harmonization. These areas align with both the Commission's stated priorities and the committee structures where the most active legislative work is currently concentrated.
The Parliament's effectiveness metrics indicate room for improvement in legislative productivity, with overall effectiveness scores in the moderate range. However, quality scores for adopted reports remain above average, suggesting that the deliberative process is producing substantive legislative outcomes even if the volume of output remains below full-term averages. Citizens and stakeholders should anticipate a marked acceleration in legislative activity during the second half of 2026 as the term's legislative programme gains momentum.
Why It Matters
Understanding the state of legislative propositions is essential for anyone affected by EU law — from businesses navigating regulatory compliance to civil society organizations advocating for policy change. The European Parliament's current preparatory phase offers a window of opportunity for stakeholders to engage with the legislative process before major proposals reach advanced stages where amendments become harder to introduce.
The transition from the 9th to the 10th parliamentary term has brought new committee compositions, new political priorities, and new inter-institutional dynamics with the European Commission and Council. Monitoring how propositions move through the pipeline provides early warning signals about the direction of EU policy in areas such as climate action, digital markets, defence, and economic governance.