This revised edition of The European Council by Wessels and Schramm offers comprehensive coverage of the institution's development since the mid-1970s. The text offers a nuanced assessment of the European Council's impact on EU governance and institutional balance whilst providing readers with a theoretical framework and conceptual models for understanding the significance of the European Council.

New features in this edition include expanded discussions on the three key policy areas addressed in the text: economic governance, external action, and the realm of freedom, security, and justice. These updates encompass crucial developments such as the euro crisis, the migration crisis, and Brexit. Moreover, the text provides current up-to-date coverage of recent EU priorities, including responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, climate policies, the conflict in Ukraine, and the prospects of EU enlargement.

As a highly accessible and comprehensive text, this updated edition is key for 2nd and 3rd year undergraduate students studying Politics and International Relations as well as postgraduate students taking European Studies courses.

Wolfgang Wessels is Jean Monnet Professor of Political Science, University of Cologne, Germany.

Lucas Schramm is Assistant Professor at the Geschwister Scholl Institute, the Department for Political Science at LMU Munich, Germany.