The European Parliament is the EU’s elected parliamentary body and participates in the adoption of Union legislation, with its influence depending on the procedure applicable to a particular measure. Its authority is narrower in the field of monetary policy, where decisions relating to the European System of Central Banks are not subject to parliamentary approval. The Parliament nevertheless forms part of the ECB’s accountability framework established by the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. The ECB reports periodically to Parliament, whose members may debate monetary policy and question representatives of the central bank in hearings held by the responsible committees.
Source: European Central Bank (ECB) (source). This glossary entry is an independently worded adaptation of the cited information.