ABSTRACT
The Council, which formerly was the Council of Ministers, is made up of one representative from each of the 15 Member States, usually the foreign minister, by the appropriate minister for the business to be discussed. For example, when agriculture is being dealt with, Britain would be represented by the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The Council is the principal decision making body and can conclude agreements on behalf of the Union. The presidency is rotated between each Member State on a six monthly basis. Decisions are reached in one of three ways: by simple majority; by qualified majority; or unanimously. Larger States have proportionately more votes.
