Some British politicians have a skewed idea of how the top EU officials come to power - here is how it happens

There is a persisting belief among people in Britain that European Union officials are unelected.

It is hard to pinpoint exactly where that idea comes from but the different rules that apply to different European bodies are probably partly to blame for the confusion.

UKIP leader and MEP Nigel Farage regularly accuses EU officials of being "unelected" while on Tuesday Conservative minister Priti Patel described the EU as "having undemocratic institutions."

Brits are also the people in the EU who know the least about the 28-nation bloc, so a lack of interest in the subject is probably another reason.

Yet, with the June 23 deadline looming for the UK to vote on whether or not it wants to remain in the European Union, British people are starting to show more interest in how the EU works and how the much-criticised politicians in Brussels are elected.

President of the European Council

The European Council comprises the heads of state of the 28 nations of the European Union, the President of the European Council, the President of the European Commission, and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs & Security Policy.

Poland's Donald Tusk is the current President of the European Council, and was elected by the heads of the 28 member states of the European Union. The council decides on the EU's overall direction and priorities, but does not pass laws.

The President of the European Commission

Europe's political parties put forward a candidate for the presidency of the European Commission. The European Council then votes on a nominee for the post of president - the Lisbon Treaty stipulates that the Council must take into account the European elections - who becomes the Commission's new president after obtaining approval in the new Parliament.

The most recent campaign for the presidency in 2014 saw Luxembourg's Jean-Claude Juncker come to power after his European People's Party (EPP) won a majority of votes in the European elections. Those running against him were Martin Schulz for the Socialists and Democrats, Guy Verhofstadt for ALDE, Ska Keller for the Greens, and Alexis Tsipras for the European Left. The campaign involves debates and televised appearances.

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs)

There are 751 members in the European Parliament, 73 of them represent the United Kingdom. MEPs are elected every five years, when the general public of each member state votes on who they want to represent them in Europe. Once elected, MEPs from across the continent form political groups with MEPs who have similar ideologies, regardless of their nationalities.

President of the European Parliament

Martin Schulz, a German MEP, was re-elected as the President of the European Parliament in 2014 for a second two-and-a-half-year term, the first time a president of the European Parliament has ever been re-elected.

MEPs vote for a president in the beginning and the middle of each parliamentary term. They elect a president, 14 vice-presidents, and five quaestors who all form the Parliament's bureau.