From the Margins of European Integration to the Guardians of the Treaties? The Role of National Parliaments in the EU

2012 ◽  
pp. 175-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tapio Raunio
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
The Eu

Euroscepticism and the Future of European Integration

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine E. De Vries
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Public Support ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
National Politics ◽  
Public Preferences ◽  
Novel Theory ◽  
The Eu

The European Union (EU) is facing one of the rockiest periods in its existence. At no time in its history has it looked so economically fragile, so insecure about how to protect its borders, so divided over how to tackle the crisis of legitimacy facing its institutions, and so under assault by Eurosceptic parties. The unprecedented levels of integration in recent decades have led to increased public contestation, yet at the same the EU is more reliant on public support for its continued legitimacy than ever before. This book examines the role of public opinion in the European integration process. It develops a novel theory of public opinion that stresses the deep interconnectedness between people’s views about European and national politics. It suggests that public opinion cannot simply be characterized as either Eurosceptic or not, but rather that it consists of different types. This is important because these types coincide with fundamentally different views about the way the EU should be reformed and which policy priorities should be pursued. These types also have very different consequences for behaviour in elections and referendums. Euroscepticism is such a diverse phenomenon because the Eurozone crisis has exacerbated the structural imbalances within the EU. As the economic and political fates of member states have diverged, people’s experiences with and evaluations of the EU and national political systems have also grown further apart. The heterogeneity in public preferences that this book has uncovered makes a one-size-fits-all approach to addressing Euroscepticism unlikely to be successful.

Party Politics Triumph over Substantive Scrutiny and Principled Policy: Examining Czech MPs’ Voting Behaviour in Regard to EU Affairs

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-125
Author(s):  
Martin Kuta
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Party System ◽  
Party Politics ◽  
Party Competition ◽  
Voting Behaviour ◽  
The European Union ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
European Dimension ◽  
The Eu

The paper deals with the European dimension of the competition and contention between Czech political parties and argues that domestic party interests undermine the formal oversight of EU politics by the Czech national parliament. Within the current institutional arrangements, national political parties assume stances – which are expressed through voting – towards the European Union (and European integration as such) as they act in the arena of national parliaments that are supposed to make the EU more accountable in its activities. Based on an analysis of roll-calls, the paper focuses on the ways the political parties assume their stances towards the EU and how the parties check this act by voting on EU affairs. The paper examines factors that should shape parties’ behaviour (programmes, positions in the party system, and public importance of EU/European integration issues). It also focuses on party expertise in EU/European issues and asserts that EU/European integration issues are of greater importance in extra-parliamentary party competition than inside the parliament, suggesting a democratic disconnect between voters and parliamentary behaviour. The study's empirical analysis of the voting behaviour of Czech MPs also shows that the parliamentary scrutiny introduced by the Lisbon Treaty is undermined by party interests within the system.

scholarly journals The European Administration as a Facilitator of the European Integration Process: Organizational and Ethical Implications from the Proliferation of European Union Agencies

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (15) ◽  
pp. 78-94
Author(s):  
Giorgio Oikonomou
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Sharp Increase ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Eu Enlargement ◽  
Policy Area ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
European Court ◽  
Integration Project ◽  
The Eu

The purpose of this study is to explore the evolution of EU administration by focusing and critically examining the role of EU agencies in advancing the European integration project. The research question deals with identifying the factors that account for the formulation of EU agencies and the reasons behind their sharp increase in numbers since the 2000s. The tasks are to analyse critical EU agencies’ parameters such as their typology, the policy area they deal with, origin of their resources and funding, and their output. In addition, transparency and accountability issues accompanying the proliferation of EU agencies are also considered. Emphasis is placed on the evolution of the European administration as expressed by the establishment of various types of agencies since 1975 thereafter. Methodologically, the research utilizes quantitative data based on annual EU budgets as well as official reports and policy papers issued by main EU institutions (European Commission, European Parliament, European Court of Auditors) and agencies, analyzing them from a historical perspective. As a result, it is argued that the proliferation of EU agencies has advanced the process of European integration, namely the EU enlargement and expansion in new policy areas following successive reforms of the Treaties. However, concerns regarding accountability and transparency issues remain in place.

scholarly journals Conceptualizing the Parliamentarization and Politicization of European Policies

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 227-236 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niels Gheyle
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
Complete Understanding ◽  
Related Literature ◽  
The Past ◽  
Theoretical Assumptions ◽  
European Policies ◽  
Eu Studies ◽  
The Eu

In the past 20 years, two related literature strands have gradually moved centre stage of the attention of EU Studies scholars. The first is preoccupied with the ‘politicization of European integration’, a multi-faceted concept that aims to tie together a multitude of political and societal manifestations underlying an increasing controversiality of the EU. A second concerns the parliamentarization of the EU, referring to the changing (institutional) role and EU-related activities national parliaments engage in. The key point of this contribution is simple, but often overlooked: We can and should be seeing parliamentarization as a necessary, yet insufficient, component of a wider process of politicization. Doing so goes beyond the often ad hoc or pars pro toto theoretical assumptions in both literature strands, sheds new light on the normative consequences attached to these phenomena, and furthers a more complete understanding of how a ‘comprehensive’ politicization of European policies develops.

5. Governance Approaches

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Guy Peters ◽  
Jon Pierre
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Multilevel Governance ◽  
Social Structures ◽  
Governance Capacity ◽  
Policy Issues ◽  
Eu Governance ◽  
European Governance ◽  
The Creation ◽  
The Eu

This chapter examines the European Union’s capacity to govern effectively. It argues that the creation of governance capacity for the institutions within the EU is the goal of much of the process of integration. While European integration is to some extent an end in itself, it may also be the means for attaining the capacity to govern a large territory with complex economic and social structures. The chapter first explains what governance is before discussing various criticisms levelled against it and how governance works in Europe. It then outlines a number of propositions about European governance, focusing on multilevel governance, the role of governance in output legitimization, and the claim that European governance remains undemocratic, is highly segmented, and is transforming. The chapter proceeds by looking at changes in European governance styles and policy issues, along with their implications for European integration. Finally, it explores the consequences of enlargement for EU governance.

10. EU Legislation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ed Beale ◽  
Libby Kurien ◽  
Eve Samson
Keyword(s):  
Direct Access ◽  
Legislative Process ◽  
House Of Commons ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
Eu Legislation ◽  
House Of Lords ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

This chapter examines the ways in which the UK Parliament formally constrains the government and engages with European Union (EU) institutions. The House of Lords and the House of Commons both have processes to ensure that legislation proposed at the EU level has been properly reviewed before it takes effect in UK law. The ‘scrutiny reserve’, which stipulates that ministers should not agree to proposals under scrutiny, is used to elicit information about the government's negotiating position. Parliament also has a role in examining EU legislation and providing direct access to European institutions. The chapter first provides an overview of the EU legislative process, focusing on three principal EU institutions: member states, the European Parliament (EP), and the European Commission. It also considers the formal role of national parliaments in the EU legislative process, the UK Parliament's scrutiny of the EU legislation and its effectiveness, and parliamentary scrutiny after Brexit.

scholarly journals The Swedish Riksdag as Scrutiniser of the Principle of Subsidiarity

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 294-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Jonsson Cornell
Keyword(s):  
Early Warning ◽  
Selection Mechanism ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
European Public ◽  
Early Warning Mechanism ◽  
Principle Of Proportionality ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Proportionality Principle ◽  
The Eu

Early Warning Mechanism – Principle of Subsidiarity – Lisbon Treaty – Protocol No. 2 on Proportionality and Subsidiarity – A theoretical definition of the Principle of Subsidiarity – The scope of the Principle of Subsidiarity – Scrutiny of the respect for the principle of subsidiarity – The role of national parliaments in the EU legislative procedure – The Swedish Riksdag – national constitutional law – decentralised scrutiny – no selection mechanism – sectoral committees – reasoned opinions – the role of the Plenary – the Committee on the Constitution – method for scrutiny – the principle of proportionality – principle of conferral – legality – European Public Prosecutor’s Office – broad or narrow scrutiny – impact of the Early Warning Mechanism

scholarly journals The evolving role of EU Regional Policy: Implications for Australia?

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce Wilson
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Regional Policy ◽  
External Action ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
The Past ◽  
Financial Framework ◽  
Social Recovery ◽  
Global Influence ◽  
The Eu

In 2013, ANZJES published an article on the significance of European Union (EU) Regional Policy in the process of European integration and its implications for Asia. Over the past decade, EU Regional Policy has evolved considerably. It is still centred on facilitating European integration, but also assumes a much more central role in focusing attention on harnessing resources, intellectual and economic, in order to address major societal missions. Regional Policy, or Cohesion, funds constitute approximately one third of the total European Commission budget and are, therefore, not only an important resource for integration, but also for addressing the wider priorities around the European Green Deal, and indeed, the planet. This is evident in the proposed Multiannual Financial Framework agreed by the European Council for 2021-27, in which Cohesion funding is seen to be a crucial resource for economic and social recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. This article reviews the evolution of this thinking in the last decade and considers its growing international significance. Whilst not necessarily imagined in 2010, when the EU established its European External Action Service (EEAS), a focus on regions and their innovation systems has enabled the EU to strengthen its global influence significantly.

scholarly journals The political system of European Union after European Parliament Election of 2019

2019 ◽  
pp. 15-30
Author(s):  
Andrii Martynov
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Integration ◽  
Political System ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
The Political ◽  
The European Union ◽  
National Parliaments ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The Eu

The politics of the European Union are different from other organizations and states due to the unique nature of the EU. The common institutions mix the intergovernmental and supranational aspects of the EU. The EU treaties declare the EU to be based on representative democracy and direct elections take place to the European Parliament. The Parliament, together with the European Council, works for the legislative arm of the EU. The Council is composed of national governments thus representing the intergovernmental nature of the European Union. The central theme of this research is the influence of the European Union Political system the Results of May 2019 European Parliament Election. The EU supranational legislature plays an important role as a producer of legal norms in the process of European integration and parliamentary scrutiny of the activities of the EU executive. The European Parliament, as a representative institution of the European Union, helps to overcome the stereotypical notions of a “Brussels bureaucracy” that limits the sovereignty of EU member states. The European Parliament is a political field of interaction between European optimists and European skeptics. The new composition of the European Parliament presents political forces focused on a different vision of the strategy and tactics of the European integration process. European federalists in the “European People’s Party” and “European Socialists and Democrats” consider the strategic prospect of creating a confederate “United States of Europe”. The Brexit withdrawal from the EU could help the federalists win over European skeptics. Critics of the supranational project of European integration do not have a majority in the new composition of the European Parliament. But they are widely represented in many national parliaments of EU Member States. The conflicting interaction between European liberals and far-right populists is the political backdrop for much debate in the European Parliament. The result of this process is the medium term development vector of the European Union.

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