The European Union: A Polity of States and Peoples

Contents......Page 8
Preface......Page 14
Abbreviations......Page 16
Introduction......Page 20
Three Pillars under One Roof......Page 26
a) The first pillar......Page 31
b) The second and third pillars......Page 41
c) The Union as a whole......Page 44
d) The Court of Justice......Page 46
Differences in Levels of Integration: A Europe “à la Carte”?......Page 47
II. A EUROPEAN “BODY POLITIC” AND IDENITY......Page 53
The European Union: A Political Entity or a State?......Page 55
a) The Union is not a state......Page 56
b) The Union: A “body politic” in search of democracy......Page 58
c) “Nation-state”: A concept inadequate to define the Union’s polity......Page 59
European Public Space and Public Opinion......Page 60
a) Is there a European public space?......Page 62
b) European identity in historical perspective......Page 64
c) European identity now and in the future......Page 67
European Union Values and Objectives......Page 71
Typically European Values and Objectives?......Page 75
IV. CONCLUSIONS......Page 76
2 Accountable Government......Page 81
I. ACCOUNTABILITY OF EXECUTIVE GOVERNMENT......Page 83
Comparing Executive Accountability Regimes......Page 84
Learning Accountability from Scandals......Page 88
a) Open government in Sweden—at the expense of responsible journalism?......Page 89
b) Criminal prosecution in France—playing it rough......Page 91
c) Tribunals of Inquiry in the U.K.—playing it softly......Page 92
d) Ministerial responsibility in Germany—in accordance with the rules of the Basic Law......Page 94
e) Ministerial accountability for civil servants—Primacy of politics in the Netherlands and Belgium......Page 96
II. POLITICAL ACCOUNTABILITY OF EU COMMISSIONERS......Page 100
The Content of Accountability and Political Responsibility......Page 101
a) The principle of accountability and political responsibility in Community law......Page 102
b) Commissioners’ accountability and political responsibility for civil servants......Page 105
c) Learning from the Member States......Page 107
The Special Case of Administrative Agencies......Page 110
a) Regulatory agencies......Page 111
b) Executive or implementing agencies......Page 114
III. CONCLUSIONS......Page 117
3 The Rule of Law......Page 123
I. RULE OF LAW, RECHTSSTAAT, AND JUDICIAL REVIEW......Page 124
a) Judicial review by Community courts......Page 129
b) Judicial review by national courts in cooperation with Community courts......Page 132
The Community Governed by the Rule of Law, but Not (Yet) the Whole Union......Page 137
III. RESPECT FOR BASIC RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS......Page 140
Protection of Basic Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in the European Union......Page 142
Protection of Basic Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in the United States......Page 146
Judicial Scrutiny in Concrete Cases......Page 150
IV. PROVIDING LEGAL CERTAINTY......Page 156
a) The principles of conferral, subsidiarity, and proportionality......Page 157
b) Community jurisdiction regarding interstate trade, in comparison with the United States interstate commerce clause......Page 160
c) Legal basis, legal certainty, and judicial activism......Page 168
High-Quality Legislation......Page 170
V. CONCLUSIONS......Page 172
4 Good Governance......Page 177
Encouraging Ethical Behavior......Page 180
Ensuring Efficiency and Effectiveness......Page 183
a) “Input” and “output” legitimacy of the budgetary and accounting process......Page 184
b) New modes of governance......Page 186
Equal Protection in the European Union and the United States......Page 190
Affirmative Action Correcting Race and Gender Discrimination......Page 195
III. SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE WELFARE STATE......Page 202
A Citizenship of Lonely Rights Bearers?......Page 203
Different Conceptions of the Welfare State......Page 206
a) Health care in the United States and the European Union......Page 209
b) The impact of EU internal market freedoms on Member State health care systems......Page 212
a) Community supportive action in the sphere of social policy: Social exclusion as an example......Page 215
b) From market citizenship to political and social citizenship......Page 219
c) From citizen to resident rights......Page 225
IV. CONCLUSIONS......Page 227
Republicanism Correcting Individualism......Page 232
Five Conceptions of Responsibility in Complex Organizations......Page 234
a) Whistle-blowing (and civil disobedience) in the European Union and in the United States......Page 236
b) Dealing with whistle-blowing properly......Page 240
Conflicting Views on How Much Free Access......Page 244
Freedom of Information in the United States......Page 247
The Importance of Civil and Civic Society......Page 249
Citizen Access to the Political Process......Page 253
a) Elections and political parties in the EU......Page 254
b) Citizen access through other means......Page 255
A Vibrant Public Opinion on European Integration......Page 257
IV. FREEDOM OF THE PRESS: A MARKETPLACE FOR IDEAS......Page 261
a) Freedom of the press under the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR)......Page 262
b) Freedom of the press in the United States......Page 266
c) Comparing ECtHR case law with case law of the U.S. Supreme Court......Page 269
V. CONCLUSIONS......Page 272
6 Making a Constitution for Europe......Page 275
a) The proceedings of the Convention......Page 276
b) Name and contents of the draft Constitution......Page 278
c) Recent developments......Page 280
The Union on a Continuum between Intergovernmentalism and Supranationalism......Page 282
Distribution of Power in the Draft Constitution......Page 286
a) Principles governing the exercise of competences......Page 287
b) Categories of competences and policies......Page 290
c) No major changes but some unanswered questions......Page 292
Legal Instruments, Legislative Procedures, and Voting Requirements......Page 295
a) Legal instruments defined......Page 296
b) Legislative procedures......Page 299
c) Qualified majority voting......Page 300
d) Conclusion......Page 304
The Union’s Single Institutional Framework......Page 305
a) Substantive functions and balance of power......Page 306
b) Democratic legitimacy and the rule of law......Page 307
Some Controversial Solutions......Page 311
a) A dual presidency......Page 313
b) The composition of the Council of Ministers......Page 316
c) The Union’s foreign minister......Page 317
IV. ISSUES STILL IN NEED OF A SATISFACTORY SOLUTION......Page 319
The Union’s Finances......Page 320
The Procedure for Amending the Constitutional Treaty......Page 323
V. CONCLUSIONS......Page 324
I. FORMS OF GOVERNMENT: A COMPARATIVE OVERVIEW......Page 328
The British Parliamentary and American Presidential Systems......Page 329
The French and German Variants of Presidential and Parliamentary Systems......Page 334
II. PURE AND MIXED FORMS OF PRESIDENTIAL AND PARLIAMENTARY GOVERNMENT: AN ASSESSMENT......Page 337
Presidentialism versus Parliamentarism......Page 338
a) “The Failure of Presidential Democracy,”......Page 339
b) The transformation of “pure” parliamentarism into a mixed form of government......Page 343
Majoritarian versus Consensus Democracies; Plurality versus Proportional Electoral Systems......Page 345
a) Majoritarian versus consensus democracies......Page 346
b) Plurality versus proportional electoral systems......Page 349
The Significance of Bicameralism......Page 351
a) Bicameralism from a European Union perspective......Page 352
b) Bicameralism in a federal state: Germany......Page 353
The Importance of Political Parties......Page 356
a) The role of political parties in the Member States......Page 357
b) Political parties in the European Union......Page 360
a) Neither a pure nor a semi-presidential system......Page 363
b) A consensus democracy with a strong executive......Page 365
c) The Union’s democratic deficit......Page 367
Improving the Commission’s Accountability......Page 368
Adapting the Role of Euro-Parties......Page 371
a) Involving citizens......Page 372
b) Strengthening party identities......Page 373
c) Changing the focus of Euro-parties......Page 375
d) Taking the risk of enhanced democratic legitimacy......Page 377
Constructing Accountability in the Council of Ministers?......Page 379
a) The Council: One of two parliamentary houses (or chambers)?......Page 380
b) Striking balances in the common interest......Page 382
c) Securing accountability......Page 383
Which Future for the European Council?......Page 385
V. CONCLUSIONS......Page 387
Epilogue......Page 394
a) Composition of the Commission and appointment of its president......Page 395
b) Redefining qualified majority voting, and some other changes......Page 398
The Search for a New President of the Commission and the Appointment of a New Commission......Page 400
The Union in the Wider World......Page 404
C......Page 408
E......Page 410
I......Page 412
N......Page 413
P......Page 414
U......Page 415
W......Page 416