This volume addresses the future of political control and accountability in a European and comparative perspective. It is based on the contributions to an international conference hosted by the Montesquieu Institute (Centre of European Parliamentary History and Constitutional Development) at Maastricht in March 2008. The conference concluded a larger research project that was devoted to identifying features of domestic constitutional law that could help develop a system of effective accountability for the European Union. This volume contains contributions from Thomas Christiansen, Paul Craig, Deirdre Curtin, Bruno de Witte, Philipp Kiiver, Veith Mehde, Dawn Oliver, Jit Peters, Michael Shackleton, Jan Jacob van Dijk, Walter van Gerven, Luc Verhey and Anchrit Wille.
This volume contains contributions from Thomas Christiansen, Paul Craig, Deirdre Curtin, Bruno de Witte, Philipp Kiiver, Veith Mehde, Dawn Oliver, Jit Peters, Michael Shackleton, Jan Jacob van Dijk, Walter van Gerven, Luc Verhey and Anchrit Wille.
Authors
Chapter 1 Introduction
Luc Verhey, Philipp Kiiver, Sandor Loeffen
1 Introduction
2 Background: A ‘Ius Commune’ of Political Accountability
3 Understanding Accountability: A Comparative Approach
4 The Research Framework
5 Reflecting on Political Accountability and European Integration
Chapter 2 Executive Accountability: A Key Concept Dawn Oliver
1 Accountability in Context: Good Governance
2 The Executive
3 The Concept of Accountability
4 Accountability to Elected Politicians
5 Accountability to the Public or Sections of the Public
6 Accountability to Courts and Tribunals
7 Accountability to Auditors, Inspectors and Administrative Bodies
8 The Accountability of Accountees
9 Webs of Accountability
10 Some Conclusions
Chapter 3 The Role of National Parliaments, Checks and Balances between the EU and the Member States
Jit Peters
1 Introduction
2 The Ever-expanding Competences of the Union
3 Yellow and Orange Cards
4 The Constitutional Position of National Parliaments
5 Do National Parliaments Exist?
6 Subsidiarity as Political Principle
7 Other Countervailing Powers?
8 Parliamentary Procedure on Subsidiarity in The Netherlands
9 Strengthening National Parliaments
10 Conclusions
Chapter 4 Accountability to National Parliaments in the European Union
Philipp Kiiver
1 Democracy versus Checks and Balances
2 An Inter-Disciplinary Research Agenda
Chapter 5 Political Accountability: A Useful Concept in EU Inter-Institutional Relations?
Luc Verhey
1 Introduction
2 Political Accountability: Two Basic Models
3 The ‘Parliament-Oriented’ Model
4 The ‘Government-Oriented’ Model of Political Accountability
5 General Principles of Accountability
5.1 Why Could General Principles be Useful?
5.2 A Clear Definition of Political Accountability
5.3 Evading Accountability
5.4 Collective and Individual Accountability
5.5 A Clear Chain of Command
5.6 Reducing Fragmentation of the Executive
5.7 Focusing on the Quality of the Account
6 Concluding Remarks
Chapter 6 Political Accountability in Europe
Veith Mehde
Chapter 7 The European Commission and Parliamentary Oversight
Michael Shackleton
Chapter 8 National Parliaments and Political Accountability in Europe
Jan Jacob van Dijk
Chapter 9 Politicians, Bureaucrats and the Reinvention of the European Commission; From Technical to “Good Governance”
Anchrit Wille
1 Introduction
2 The Commission: Technocratic Politicians and Politicized Bureaucrats
3 Reforming the European Commission
4 The College of Commissioners: the Evolution to a Political Executive
5 Administrative Reforms: Depoliticizing to Control
6 Conclusion
Chapter 10 The European Commission in the Early 21st Century; Some Reflections on Politicians, Bureaucrats and the Reinvention of the European Commission by Anchrit Wille
Thomas Christiansen
Chapter 11 Some Remarks Concerning Commissioners; Collective Responsibility in Context, Temporary Committees of Inquiry, Political Independence and Neutrality
Walter van Gerven
Chapter 12 The Council of Ministers: The Missing Link?
Deirdre Curtin
1 Introduction
2 The Link with the National Political Systems: Political Representation
3 The Council of Ministers as Legislature
4 Concluding Remarks
Chapter 13 Executive Accountability under the European Constitution and the Lisbon Treaty; Nihil Novi sub Sole?
Bruno de Witte
1 Introduction: The Absence of a Grand Institutional Reform
2 New Accountability Problems for EU Foreign Relations
3 The New but Incomplete Typology of Executive Acts
4 Greater Visibility of EU Executive Power?
Chapter 14 Executive Accountability and the Contestability of the Executive Domain
Paul Craig
1 The UK
(a) The Delineation and Contestability of Executive Functions
(b) The Identification of the Executive
(c) Accountability for the Exercise of Executive Power
2 The EU
(a) The Delineation and Contestability of Executive Functions
(b) The Identification of the Executive
(c) Accountability for the Exercise of Executive Power