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Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

The EU's competences: The 'vertical' perspective on the multilevel system - 0 views

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    From the outset, European integration was about the transfer of powers from the national to the European level, which evolved as explicit bargaining among governments or as an incremental drift. This process was reframed with the competence issue entering the agenda of constitutional policy. It now concerns the shape of the European multilevel polity as a whole, in particular the way in which powers are allocated, delimited and linked between the different levels. This Living Review article summarises research on the relations between the EU and the national and sub-national levels of the member states, in particular on the evolution and division of competences in a multilevel political system. It provides an overview on normative reasonings on an appropriate allocation of competences, empirical theories explaining effective structures of powers and empirical research. The article is structured as follows: First, normative theories of a European federation are discussed. Section 2 deals with legal and political concepts of federalism and presents approaches of the economic theory of federalism in the context of the European polity. These normative considerations conclude with a discussion of the subsidiarity principle and the constitutional allocation of competences in the European Treaties. Section 3 covers the empirical issue of how to explain the actual allocation of competences (scope and type) between levels. Integration theories are presented here in so far as they explain the transfer of competence from the national to the European level or the limits of this centralistic dynamics. Normative and empirical theories indeed provide some general guidelines for evaluation and explanations of the evolution of competences in the EU, but they both contradict the assumption of a separation of power. The article therefore concludes that politics and policy-making in the EU have to be regarded as multilevel governance (Section 4). The main theoretical approaches and r
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

06.11.08: Western Balkans still way off EU entry criteria - 0 views

  • EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn made clear yesterday (5 November) that Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Kosovo, are still a long way away from getting clear persprectives of EU accession.
  • In spite of the EU executive's insistence that its assessments are based on objective criteria, the countries in the region are increasingly aware that enlargement is no longer fashionable in the EU, especially in the context of the current financial crisis and uncertainty following the rejection of the Lisbon Treaty by Ireland.  European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering said on Tuesday that "perhaps with the exception of Croatia," no enlargement was possible without the Lisbon Treaty. This statement contradicts strong views, expressed repeatedly by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, that no enlargement whatsoever was possible before the Lisbon Treaty comes into force (EurActiv 20/06/08). In fact, the Nice Treaty provides institutional arrangements for only 27 member states, but some countries believe that it may be possible to find a compromise to accommodate Croatia. 
  • Links European Union European Commission: Enlargement strategy and main challenges 2008-2009 European Commission: Key findings of the progress reports on the candidate countries: Croatia, Turkey and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: European Commission: Key findings of the progress reports on Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Kosovo European Commission: 2009 the year of the Western Balkans European Commission: Croatia 2008 Progress report European Commission: The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 2008 Progress report European Commission: Albania 2008 Progress report European Commission: Bosnia and Herzegovina 2008 Progress report European Commission: Montenegro 2008 Progress report European Commission: Serbia 2008 Progress report European Commission: Kosovo (under UNSR 1244/99) 2008 Progress report
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

13.05.08: EP report on European External Action Service (EEAS) - 0 views

  • The European Parliament is trying to influence the ongoing preparations for the establishment of a 'European External Action Service' (EEAS), to be set up jointly between the EU Council of Ministers and the Commission after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. But critics say this major novelty in the EU architecture is about to be introduced in almost complete secrecy.
  • On 6 May, the European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee put forward a draft report on the Common Foreign and Security Policy, which is intended to constitute MEPs' wish-list vis-à-vis the Council and the Commission on establishing EEAS.  The report points out that the future office of High Representative/Vice-President of the Commission will derive its legitimacy directly from the European Parliament. It also stresses the need for "transparency and democratic input" into the process of setting up the planned European External Action Service, and calls for a mechanism to be set up to provide confidential information to select Foreign Affairs Committee Members. 
  • "The key expectation of the Parliament is that it has more to say on that and Parliament can add additional democratic legitimacy from taking positions. And we expect to be involved in shaping these decisions ex ante, and not only post factum," Saryusz-Wolsky said. 
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  • EU official documents Lisbon treaty see Article 2, Title VI European Parliament Draft report on CFSP by Jacek Saryusz-Wolski European Parliament Press release: A more effective EU foreign policy in prospect, but more parliamentary scrutiny needed The European Commission Sppeech by Benita Ferrero-Waldner, European Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighbourhood Policy
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

BUSINESSEUROPE - Home - 0 views

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    The Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe, commonly known as UNICE, is a Brussels-based European association of industries and employers. On 23 January 2007 this organization changed its name to BUSINESSEUROPE (www.businesseurope.eu) It was founded in 1958 to drive the creation of the European Union as a free trade zone. Together with the Federation of European Employers and the European Round Table of Industrialists, BUSINESSEUROPE has been one of the principal advocates of the EU treaties prior to their negotiation, and major backers of the international European movement. It is also one of the European social partners, representing private employers at the interprofessional level.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

European Values Study - 0 views

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    The European Values Study is a large-scale, cross-national, and longitudinal survey research program on basic human values. It provides insights into the ideas, beliefs, preferences, attitudes, values and opinions of citizens all over Europe. It is a unique research project on how Europeans think about life, family, work, religion, politics and society.The European Values Study started in 1981, when a thousand citizens in the European Member States of that time were interviewed using standardized questionnaires. Every nine years, the survey is repeated in an increasing number of countries. The fourth wave in 2008 will cover no less than 45 European countries, from Iceland to Azerbaijan and from Portugal to Norway. In total, about 70,000 people in Europe will be interviewed.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Keukeleire/MacNaughtan (2008) The Foreign Policy of the European Union - 0 views

  • Description Set clearly in the changed context of the 21st century, this major new text provides a comprehensive analysis of the foreign policy of the European Union assessing the history, actors, processes, partnerships and rivalries of this key area of EU policy. Contents The Context and Nature of (EU) Foreign PolicyEuropean Integration and Foreign Policy: Historical OverviewThe European Union’s Foreign Policy System: ActorsThe European Union’s Foreign Policy System: Policy-makingEuropean Union Foreign Policy and National Foreign PoliciesThe Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP)The European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP)European Union Foreign Policy beyond CFSPThe Foreign Policy Dimension of Internal PoliciesThe Main Areas of European Union Foreign PolicyThe European Union, Multilateralism and Competition with Structural PowersConclusions: Theorizing European Union Foreign Policy
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Delegation of the European Commission to the Republic of Albania - 0 views

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    The Delegation of the European Commission in the Republic of Albania is a permanent diplomatic mission, which represents the European Commission, - the executive body of the European Union - in the framework of the implementation of the European Community's external relations. The Delegation was established in 1993, when the European Commission decided to upgrade its Office of the Special Envoy to a full Delegation in the light of the positive democratic development, which had took place.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Kammel (2010) The Democratic Deficit of the European Union: Its Origins and the Role of... - 0 views

  • Democracy and legitimacy in the European Union are issues of high importance in the academic discourse. Since its beginning, the democratic quality of the European Community and subsequently of the European Union has been questioned. However, the European Union is a political entity sui generis, composed of 27 Member States, and among which it fosters a unique economic and political partnership. This uniqueness gives rise to a series of problems, related to democracy in European governance. Therefore, the book tries to explain the nature of the European Union. A special focus is given to the democratic performance of the EU as a system of multi level governance. The book also analyzes the various reforms leading to a strengthening of the role of the European Parliament as the only directly elected institution within the EU from its early days as a powerless Assembly till today. By explaining the very specific democratic nature of the EU, the book aims to help to transfer the perception of the EU and its decision-making into a more realistic picture in order to overcome one of the most persistent myths of European integration.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

03.11.10: EU leaders back 'limited' treaty change, budget cap - 0 views

  • Britain and other European Union countries put their weight behind Franco-German calls for tougher eurozone rules at a summit today (29 October), agreeing on "limited" changes to the EU's main treaty in return for a cap on the EU budget.
  • Officials struggled to deliver the message that legal tricks could accommodate both Germany's push for treaty change and conflicting calls from several other countries which had rejected the idea. Regarding treaty change, the key word is "simplified", officials explained. A simplified provision, enshrined in Article 48, Section 6 of the Lisbon Treaty, allows member countries to unanimously adopt a decision amending all or part of the main elements of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU), which governs how the Union carries out its work. Such a procedure would avoid the need to call a constitutional convention, experts explained. In addition, the European Parliament would only be "consulted" instead of enjoying full voting rights as part of the normal co-decision procedure. The changes to the treaty are to be settled by mid-2013, before the expiry of the present emergency fund agreed earlier this year to deal with crises such as the one that hit Greece. The objective is to replace that with a permanent mechanism. The simplified treaty change procedure will not enter into force until it is approved by member states in accordance with their constitutions. Most EU countries are expected to ratify the decision by a simplified procedure in their parliaments. As for Ireland, it remains unclear whether a change effected in this way would require another referendum.
  • UK Prime Minister David Cameron appears to have been instrumental in forging a deal, lending his backing to Franco-German calls for treaty change in return for keeping a lid on the EU's 2011 budget. 11 member states, including Britain, France and Germany, will send a letter to the European Commission and Parliament today saying that their plans to increase the EU budget by 5.9% in 2011 are "especially unacceptable at a time when we are having to take difficult decisions at national level to control public expenditure". The letter was signed by the leaders of the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Austria, Finland, Slovenia and Estonia. The bloc's finance ministers had earlier voted for a limited increase in the EU budget of 2.9%. "We are clear that we cannot accept any more than the 2.9% increase proposed by the finance ministers," the leaders say in the letter. Cameron argued that a planned increase in the EU budget would cost his country's taxpayers the equivalent of one billion euros. The 2.9% rise would still cost them £435m (500m euros). Parliament to fight back By agreeing to cap the budget, EU leaders set themselves on a collision course with the European parliament, which has the power to approve or reject the proposed budget. Negotiations between the European Parliament and the Council, which represents the 27 member countries, over the EU's 2011 budget kicked off on 27 October (see 'Background'). "If Cameron is prepared to give up the British rebate [...] then we can for sure discuss a reduction of the budget," said Martin Schulz, leader of the Socialist & Democrats group in the European Parliament, speaking to EUX.TV, the European policy news channel powered by EurActiv. "The European budget is not to be compared with national budgets," said Schulz. "There are no own resources. We have no European taxes. We have no own money. It is money coming from the member states. We can make no debts. The British budget must be reduced because there is enormous debt. Europe has no debts," he said.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

30.05.08: Commission adopts code of conduct for EU lobbyists - 0 views

  • The European Commission has adopted a code of conduct regulating lobbyists' behaviour as a forerunner to the voluntary register to be launched by Administration and Anti-Fraud Commissioner Siim Kallas on 23 June.
  • The 'Code of Conduct for Interest Representatives ', officially adopted on 28 May, contains "clear and precise rules" for lobbyists to follow in their relations with Commission staff, according to the EU executive. 
  • The code of conduct is intended to complement the lobbyists register the Commission is set to publish on 23 June and constitutes part of the wider transparency initiative launched by Vice President Kallas in 2005. 
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  • Links European Union European Commission: Communication: A framework for relations with interest representatives (Register and Code of Conduct) (27 May 2008) [FR] [DE] European Commission: Press release: The Commission adopts a code of conduct for interest representatives (28 May 2008) [FR] [DE] European Commission: Coming soon: the Commission's Register for Interest Representatives European Commission: Results of the Consultation on the Code of Conduct for Interest Representatives (27 May 2008) European Commission: Transparency Initiative [FR] [DE] European Commission: Frequently Asked Questions on Transparency Initiative EU Actors positions ALTER-EU: ALTER-EU submission to the consultation on a Code of Conduct for Interest Representatives EPACA: EPACA Response to the Draft European Commission Code of Conduct for Interest Representatives (15 February 2008)
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Kaina/Karolewski (2009): EU governance and European identiy, Living Reviews in European... - 0 views

  • This Living Review presents an overview of the research on European identity in the context of EU governance by focussing on central debates in the political science literature. It departs from the problems of disagreement between European citizens and their elites as well as the lack of a European demos. Against this background, the article discusses the functions of collective identity including the legitimation function and solution of collective dilemmas. Here, two perspectives pertaining to these functions are depicted: first, the issue of European public space and second, the integrative workings of European citizenship. Next, the article explores the conceptual and methodological problems of the research on European collective identity. In particular, it focuses on the conceptual ambiguity of the collective identity term and problems of operationalization and measurement. Following this, the article discusses the literature on identity technologies of the EU and identifies the shortcomings of identity technologies with regard to EU governance. Keywords:European identity, governance, legitimacy, democracy, public opinion, European public space
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Trondal/Bernau (2010): An Emergent European Executive Order - 0 views

  • This book poses two pertinent questions: First, if a European executive order is emerging, how can we empirically see it? Second, if a European executive order is emerging, how can we explain everyday decision-making processes within it? The goal of this book is two-fold: First, it identifies key institutional components of an emergent European executive order. The nucleus of this order is the European Commission. The Commission, however, is increasingly supplemented by a mushrooming parallel administration of EU-level agencies and EU committees. This book provides fresh empirical survey and interview data on the everyday decision-making behaviour, role perceptions, and identities among European civil servants who participate within these institutions. Secondly, this book claims and empirically substantiates that an emergent European executive order is a compound executive order balancing a limited set of key decision-making dynamics. One message of this book is that an emergent European executive order consists of a compound set of supranational, departmental, epistemic, and intergovernmental decision-making dynamics. Arguably, a compound European executive order transforms the inherent Westphalian order to the extent that intergovernmentalism is transcended and supplemented by a multidimensional mix of supranational, departmental and/or epistemic dynamics. This book also theoretically explores conditions under which these decision-making dynamics gain prevalence. It is argued that the decision-making dynamics emerging within an emergent European executive order are conditioned by the formal organisation of its composite parts and by the patterns of social interaction that emerge among its civil servants. Political processes and political systems can neither be adequately understood nor explained without including the organisational dimension of executive orders.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Lacroix et al. (2011): European Stories: Intellectual Debates on Europe in National Con... - 0 views

  • European Stories takes a new look at debates about European Integration by examining the role of "public intellectuals"-- i.e. political philosophers, scholars, editorialists or writers -- who contribute to framing the attitude of European publics to Europe and the EU. While there is an enormous literature on the role of intellectuals considered generally or in their distinct national contexts, there is precious little on their take on European integration in the post-war period. This book is ambitious: it aims to provide an overview of how thinking about Europe is expressed within distinct epistemological contexts and how different ideological configurations are shaped across time and space. Twelve national cases have been selected -- including founding and newer member EU members as well as non-member states -- in order to offer a wide range of contrasting intellectual contexts. Contributors are all themselves fully immersed in the respective national public spheres although the editors have been careful to choose colleagues who are not strongly identified with a very specific and contested position on the national spectrum. The expected readership is broad and interdisciplinary, ranging from political philosophy, to political science, history, sociology, and international relations. Hence, the volume should become a reference book for courses on European integration and European identity considered generally, as well as European history, history of ideas, and contemporary political theory. Beyond academia, it should be of interest to journalists as well as a more general readership interested either in European issues or the intellectual debates of our time. This is the first book published in English on this topic and will hopefully encourage the development of further research.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

:: Portál sdružení EUROPEUM :: - 0 views

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    "Welcome to Europeum Institute for European Policy website EUROPEUM Institute for Europan Policy is a think-tank that undertakes programme, project, publishing and training activities related to the European integration process. " EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy is a non-profit, non-partisan and independent institute. It focuses on the issues of European integration and its impact on the transformation of political, economic and legal milieu in the Czech Republic. EUROPEUM strives to contribute to a long-lasting development of democracy, security, stability, freedom and solidarity across Europe. EUROPEUM formulates opinions and offers alternatives to internal reforms in the Czech Republic with a view of ensuring her full-fledged membership and respected position in the European Union.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Stone Sweet (20109. The European Court of Justice and the judicialization of EU governance - 2 views

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    This Living Reviews article evaluates the most important strains of social science research on the impact of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on integration, EU-level policymaking, and national legal orders. Section 2 defines the concepts of judicialization and governance, and discusses how they are related. As the article demonstrates, the "constitutionalization of the EU," and its effect on EU governance, is one of the most complex and dramatic examples of judicialization in world history. Section 3 discusses the institutional determinants of judicial authority in the EU in light of delegation theory. The European Court, a Trustee of the Treaty system rather than a simple Agent of the Member States, operates in an unusually broad zone of discretion, a situation the Court has exploited in its efforts to enhance the effectiveness of EU law. Section 4 focuses on the extraordinary impact of the European Court of Justice, and of the legal system it manages, on the overall course of market and political integration. Section 5 provides an overview of the process through which the ECJ's case law - its jurisprudence - influences the decision-making of non-judicial EU organs and officials. Section 6 considers the role of the ECJ and the national courts in monitoring and enforcing Member State compliance with EU law, a task that has provoked a steady Europeanization of national law and policymaking.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

European Union in Bosnia and Herzegovina - 0 views

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    Links to European Commission Delegation to BiH European Union Special Representative in BiH European Union Force in BiH European Union Police Mission in BiH
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

European Union Politics - 0 views

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    European Union Politics is an exciting international journal that provides the forum for advanced research on all aspects of the processes of government, politics and policy in the European Union. Launched by a global editorial team and with a commitment to the highest scholarly standards, European Union Politics adopts a transnational approach to the challenges that the project of European integration faces in the 21st century.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

17.12.10: European Parliament condems the outcome of the European Council - 0 views

  • The centre and left of the European Parliament have robustly condemned the outcome of the European Council, complaining that the interest of the bloc as a whole has been sidelined in favour of national interests. It is common for the groups in the parliament to criticise the results of European summits, but the missives issued the afternoon following the meeting were abnormally trenchant.
  • The Party of European Socialists "condemned" the result, attacking the "conservative leaders" who hold a majority in the Council. "The Conservative leaders are fundamentally mistaken. Yet again they have failed to take control of the crisis," said Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, the former Danish prime minister and leader of the PES. "The reaction of the Markets illustrates this clearly." Mr Rasmussen pointed to the overnight downgrading of Irish bonds by the Moody's credit agency as signifying that the investors were unconvinced by the council's plan. He warned that the EU Council had put itself in "direct conflict" with the parliament over its refusal to countenance any move towards debt issuance at the EU level. "The German, British, Swedish and Dutch Governments formed a roadblock to progress on the eurobonds issue. So blatantly putting national interest before European recovery is short-termist and lacking in leadership," he said.
  • The European Parliament must be consulted on the treaty change, but it has no co-decision power under the 'simplified revision procedure' - the new method the EU leaders are using to deliver the limited treaty change while avoiding any national referendums. But, depending on the fine print of how the permanent bail-out fund is constructed, it may have approval powers. The EU prime ministers and presidents at the summit did not take any decisions on the details of the fund. According to a parliamentary legal expert, if the European Council itself develops the mechanism on an 'intergovernmental' basis, and the fund is similar to the existing €440 billion rescue mechanism, which involves a series of loan guarantees by member states, then the chamber will only be consulted, as with the treaty change. But if the EU is asked to develop and present a proposal, or if it involves any direct EU funds as well as national loan guarantees, then "this is part of the community method, and the parliament has co-decision powers". The Greens also said that the permanent crisis mechanism "will not be enough to get Europe out of the crisis."
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

08.10.09: Barroso fears powerful 'European president' - 0 views

  • European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has sided with smaller member states in trying to restrict the role of the proposed president of the European Council, a new post created by the Lisbon Treaty. Addressing the European Parliament on Wednesday (7 October), Mr Barroso chastised MEPs for referring to the post as "president of Europe."
  • "I am sorry, there will not be a president of Europe. There will be, if we have Lisbon, the president of the European Council. It is important to understand that point because sometimes I think there are some ideas about certain derives institutionelles [institutional drifts]," he said.
  • The commission president has no formal powers in appointing the European Council president but he warned: "The European Commission will not accept the idea that the president of European Council is the president of Europe." Mr Barroso's remarks came shortly after a leaked paper on the new Lisbon Treaty posts by Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg underlined the importance of maintaining the "institutional balance" of the union. The paper has been interpreted in some quarters as an anti-Blair move. Poland has also prepared a document on the role of the president of the European Council. Earlier this week, Polish Europe minister Mikolaj Dowgielewicz indicated to EUobserver the limited role that Warsaw foresees for the new president.
Prof. Dr  Wolfgang Schumann

Carbone (2010): National Politics and European Integration: From the Constitution to th... - 0 views

  • National Politics and European Integration: From the Constitution to the Lisbon TreatyMaurizio Carbone 0 ReviewsEdward Elgar Publishing, 2010 - Law - 243 pagesThis book discusses the domestic politics of treaty reform in the European Union, from the failed referendums on the Constitutional Treaty held in France and the Netherlands in May-June 2005 to the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon in December 2009. The chapters, written by some of the finest scholars in the field of EU/European politics, show how European integration has increasingly become a contested issue in a majority of Member States. Going beyond the view that national governments are the main, if not the sole, driving force in the process of European integration, this book shows that other actors and factors have played a central role in preference formation and inter-state bargaining. These include: political parties, public opinion, the media, presidents, constitutional courts and, more broadly, political systems, ratification hurdles and the general negotiation context. National Politics and European Integration combines empirical analysis and theoretical explanations for one of the most controversial periods in the history of the European Union. This important book will be of great interest for advanced students in EU studies, comparative politics and public policy.« Less
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