The economic and financial crisis, Brexit, mass migration, the claim to more sovereignty and the undermining of the fundamental values and the rule of law by some Member States (MS) has led to...Show moreThe economic and financial crisis, Brexit, mass migration, the claim to more sovereignty and the undermining of the fundamental values and the rule of law by some Member States (MS) has led to political unrest within the European Union (EU) in recent years. This has become reason for some political movements (the so-called Eurosceptics) in European countries to question the legitimacy of the EU and to push for more sovereignty for MS and even striving for an EU departure. The question arises whether MS in the EU are substantively questioning the legitimacy of the EU and whether this legitimacy issue is a well-founded topic of discussion in the political debate. This study examines that question by focussing on the case study of the Netherlands and highlights the political developments in the Netherlands regarding the legitimacy of the EU. Regarding the legitimacy of the EU, research was conducted over the period 2009 – 2022 also referred to as the post-Lisbon era. The party programs (2012, 2017 and 2021) of 6 political parties, the debates in the Dutch parliament and the coalition agreements (2012, 2017 and 2022) were studied on topics related to legitimacy of the EU. These categories include, compliance (transparency, compliance with agreements and financial controls), problem-solving capacity (the extent to which and which problems must be solved at European level) and justification (sovereignty and the subsidiarity principle). It is registered which subjects are mentioned and what the position is. The results have been analysed according to the mixed content method. It was concluded that that over time, the debate of legitimacy evolved, and political parties became more critical of the EU’s transparency and democratic legitimacy. At the same time, most parties remained pro-EU and realised that in the problem-solving category, this is with most larger problems only solvable at EU level. In conclusion, from an EU perspective, the developments in the Netherlands are surprisingly positive. Although Dutch politicians remain critical of the decision-making process and the lack of transparency, the believe that staying in the EU is the most positive for the Netherlands is still viable with the majority of the Dutch parliament. This is ultimately positive for the future of the EU.Show less
The 2014 Spitzenkandidaten procedure for nominating a candidate for the European Commission Presidency sought to render the (s)election process more democratically legitimate. However, despite its...Show moreThe 2014 Spitzenkandidaten procedure for nominating a candidate for the European Commission Presidency sought to render the (s)election process more democratically legitimate. However, despite its successful emergence, 2019 saw the repudiation of the Spitzenkandidaten. Adopting a multi-method approach that speaks to current literature on the EU’s perceived democratic deficit, this thesis highlights that from pluralist, libertarian, social democratic, and deliberative democracy perspectives the 2014 Spitzenkandidaten improved the democratic legitimacy of the Commission Presidency, reducing the EU’s democratic deficit. This thesis further finds that the repudiation of the Spitzenkandidaten in 2019 constituted a retraction of this democratic legitimacy from three of the four philosophical perspectives, expanding the democratic deficit accordingly. Utilising the insights of MEPs further enhances these findings, grounding them in theoretical and practical terms. As one of the initial studies that have analysed the impact of the Spitzenkandidaten following its repudiation in 2019, this research holds significant potential to inform our understanding of the current shape of contemporary European democracy and the EU’s democratic deficit.Show less
Today, there is broad consensus that the European Commission of the European Union needs transparency in order to function as a representative democracy. The transparency development within the...Show moreToday, there is broad consensus that the European Commission of the European Union needs transparency in order to function as a representative democracy. The transparency development within the Commission shows an interesting pattern, especially after Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker came into office in 2014. The current transparency debate revolves around the question to what extent the Commission has overcome opacity under the leadership of President Juncker halfway through its mandate. Advocates of transparency argue in favor of a relative increase of Commission transparency by democratic standards compared to other public institutions. A more critical account detects a more ‘captured transparency’, highlighting the loopholes and obstacles for the Commission to overcome in order to become an effective representative democracy. This work provides a detailed and multi-disciplinary examination of the questions how transparency has progressed within the Commission. An examination of the transparency developments will be made of the Commission’s Directorate General for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets (DG FISMA), because this department has the highest number of meetings with interest representatives and stakeholders on policy-making. The analysis that follows will establish a comprehensive framework of the relationship between the implementation of transparency measures in the Directorate General and its interpretation. Therefore, this work provides for an institutional analysis of policy change. The paper concludes that the current Commission transparency policies in place have several flaws and that it leaves room for improvement to strengthen democratic legitimacy. However, the study also shows that when change is brought about in a broad and practical form it can - on the long-term - fulfil the democratic transparency promise of President Juncker. The recommendations resulting from this research may serve as a basis for the future development of transparency measures in the area of European studies.Show less
Democracy is under pressure in Europe. On national levels trust in politicians and the political system is decreasing, satisfaction is low and protests are increasing. People feel not heard by...Show moreDemocracy is under pressure in Europe. On national levels trust in politicians and the political system is decreasing, satisfaction is low and protests are increasing. People feel not heard by their chosen representatives and some start to experiment with other forms of democracy. This discontent is especially visible in relation to the European Union that is accused to have severe democratic deficits. This started a debate on the current electoral representative system. This thesis investigates if the democratic deficit of the EU can be solved by introducing citizens’ bodies based on sortition, the random selection of citizens instead of electing representatives.Show less
