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Democratisation versus accountability - should the European Parliament be given more powers?

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  • Schwager, Robert

Abstract

This paper challenges the assertion that European politics would be closer to the citizens´ preferences if decision power were transferred from the Council of Ministers to the European Parliament. On the one hand, citizens benefit from a greater transparency in the Parliament´s debates compared to the Council´s decisions. On the other hand, a powerful European Parliament would be less accountable to the voters of each state since in the European election each state is only decisive with a small probability.

Suggested Citation

  • Schwager, Robert, 1999. "Democratisation versus accountability - should the European Parliament be given more powers?," ZEW Discussion Papers 99-45, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:5258
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    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/24327/1/dp4599.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mathias Dewatripont & Francesco Giavazzi & Jürgen von Hagen & Ian Harden & Didier Baudewyns & Gérard Roland & Howard Rosenthal & André Sapir & Guido Tabellini, 1995. "Flexible integration: towards a more effective and democratic Europe," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/9541, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    2. Moser, Peter, 1997. "A Theory of the Conditional Influence of the European Parliament in the Cooperation Procedure," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 91(3-4), pages 333-350, June.
    3. Laruelle, Annick & Widgren, Mika, 1998. "Is the Allocation of Voting Power among EU States Fair?," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 94(3-4), pages 317-339, March.
    4. Homburg, Stefan, 1997. "Ursachen und Wirkungen eines zwischenstaatlichen Finanzausgleichs," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, pages 61-95.
    5. Seabright, Paul, 1996. "Accountability and decentralisation in government: An incomplete contracts model," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 61-89, January.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Accountability; European institutions; transparency; democratisation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • H11 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Structure and Scope of Government

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