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Task Force Policy Report on Democracy in the European Union Winter 2010

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Task Force Policy Report on Democracy in the European Union Winter 2010 Transnational Democracy in the European Union: Confronting the Democratic Deficit Task Force Advisor Professor Sabine Lang Task Force Evaluator Conny Reuter President of the EU Social Platform, Secretary General of the NGO Solidar Task Force Editors Samuel Garfield Kaitlyn Sweeting Task Force Members Jacquelyn Allen Annie Atherton Sean Brannen Jacob Barr Jiadai Dong Jacquelyn Ganger Anna Lee Meleah Paull Anastasia Plotnikova Zachary Russell Nathan Sooter Alisa Tonge Brent Waller Task Force 2010 The Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies University of Washington Task Force Policy Report on Democracy in the European Union Winter 2010 Advisor Sabine Lang Task Force Editors/Coordinators Samuel Garfield Kaitlyn Sweeting Task Force Members Jacquelyn Allen Annie Atherton Jacob Barr Sean Brannen Jidai Dong Jacquelyn Ganger Anna Lee Meleah Paull Anastasia Plotnikova Zachary Russell Nathan Sooter Alisa Tonge Brent Waller Table of Contents Chapter Page Executive Summary Report Introduction 1 Institutions of the European Union Section Introduction 12 1. The European Commission 15 2. The Council of the EU and European Council 31 3. The European Parliament 45 Civil Society in the European Union Section Introduction 64 4. “Europeanizing” Civil Society 68 5. Balancing Social and Civic Interest Representation 92 6. Enhancing Grassroots Participation in European Politics 111 The European Public Sphere Section Introduction 130 7. Mass Media and the European Public Sphere 134 8. New Media and the European Public Sphere 149 9. Public Events in the European Union 171 EU Citizenship and Identity Section Introduction 189 10. Strengthening EU Citizenship 194 11. Citizen Education 209 12. Improving Avenues for Direct Citizen Participation 229 13. Minority Groups in the European Union 250 Report Conclusion 270 Recommendations 275 Bibliography 285 Executive Summary By Samuel Garfield & Kaitlyn Sweeting The European Union serves as the transnational governing body for 27 nations and their citizens. Its significance on the world stage as well as within its Member States as a policymaker, legislator, and leader of world affairs is expansive. As such, the EU should strive to reach its fullest potential as a democratic institution, taking all actions necessary to promote and protect democracy. This is especially vital today, as the EU is currently facing a democratic deficit. Our report explores the democratic deficit within the EU as it is revealed in four primary policy areas; 1. Institutions a. Overall institutions are performing better than the public perceives them to be in terms of transparency, but there is still room for improvement. A particular area of improvement is posting information on the internet in a way that is accessible to citizens. b. Expanding the power of the Parliament and the number and type of officials who are elected will be increasingly important 2. Civil Society a. While the EU has taken great strides to reach out to civil society, it must continue to improve its methods of outreach. Ways of doing this include standardizing guidelines for consultation across all major EU institutions and reforming the makeup of EU civil society umbrella groups to represent public and private interests equally. b. Civil society itself has not yet "Europeanized," and the European Union should do all it can to promote a Europeanized civil society that transcends national boundaries. 3. Public Sphere a. The European public sphere is underdeveloped and highly fragmented along national and linguistic lines; the EU could be doing a great deal more to combat this, such as funding and promoting public broadcasting (which tends to address European issues more frequently) and improving its own new media programs. 4. European Citizenship and Identity a. Citizen participation in elections and other forms of political engagement is extremely low, inhibiting government officials from representing constituents and minimizing citizens’ knowledge of the EU and its functions. Opportunities for citizen engagement should therefore be increased and made more accessible, in order to make citizens more aware of their protections under the EU as well as the many ways it serves to benefit their daily lives. b. Minority groups are also severely underrepresented and mistreated within the EU, demonstrating that prejudice is still a major force in Europe. Many challenges must be addressed within these four realms of European governance in order for the European Union to eliminate its democratic deficit. Four prominent themes, however, emerged as central components that should take precedence in the EU’s efforts to diminish its democratic deficit. The EU should prioritize addressing its citizens’ lack of knowledge of the EU. Utilizing mass media campaigns and education to provide accessible, easily understood information about the EU, its functioning, and its policy perspectives are excellent means for accomplishing this. We also encourage the EU to focus largely on increasing its transparency by improving media relations and the accessibility of its policymakers, institutions, important documents, and so forth in order to better equip citizens to participate in political engagement. The EU should prioritize the establishment of a well-developed civil society as well in order to “Europeanize” the political realms within nations. Lastly, the establishment of a European identity that unites citizens of the EU and connects them to this transnational governing body that currently feels very distant and removed will be central. In accordance with these themes, we recommend: - Taking incremental steps towards popular election of the Commission - Expanding the budgetary and legislative capacities of the European Parliament - Ensuring 20% of broadcasting time is reserved for European programming - Establishing “Europe Week” - Increasing language translation capability of EU new media programs - Fostering the growth of “European” civil society - Creating standardized guidelines for lobbying and a mandatory register for interest groups - Encouraging EU civil society umbrella organizations to increase outreach to their constituencies - Using targeted media campaigns to educate citizens about the European Ombusdman and Citizens’ Initiative - Creating a European civic education curriculum - Supporting access to social welfare as a fundamental right as outlined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights - Ensuring timely implementation of anti-discrimination legislation in Member States Report Introduction: Pursuing Transnational Democracy in the EU By Samuel Garfield and Kaitlyn Sweeting 1 Report Introduction: Pursuing Transnational Democracy in the EU The Expansion of the European Union On December 1, 2009, the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty expanded the role, power, and functioning of the European Union. Its passage may be seen as only the most recent development in a long and sustained period of expansion for the EU. Since its establishment in the 195s, the EU has grown from an economic and political alliance of six western European nations to a 27 member, transnational governing body that has managed its own currency—the Euro—since 2002 and has established itself as a world leader for environmental and peacekeeping efforts. Despite drastically increasing its membership and influence over the last half-century, the EU faced a major setback in 2005. France and the Netherlands refused to ratify the proposed European Constitution, spurring a two-year, “period of reflection.” The Constitution—the outcome of years of work amongst integrationist European leaders—was seen as the key to formalizing the EU‟s status as a supra- and trans-national governing body. In 2007, progress towards this goal resumed as the development of a Reform Treaty commenced at the Intergovernmental Conference in Lisbon. The result was the Lisbon Treaty, which aims to establish a more democratic and efficient EU and improve its relationship with the European people. Although Ireland‟s refusal to ratify the Treaty in June 2008 slowed the process of implementing the Lisbon Treaty, on December 1, 2009 it was ratified by all 27 members of the EU and thereafter entered force as a legally binding treaty. As it has grown in importance the European Union has also received growing amounts of criticism for its lack of democracy. The Lisbon Treaty attempted to address a number of these issues—especially ones pertaining to the institutional functioning of the governing organs of the EU, including a lack of transparency and accountability and a lack of power on the part of the 2 Transnational Democracy in the European Union: Confronting the Democratic Deficit one elected EU body, the European Parliament—and other issues still remain unaddressed—such as the lack of a European demos, fragmentation of European polities along national and linguistic lines, and the failure of civil society to effectively bridge the gap between European citizens and the European Union‟s governing organs. As the EU grows in power and size how these issues will be addressed remains an open question. The purpose of this report is to examine the prospects for addressing the most important of these issues and making recommendations as to how the EU may best tackle them. Is the EU a Governmental Institution? One of the first issues this report must address is the role of the EU. Many critics who assert that the EU is sufficiently democratic do so on the grounds that it is not a governmental body, but an inter-governmental treaty organization. For
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