The institutional politics of the European Union : an analysis of administrative governance and constitutional reform in the EU Citation for published version (APA): Christiansen, T. (2008). The institutional politics of the European Union : an analysis of administrative governance and constitutional reform in the EU. Maastricht University. https://doi.org/10.26481/dis.20080215tc Document status and date: Published: 01/01/2008 DOI: 10.26481/dis.20080215tc Document Version: Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Please check the document version of this publication: • A submitted manuscript is the version of the article upon submission and before peer-review. There can be important differences between the submitted version and the official published version of record. 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If the publication is distributed under the terms of Article 25fa of the Dutch Copyright Act, indicated by the “Taverne” license above, please follow below link for the End User Agreement: www.umlib.nl/taverne-license Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us at: [email protected] providing details and we will investigate your claim. Download date: 23 Sep. 2021 THE INSTITUTIONAL POLITICS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION _______________ An Analysis of Administrative Governance and Constitutional Reform in the EU Thomas Christiansen Meinen Eltern THE INSTITUTIONAL POLITICS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION _______________ An Analysis of Administrative Governance and Constitutional Reform in the EU Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Universiteit Maastricht op gezag van de Rector Magnificus Prof. Mr. G.P.M.F. Mols volgens het besluit van het College van Decanen in het openbaar te verdedigen op vrijdag 15 februari 2008 om 12.00 uur door Thomas Christiansen PROMOTOR PROF.DR. T. BLOM BEOORDELINGSCOMMISSIE PROF.DR. H. SCHNEIDER, VOORZITTER PROF.DR. K-E. JØRGENSEN (UNIVERSITY OF AARHUS) PROF.DR. J. RICHARDSON (UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD) DR. S. VANHOONACKER PROF.DR. R. DE WILDE Acknowledgements This volume brings together articles and papers written over a period spanning some 10 years – a long time even by academic standards. My desire to study the institutional politics of the EU began when I joined a research project directed by Jeremy Richardson at the University of Essex in 1995. Thanks to Jeremy’s professional guidance as much as his infectious dynamism, my time in Essex was not only productive, but above all instructive: it was an ideal opportunity for an apprenticeship in the processes of academic research and publishing. If I am grateful for Jeremy to have launched my academic career, then I am also thankful to Tannelie Blom who, from the moment I arrived in Maastricht, supported the idea of submitting these ‘collected works’ as a PhD thesis. He kindly agreed, without hesitation, to become my ‘promotor’, and with gentle pressure and much helpful advice guided me towards the defence of this thesis. Christine Neuhold and Sophie Vanhoonacker have also been immensely supportive during this period, and it is largely because of them that I always felt at home in the Department of Political Science at Maastricht University. It has been a long and winding road from Essex to Limburg, but fortunately not one that I had to travel alone. There have been a number of important influences that have shaped my thinking over time. I would like to mention, in particular, Knud Erik Jørgensen, who I first met at the European University Institute in Florence, and who has been a mentor, collaborator and friend whose intellect and professionalism I will always admire; Emil Kirchner, who trusted me from the start, and from whom I have learned enormously over the years; and Christine Reh, who has been an inspiration from the first moment we met in Bruges - it has been a privilege to be her co-author, and even more so to be friends. While the chapters in this book are all single-authored, academic work is often teamwork, and beyond those already mentioned I have had the opportunity to work together with a large number of respected colleagues, all of which have contributed to my thinking and my understanding of the institutional politics of the European Union. Amy Verdun, Antje Wiener, Simona Piattoni, Torbjørn Larsson, Beatrice Vaccari, Sonia Piedrafita, Manuela Alfe, Simon Duke, Susana Borras, Ben Tonra, Gerda Falkner, Derek Beach, Mark Gray, Edward Best, Morten Egeberg, Ulf Sverdrup, Jarle Trondal, Mark Rhinard, Andy Smith, Renaud Dehousse, Michael Kaeding, and Pamela Lintner are the names of those that immediately spring to mind. When putting together the final manuscript of this book in 2007, I spent a few months at the ARENA Centre for European Studies at the University of Oslo, and my thanks go to Morten Egeberg and his colleagues for the invitation, the hospitality and the inspiration which I received from them. Back at EIPA in Maastricht, Johanna Oettel, with her customary efficiency and professionalism, has been a great help in the final stages of editing the manuscript. For me, the success of academic work depends on contentment at home, and it is therefore no coincidence that this long-lasting project has finally come to a conclusion as Young-ah has come into my life (and become my wife!). She has given me more happiness than I could ever have hoped for, and I am immensely grateful for her support in the final months of completing this thesis. Above all, this is a moment to acknowledge the tremendous debt that I owe to my parents – without their love, their support and their faith in my abilities I could never have succeeded in my studies or in my career. It is almost a year now that I lost, totally unexpected, my father, and my greatest regret when defending this thesis is that he, whom I owe so much, cannot be there. All the more I am grateful that my mother will join us on the day and can therefore receive the heartfelt thanks that are due to both of my parents. I dedicate this book to them. Thomas Christiansen Maastricht, January 2008 Table of Contents Introduction 15 Chapter 1 The Evolution of Institutional Structures in the European Union: The Longue Durée of European Integration 29 Chapter 2 The European Commission 55 Chapter 3 The Council of Ministers 91 Chapter 4 Analysing the institutional politics of the European Union: politicised bureaucracy and multiple accountability 135 Chapter 5 The General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers 163 Chapter 6 Intra-institutional politics and inter-institutional relations in the EU 191 Chapter 7 The Role of Supranational Institutions in EU Treaty Reform 227 Chapter 8 The Process of EU Treaty Reform: Constitutionalising the European Union 261 Conclusion 301 Bibliography 311 Remarks This thesis is based on the following, previously published articles: Chapter 1 is based on the previously published ‘Bringing Process Back In: The Longue Durée of European Integration’, Journal of European Integration, Vol.21, No.1 (1998), pp.99-121. Chapter 2 is based on the previously published ‘The European Commission: The European executive between continuity and change’, in J.J.Richardson (ed.), The European Union: Power and Policy-making 3rd. ed. (London: Routledge, 2005). Chapter 3 is based on the previously published ‘The Council of Ministers: Facilitating interaction and developing actorness in the EU’, in J.J.Richardson (ed.), The European Union: Power and Policy-making 3rd. ed. (London: Routledge, 2005). Chapter 4 is based on the previously published ‘Tensions of European governance: politicised bureaucracy and multiple accountability in the European Commission’, Journal of European Public Policy, Vol.4, No.1 (1997), pp.73-90. Chapter 5 is based on the previously published ‘Out of the Shadows: The General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers’, in M.P.van Schendelen and R.Scully (eds) Unelected Legislators in the European Union, Special Issue of the Journal of Legislative Studies Vol.8, No.4 (2002). Chapter 6 is based on the previously published ‘Intra- institutional politics and inter-institutional relations in the EU: Towards coherent governance?’, Journal of European Public Policy, Vol.8, No.5 (2001). Chapter 7 is based on the previously published ‘The Role of Supranational Institutions in EU Treaty Reform’, Journal of European Public Policy, Vol.9, No.1 (2002). Chapter 8 is an original chapter, building on previous and ongoing research that will be published in a book, co- authored with C.Reh, Constitutionalising the European Union (London: Palgrave Macmillan, forthcoming in 2008). Introduction Understanding the Institutional Politics of the European Union The defining characteristic of the European Union, it can be argued, are its institutions. It has been through the creation, development and growth of a set of unique institutions that it has become possible to establish supranational governance at the European level.