Democratic Deficit in the European Union
“Most voters seem to take the opportunity to give the incumbent national government a ‘good kicking’ during European elections, as seen in the UK, Spain and France, rather than vote on a broad manifesto of ideas. This is fuelled further by MEPs campaigning on local issues rather than European ones.” This is an example of part of the democratic deficit in the European Parliament. To further show how there is a democratic deficit in the European Parliament I will explain how it is largely inaccessible to its European citizens and how the European Parliament lacks the power that it requires to resolve the problems in the Union. I will then describe some unsuccessful attempts at solutions and conclude with some possible future remedies.
While the European Union was originally made as a project to unite European nations against the possibility of future wars, the initial focus of the Union was on trade and economic union. However, as more and more nations joined and its mandate expanded in scope, an incongruity between popular democratic representation and expansion has developed. ‘Democratic deficit is a concept used principally in the argument that the European Union and its various bodies suffer from a lack of democracy and seem inaccessible to the ordinary citizen because their methods of operating are so complex.’
When the European Union is criticised for its ‘democratic deficit’ it suggests that the Union’s decision making is undemocratic. National government’s often make themselves out to be blameless by holding a faceless monster, the ‘Brussels bureaucracy’, responsible when explaining unpopular decisions from the EU to their citizens. This leads to an assumption that there is a dominant authority which makes all decisions and that that authority is not democratically accountable.
The European Union’s power is divided between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission, although these are divided somewhat disparately. These three bodies are
While the European Union was originally made as a project to unite European nations against the possibility of future wars, the initial focus of the Union was on trade and economic union. However, as more and more nations joined and its mandate expanded in scope, an incongruity between popular democratic representation and expansion has developed. ‘Democratic deficit is a concept used principally in the argument that the European Union and its various bodies suffer from a lack of democracy and seem inaccessible to the ordinary citizen because their methods of operating are so complex.’
When the European Union is criticised for its ‘democratic deficit’ it suggests that the Union’s decision making is undemocratic. National government’s often make themselves out to be blameless by holding a faceless monster, the ‘Brussels bureaucracy’, responsible when explaining unpopular decisions from the EU to their citizens. This leads to an assumption that there is a dominant authority which makes all decisions and that that authority is not democratically accountable.
The European Union’s power is divided between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission, although these are divided somewhat disparately. These three bodies are
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