Can the Politicization of European Integration be Reversed?*

Abstract

Following the failure of the Constitutional Treaty, executives of European Union (EU) Member States and the European Commission tried to take European integration as a political issue as much off the agenda as possible and limit involvement of citizens in EU decision‐making. This article assesses the viability of this attempt to combat politicization of European integration and comes to the conclusion that it is unlikely to succeed in the long run. Politicization, it is argued, is a direct consequence of the increasing authority of the EU. The executive response to reverse this trend, however, does not address its cause, but rather the intermediating factors in the form of political opportunity structure. Since the cause of politicization remains intact and intermediating factors are unlikely to be controlled by executives, this attempt to reverse politicization is not viable.

From constraining to catalysing dissensus? The impact of political contestation on parliamentary communication in EU affairs

“…The democratic duty of representatives 'to give convincing accounts of their actions to the represented' and 'to communicate their reason for action" (Esaiasson et al, 2013, p. 26) has become ever more important in EU politics with the growing salience and public contestation of EU issues in both public opinion and national party politics, a phenomenon commonly discussed as the politicisation of EU politics (De Wilde and Zürn, 2012;Hutter and Grande, 2014;Kriesi and Grande, 2014;Rauh and Zürn, 2014;Statham and Trenz, 2012). The impact of EU decisions is, especially in the context of the eurozone crisis, increasingly (and painfully) evident for the citizens in the EU (Hurrelmann, 2014).…”

Introduction: the differentiated politicisation of European governance

“…Others challenge whether there really is a fundamental break with the period before the 1990s (Hutter and Grande 2014;Schrag Sternberg 2013). Fourth, while referenda obviously function as catalysts for paramount and manifest controversy, deeper causes account for the more enduring and widespread existence of such controversy (De Wilde and Zürn 2012;Statham and Trenz 2015). Fifth, the prospect of such tests of public legitimacy of the EU drives a renegotiation of the terms of European integration and the outcome of these tests carry profound consequences for the EU (Rauh 2012;Schimmelfennig et al 2015).…”

The Political Hindrances in Solving the European Sovereign Debt Crisis

“…'More Europe' may not be the ultimate answer for the Eurozone, but in the case of the Eurocrisis, perhaps 'just enough Europe' will speed up bringing it to an end. Regardless, leading up to its sovereign debt crisis, the EU in the past was plagued with frequent economic confrontations which allowed it to grow stronger and move forward towards further European Integration (De Wilde & Zürn, 2012). This round of treaty changes could ultimately prove to do the same.…”