Local and Regional Politics at the EU level: who is actually represented in the Committee of the Regions?

Abstract

One of the main reasons for the establishment of the Committee of the Regions was to provide the subnational level with the representation within the institutional system of the European Union. As the body advising the EU institutions, the Committee can influence the decision-making process. Since it consists of members of the local and regional authorities, one may ask if it does offer the opportunity for the peculiar territorial self-government units to be represented at the EU level. And in the broader terms – what does the relation between the general and particular interests look like in that regard? The article tries to determine if the Committee of the Regions is a suitable place for the individual territorial self-government unit to promote its interests. The findings of the paper are based on the author’s own empirical research conducted among the Polish members of the Committee. The results entitle the author to state that the territorial self-government units are represented in the Committee of the Regions and they have some benefits from being represented within this body.