Differentiated Representation: Is a Flexible European Parliament Desirable?

Bruno De Witte, Andrea Ott and Ellen Vos (eds), Between Flexibility and Disintegration

Posted: 14 Dec 2017

See all articles by Deirdre Curtin

Deirdre Curtin

Amsterdam Centre for European Law and Governance; European University Institute, Department of Law, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies

Cristina Fasone

LUISS Guido Carli

Date Written: February 24, 2017

Abstract

Adapting the composition and the functioning of the European Parliament (EP) to the increasing flexibility and differentiation in the EU legal and political systems is not an entirely new problem in comparative terms. The issue has also arisen in federal states such as the United States in periods of crisis and times of divided positions among the States. A problem that is similar, although it is not framed in identical terms as in the EU context, is the West Lothian Question in the United Kingdom (UK). Following devolution in the UK, MPs elected in the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish constituencies still vote in the House of Commons for Acts that only apply to England. In contrast, in the same Chamber, MPs elected in English constituencies are no longer entitled to vote on a series of Acts that are now regularly passed by the regional legislative Assemblies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The debate about limiting the voting rights of the MPs elected in the devolved regions, however, has never led to the actual adoption of measures to operationalize a voting limitation in practice. Following the creation of the EMU the problem was discussed by the EP itself, although no measures were adopted to take account of the different degree of participation of Member States in specific policy areas, such as monetary policy and Schengen. This was very different from what happened in the Council where voting rights for non-participating countries were restricted.

Suggested Citation

Curtin, Deirdre M. and Curtin, Deirdre M. and Fasone, Cristina, Differentiated Representation: Is a Flexible European Parliament Desirable? (February 24, 2017). Bruno De Witte, Andrea Ott and Ellen Vos (eds), Between Flexibility and Disintegration, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3086104

Deirdre M. Curtin (Contact Author)

Amsterdam Centre for European Law and Governance ( email )

P.O.Box 1030
Amsterdam, 1000 BA
Netherlands

HOME PAGE: http://home.medewerker.uva.nl/d.m.curtin/

European University Institute, Department of Law, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies ( email )

Via Bolognese 156 (Villa Salviati)
50-139 Firenze
Italy

HOME PAGE: http://www.eui.eu/DepartmentsAndCentres/Law/People/Professors/Curtin.aspx

Cristina Fasone

LUISS Guido Carli ( email )

Department of Political Science
Viale Romania, 32
Rome, 00197
Italy

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