The EU relies on networks of representatives from national institutions to assist in the implementation and enforcement its policies. Two recent studies show that there are multiple clusters on the welfare and healthcare networks, with implications for the effectiveness of this governance tool. Based on these studies, here the authors Dorte Sindbjerg Martinsen, Reini Schrama, […]
In the last decade, the EU’s foreign policy practices have grown increasingly complex. For instance, despite the centralisation envisaged by the Lisbon Treaty, informal groups of member states shaped the Union’s policy on Kosovo and Ukraine. Ten years after its ratification, some believe that the Lisbon Treaty failed to strengthen the EU activities in international […]
The European Union recovery fund could greatly increase the stability of the bloc and its monetary union. But the fund needs clearer objectives, sustainable growth criteria and close monitoring so that spending achieves its goals and is free of corruption. In finalising the fund, the EU should take the time to design a strong governance […]
The EU’s legitimacy depends on institutional procedures that respect democratic principles – both in cases of uniform and differentiated integration, Max Heermann argues. Crises often reveal the need for closer European cooperation. At the same time, they highlight divisions among the European Union’s member states about the right path forward. The COVID-19 pandemic is […]
EU researchers have been rather silent about rhetorical action in recent years. The current Brexit and Corona reconstruction negotiations show why they shouldn’t be, Dirk Leuffen and Pascal Mounchid argue. In the early 2000s, rhetorical action – the “strategic use of norm-based arguments” – was a powerfully used concept in academic debates on European integration. […]
The coronavirus measures implemented by the EU and member states have had differentiating effects, which ultimately may lead to further fragmentation of the European political system, argues EU3D researcher Filippa Chatzistavrou. The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered a global health and economic crisis. According to the World Bank, it has caused the worst economic recession with […]
Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the euro area slowdown was the result of EMU-induced domestic deflation. EU3D researcher Simona Piattoni offers a different reading of Italy’s disappointing economic performance. Since 2011, Italy has been considered the single largest threat to the stability of the euro. Italy’s high and growing debt (€2300 bn, some 135% of […]
The Franco-German Covid-19 recovery plan marks a shift in Germany’s EU policy, but the German public might not be on board, argues EU3D researcher Dirk Leuffen. The European Covid-19 recovery plan jointly proposed by Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel on May 18th is widely considered to mark a turning point in Germany’s more recent EU […]
The German Constitutional Court is stuck on an ideological position that prevents it from understanding the substantial difference between the German situation and European integration, argues Sergio Fabbrini and takes a closer look at some of the court’s rulings over the last decades. The judgment on 5 May by the German Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht or […]
The socio-economic effects of the coronavirus requires a massive and coordinated response from the EU. So far, the EU has not been up to the challenge, argues Marco Dani and Agustín José Menéndez. The coronavirus pandemic has deepened and radicalised a set of crises that the European Union postponed but did not solve in […]