Democratic Deficit

Question 1

What are the elements of the democratic deficit according to Hix and Hoyland (2011)?

Answer 1

(1) increased executive power and decreased parliamentary control
(2) EP too weak
(3) Elections are not ‘European’
(4) EU is too distant
(5) Policy drift

Question 2

Why is the democratic deficit overstated according to Moravcsik (2002)?

Answer 2

• core activities of EU are economic and controversial policies are dealt with intergovernmentally
• EU has limited fiscal abilities
• EP has gained powers over recent years (lots of checks and balances in EU)
• indirect accountability through presence of national government representatives

Question 3

Why does Hix (2008) argue that the EU needs a competition for power?

Answer 3

• citizens would have better understanding of issues
• parties must respond to voters if there is competition for power
• parties have incentive to work together across institutions
• more media attention if there are winners and losers (will aid citizen understanding)

Question 4

Was the introduction of spitzenkadidat in the 2014 EP elections helpful?

Answer 4

Election turnout still low

But knowledge of candidates did increase likelihood of voting at individual level

Question 5

What do Follesdal and Hix (2006) argue?

Answer 5

• indirect control via national gov provides control over policy where intergovermental decision making (e.g. CFSP) but not where supranational (e.g. regulation of single market)
• EP elections are second-order national elections
• need battle for commission president for greater democracy

Question 6

What does Majone (2000) propose that the EU needs to counter its credibility crisis?

Answer 6

• more transparent decision making
• review by courts and ombudsman
• greater professionalism and technical expertise
• rules that better protect the rights of minority interests
• better scrutiny by private actors, the media and parliamentarians at both EU and national level

Question 7

What Dinan (2015) report about the spitzenkandidaten process in 2014?

Answer 7

• did not affect voter behaviour or turnout in any significant way
• only generated much interest in Germany because of profile of two biggest EP party candidates

Question 8

What are Hix and Hoyland’s criticisms (2011) of the EU and lack of democratic legitimacy?

Answer 8

• EU polity cannot be considered democratic until some form of democratic political contestation over direction of EU policy agenda
• citizens have limited info and easily manipulated by policy entrepreneurs as no open political debate

Question 9

What does Hix (2015) argue about EMU bailouts and democracy?

Answer 9

National austerity packages subject to approval by national parliaments and EP scrutiny of Commission and ECB provides only weak legitimacy

Question 10

What does Crum (2013) argue about EMU democracy?

Answer 10

• shift in budgetary and economic affairs to EU
• need scrutiny of national parliaments of loan package conditions and compatibility with right to democratic self-governance

Question 11

What do Hale and Koenig-Archibug (2016) argue about the proposals for a contest of EU policy?

Answer 11

• EU citizens are ready for more democratic contestation in EU institutions
• consociational interpretation of EU suggests increase would be dangerous because of the divided nature of European society means groups would be locked in persistent minorities
• but they found that citizens are not subject to higher risk under more competitive gov than they are in their own country