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A Note on Political Contestability and the Future of the E uropean U nion
Author(s) -
Weder Rolf,
Grubel Herbert G.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
kyklos
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.766
H-Index - 58
eISSN - 1467-6435
pISSN - 0023-5962
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-6435.2012.00544.x
Subject(s) - politics , treaty , democracy , european union , political science , european integration , democratic deficit , process (computing) , political economy , member states , public administration , law and economics , economics , international trade , law , computer science , operating system
Summary In this paper, we argue that, first, the contestable‐markets hypothesis increases our understanding of why and how public referenda and initiatives are beneficial for the political decision‐making process and, second, that these direct‐democratic instruments could solve some of the current and pending institutional problems of the European U nion ( EU ) and reshape its process of political integration. The Lisbon Treaty includes some attempts in this direction which, however, are half‐hearted and thus hardly increase the democratic control of the EU by its member states and their citizens.