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Law, Legitimacy, and European Governance

Law, Legitimacy, and European Governance Functional Participation in Social Regulation

Author: Stijn Smismans
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 9780199270309
Published In: July 2005
Format: Hardback , 544 pages
Jurisdiction: Europe ? Disclaimer:
Countri(es) stated herein are used as reference only

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Description
Contents
Author

Details

Examines the critical issue of the legitimacy of EU institutions
Assesses the role of interest groups in EU governance
Discussion of the democratic deficit makes this work of interest to both lawyers and political scientists
This volume examines the role of law in increasing the legitimacy of European decision-making by structuring and facilitating diverse forms of participation, representation, and deliberation whilst ensuring transparency and accountability. The democratic deficit and the legitimacy of the European Union have attracted the attention of both lawyers and political scientists, but few have examined normatively the role of interest groups or of functional participation in European governance.This book examines institutional settings, such as committees, agencies, and social dialogue within which such participation occurs. Moving beyond generalities, tye author provides a detailed empirical account of participation within one policy sector: EC occupational health and safety.

Smismans argues that different institutional settings for functional participation are underpinned by very different considerations: they weight balanced representation, deliberation, and expertise differently. He shows how this participation differs between legislation and regulatory implementation, and appraises the extent to which participation can compensate for a lack of territorial representation in implementation procedures, and can exert some control over 'scientific experts'. This book reveals changes in functional participation over time, from regulatory to persuasive policy-making; and argues that the 'new' forms of governance are not necessarily more participatory than the old.
Readership: Scholars and advanced students interested in EU Law, EU integration, EU legitimacy and democracy, European Labour Law and Industrial relations, and social policy.

1: Functional Participation: the Missing Link in the EU's Legitimacy Debate
2: Functional Participation in Social Regulation: the Case of European Occupational Health and Safety Policy
3: The European Economic and Social Committee
4: Tripartite Advisory Committees: The Advisory Committee on Safety and Hygiene
5: Information Agencies: the European Agency for Safety and Health Protection at Work
6: The European Social Dialogue
7: Functional Participation Across Stages and Modes of Policy Making
Conclusion
Bibliography

Stijn Smismans, Jean Monnet Fellow at the European University Institute, Florence