Participatory democracy, civil society and social Europe : a legal and political perspective / Gautier Busschaert.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Busschaert, Gautier, author.

Series:

Law and cosmopolitan values ; 8.

Law and cosmopolitan values ; 8

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Social integration--Government policy--European Union countries.

Social integration.

Constitutional law--European Union countries.

Constitutional law.

Social integration--Government policy.

European Union countries.

Citizenship--European Union countries.

Citizenship.

Political participation--European Union countries.

Political participation.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xii, 237 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Intersentia, 2016.

System Details:

text file

PDF

Summary:

Participatory democracy has become a buzzword in current discussions about how to democratize the EU. European institutions associate it with civil society involvement in European governance and claim that it might reduce its so-called democratic deficit. The Treaty of Lisbon formalizes this promise by enacting a new Article 11 TEU specifically dedicated to participatory democracy as a founding principle of the EU legal order. This participatory turn has already attracted much scholarly attention. However, two fundamental paradoxes have been overlooked. Whereas participatory democracy was traditionally meant to further the maximum participation of citizens in political life, the EU supports a modern version of the participatory ideal where citizens are represented by a selfdesignated elite of civil society experts. This book takes a critical stance on that technocratic form of government. At the same time, it examines whether there are realistic ways for a bureaucratic organization like the EU to involve a truly civil society of active citizens in governance. Participatory democracy was also intended to overcome the social inequalities of market capitalism. Yet, the EU came into existence as a European economic community embracing free and undistorted competition. This book claims that European civil society may only flourish if social Europe acts as a counterweight to economic Europe. So it analyses whether the EU has developed a social dimension strong enough to protect civil society from the colonizing forces of European economic integration. The author is currently working as an attorney at Van Olmen and Wynant, a Brussels-based law firm with a niche expertise in social and employment law. He also holds a PhD in law from the University of Leicester, awarded for the doctoral thesis upon which this book is based.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Democratic EU: from Representation to Participation 1

1.1 Introduction 1

1.2 Representative Democracy and the Community Method 1

1.3 Participatory Democracy and the Community Method 5

1.3.1 Citizenship 5

1.3.2 Organised Civil Society 7

1.4 Participatory Democracy and the Open Method of Coordination 11

1.5 Assessing the Participatory Turn: Outline 13

Chapter 2 Reviewing the Participatory Ideal of Bits and Pieces 17

2.1 Introduction 17

2.2 The Participatory Theory of Democracy and Its Limits 17

2.3 Battling for the Soul of (European) Civil Society 21

2.4 Deliberative Democracy and Its Limits 25

2.5 Conclusions 34

Chapter 3 Overcoming the Participatory Ideal of Bits and Pieces 35

3.1 Introduction 35

3.2 Civil Society: a Sphere of Participation between State and Market 36

3.3 Organised Civil Society in Multilevel Social Europe 40

3.4 European Economic Law: Colonising? 44

3.5 Social Europe: Democratic? 50

3.6 Social Europe: Effective? 54

Chapter 4 Revisiting the Fundamentals of Internal Market Law 57

4.1 Introduction 57

4.2 Freedom of Establishment 60

4.3 Freedom to Provide Services 63

4.4 Delivering Welfare Services Financed by Social Solidarity; an Economic Activity? 68

4.5 Civil Solidarity in an Economic Context 71

4.6 Conclusions 73

Chapter 5 Revisiting the Fundamentals of European Competition Law 77

5.1 Introduction 77

5.2 Are CSOs Undertakings? 79

5.3 CSOs and Anti-Competitive Agreements 83

5.3.1 Balancing Competition against Social Goals under Article 101(1) TFEU 85

5.3.2 Integrating Social Goals within Competition under Article 101(1) TFEU 88

5.3.3 Integrating Social Goals within Competition under Article 101(3) TFEU 90

5.4 CSOs and State Aids 93

5.5 Conclusions 98

Chapter 6 The Civil Dialogue - A Magic Cure for the Democratic Ailments of the Community Method? 101

6.1 Introduction 101

6.2 European Civil Society: an Elite Game 104

6.3 Procedural Rules I: Opening Consultations 110

6.4 Procedural Rules II: Democratising European Civil Society 120

6.5 Conclusions 126

Chapter 7 The Open Method of Coordination - Radicalising Participatory Democracy in the EU? 129

7.1 Introduction 129

7.2 Theoretical Promises 132

7.3 Practical Disappointments 133

7.4 Reforming the Social OMC 140

7.4.1 Legal Reforms 143

7.4.2 Political Reforms 147

7.4.3 Constitutional Reforms 148

7.5 Conclusions 151

Chapter 8 Looking Back-Moving Forward 153

8.1 Introduction 153

8.2 European Economic Law: Colonising? 154

8.3 Social Europe: Democratic? 163

8.3.1 The Community Method 163

8.3.2 The Open Method of Coordination 165

8.3.3 Comparative Assessment 166

8.4 Social Europe: Effective? 167

8.4.1 The Community Method 167

8.4.2 The Open Method of Coordination 172

8.4.3 Comparative Assessment 178.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 02 Oct 2018).

Other Format:

Print version:

ISBN:

9781780687438

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.