EU’s multi-level system: Strengthening parliamentary voices

Although citizens’ trust in political institutions and the European Union as a whole has recovered slightly, better parliamentary scrutiny can reduce the perceived democratic deficit of the EU’s multi-level system. This Policy Paper, written by Valentin Kreilinger, research fellow at the Jacques Delors Institut – Berlin, is guided by the principles of building upon current practices and avoiding Treaty change. It recommends to

1. refrain from assigning any collective decision-making or veto powers to national parliaments,
2. acknowledge the diversity of political views within parliamentary chambers at the national and the European level,
3. put a green card procedure for suggesting legislative initiatives to the European Commission into practice,
4. extend the eight-week standstill period in the Early Warning Mechanism through a technical gimmick,
5. manage the European Parliament’s plenary debate invitations to national leaders free from party-political considerations
6. and create the foundations for lively and visible plenary debates with national leaders in the European Parliament.