Towards a more democratic European Union

In the debate on the future of the EU, fundamental institutional issues are – for the first time since the signing of the Lisbon Treaties – again under discussion. Should the Presidency of the Commission and the European Council be merged? Are “Spitzenkandidaten” and transnational lists needed for the European Parliament elections? And how can national parliaments be strengthened in the European context?
In this Policy paper, Valentin Kreilinger, research fellow at the Jacques Delors Institut – Berlin, reviews the various proposals made over the past months and examines the legal prerequisites as well as the political scope of action for their potential implementation.