The EU Comitology System in Theory and Practice: Keeping an Eye on the Commission? (Palgrave Studies in European Union Politics)

EU law consists of several thousand acts of which the overwhelming majority are made by the Commission. The Commission is controlled by comitology, a system of committees of member state representatives that are consulted when new acts are proposed. This book looks at why the system was created, how it functions and how it has evolved. EU law consists of several thousand acts of which the overwhelming majority are made by the Commission. The Commission is controlled by comitology, a system of committees of member state representatives that are consulted when new acts are proposed. This book looks at why the system was created, how it functions and how it has evolved. There is a glaring imbalance between the impressive amount of research into first-tier EU decision-making by the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament and the limited research into second-tier EU rule-making by the Commission and the comitology committees. This book seeks to redress that imbalance and find answers to fundamental unresolved questions about the comitology system. It looks at why the system was created, how it has evolved over time and how it functions day to day. The EU Comitology System in Theory and Practice applies a novel theoretical approach, the delegation perspective, and provides answers by analysing a plurality of data sources, including EU legislative databases, survey data of comitology committees, legal documents and news reports. The book argues that member states use the comitology system to strike a balance between delegating powers to the Commission and controlling it Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 6 List of Figures......Page 7 List of Tables......Page 8 List of Boxes......Page 10 Foreword and Acknowledgements......Page 11 1 Introduction......Page 14 2 A Crackpot Concept......Page 28 3 A Delegation Perspective on Comitology......Page 47 4 The Origins of Comitology......Page 66 5 What is at Stake? A Case Study of the 2006 Comitology Reform......Page 85 6 Comitology Preferences in Daily Legislation......Page 107 7 Comitology Across Policy Areas......Page 131 8 The Comitology System in Daily Practice......Page 156 9 Conclusion......Page 189 Notes......Page 206 Literature......Page 210 Index......Page 225