The parliamentary dimension of the Presidency of the Council of the EU: a framework for systematic research

Abstract

ABSTRACT Strengthening the role of national parliaments in EU matters has triggered a broad discussion on whether the legislatures are effective and which parliamentary functions they should fulfil within the EU political system. The involvement of national legislatures can be measured by applying the concept of parliamentary strength based on a set of indicators. However, some important elements of parliamentary activities and functions are fully overlooked in the existing literature, especially the participation of national parliaments in the preparation for and administration of the Council Presidency within the framework of the ‘parliamentary dimension’ of the rotating Presidency. Despite the growing importance of the Presidency Parliament, which goes hand-in-hand with the broadening of the framework for inter-parliamentary cooperation, current research pays little attention to this topic, even though it is important for understanding parliamentary strength in EU policy-making. For this reason, this paper presents a summary of the current body of knowledge with the aim of proposing an analytical framework which can be used for future systematic research in this field.