Governance by informality in the European Union

Abstract

The last decade placed the European Union before a triple crisis. First, the global phenomenon of the rule of law and democratic backsliding appeared in the very heart of the Union, questioning its ability to anchor democracy but also to be a credible actor within its own member states and towards third countries. Second, the war in Ukraine reshuffled the power distribution on the international arena. Moreover, it forced EU actors to reevaluate the narrative behind the integration, asking whether our focus should continue to lie in the internal market harmonization, or whether it shall revisit the very beginning of the European project, the peace and democracy. Third, the crisis of regulatory state, fully demonstrated both during COVID-19 and increase of populism, showed its full effect inside the EU. This triple democratic crisis places certain expectations on EU institutions, member states, and the overall policy mechanism. How did the regulatory framework in which institutions operate change? How does it impact their performance vis-à-vis the triple crisis? This panel examines the politics of governance inside individual EU institutions. Some institutions rely on formal procedures and attempt to advance the EU’s regulatory framework so that it pertains the ability to respond to new challenges. Others rely on informal networks and practices There are also individual EU politicians willing to employ less transparent strategies and search for new solutions. The contributions in this panel cover a variety of actors: the EU, the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, and the European Commission, while they all explore internal governance and regulation styles and policies to understand better how these internal processes shape the ability of the EU as a whole to respond to the triple crisis and move forward.

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