The European Constitution Project from the Perspective of Constitutional Political Economy

Lars Feld

No 200415, Marburg Working Papers on Economics from Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung)

Abstract: Three topics of a European constitution are discussed. First, basic arguments from constitutional political economy that aim at restricting representatives’ potential misuse of powers in a European Union with extended competencies are summarized. Since a European demos does not yet exist, an extension of competencies of the European Parliament is not sufficient in order to legitimate political decisions at the EU level. The introduction of elements of direct democracy in the European constitution would shape the creation of such a demos and lead to a stronger control of the European legislature and executive. Second, the introduction of direct democracy in the European constitution is proposed in order to reduce the European democratic deficit. Third, the creation of a European federation requires a more transparent assignment of competencies and rules to resolve conflicts between different centers of power. A European federation should be organized according to the principles of competitive federalism.

Keywords: European Constitutional Convention; Bill of Rights; Separation of Powers; Competitive Federalism; Referendums; European demos. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D78 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 28 pages
Date: 2004
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http://www.uni-marburg.de/fb02/makro/forschung/gel ... onstFinal_gesamt.pdf First version, 2004 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: The European constitution project from the perspective of constitutional political economy (2005)
Working Paper: The European Constitution Project from the Perspective of Constitutional Political Economy (2005)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:mar:volksw:200415

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