Constructing a New Scottish parliament for the ‘Europe of regions

Can institutional engineering assure subsidiarity

Bibliographic Data

ID6291817
AuthorsWilliam M Downs (Georgia State University, corresponding author)
Year2000
Volume6
Issue2
Pages67-92
Publication date2000-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Legislative Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1357-2334 • E-ISSN: 1743-9337
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/13572330008420623
OpenAlexW2038726600
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited18

The creation of an elected parliament in Scotland raises questions for legislative scholars, among them how a parliamentary body representing a stateless nation within a member state of the European Union can influence and implement European legislation. One version of the 'principle of subsidiarity' states that decisions are taken as closely as possible to the citizen, encouraging assemblies throughout the EU to articulate and implement their own preferences in key policy areas. Reporting findings from a survey of the Scottish parliament's first cohort of legislators, this article identifies conflicting perceptions of subsidiarity, charts how best to pursue it, and evaluates the institutional norms, rules and procedures put in place to help secure it. Data demonstrate that preferences vary by level of MSP knowledge about European policy, by party membership and by method of election. Low levels of legislator knowledge combined with internal divisiveness constitute barriers to institutional strength in the pursuit of subsidiarity

Economic policy · Economics · European union · Legislation · Legislator · Legislature · Parliament · Political science · Politics · State (computer science · Stateless protocol · Subsidiarity · European Union Policy and Governance · Human Rights and Immigration · Law · Political Systems and Governance · Public Administration

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