Rediscovering Europe in the Netherlands - St Antony's College ...

ediscovering europe in the netherlands
and Council of Ministers) and the independent European Court of Justice.
However, not only institutional but also substantive safeguards are relevant.
At the European level, for instance, these include the safeguards
enshrined in treaties relating to the internal market (the four freedoms) to
which the actions of the eu must be geared.
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In addition to such ‘horizontal’ safeguards at the European level, ‘vertical’
safeguards function in the relationship between the eu and the member
states. Examples are the ‘competence catalogue’ (Kompetenz-Katalog),
national vetoes and subsidiarity. However, European integration also has
consequences for the separation of powers within member states. In most
member states, a shift has taken place whereby the executive power has
acquired more power, largely at the expense of national parliaments.
This development is in fact not limited to eu policy, although it manifests
itself prominently in that domain. In several countries this shift has led to
the introduction of correction mechanisms aimed at preserving or restoring
the balance between government and Parliament. The most striking
example in this regard is the parliamentary mandate to which the Danish
government is bound in its decision making on eu policy (Van den Brink
2004).
The last type of safeguards involves the citizens. Based on the doctrine of
direct effect, individuals may seek recourse in national courts to enforce
compliance with European law, in both horizontal (i.e., with regard to
other citizens and businesses) and vertical (i.e., vis-à-vis the national
government) relationships. European law itself already offers an elaborated
framework for this. The judiciary can consequently provide a substantial
counterweight to the growing power of the administrative branch,
provided citizens are sufficiently aware of the possibility of this aspect.
Safeguards thus have a protective function in the context of European cooperation.
However, it is not just the protection of the individual against
national and European administrative institutions that is at stake, but the
protection mechanisms available within and between these levels are just
as relevant. By their very nature, safeguards are reciprocal in their application.
The subsidiarity principle provides a good illustration in this respect;
not only does it offer protection to the member states against unbridled
intervention by the eu, but it also provides a guarantee that decisions will
be taken at the Community level if the eu is in a better position to take
those decisions than the individual member states.
Chapter 2 of this report argued that Dutch politicians and administrators
often obstruct the legitimisation of eu policy in the Netherlands rather