Steering Europe: explaining the rise of the European Council, 1975-1986

Mourlon-Druol, E. (2016) Steering Europe: explaining the rise of the European Council, 1975-1986. Contemporary European History, 25(3), pp. 409-437. (doi: 10.1017/S0960777316000242)

Abstract

This article seeks to explain the emergence of the European Council at the heart of Europe’s governance between 1975 and 1986. It highlights four factors that quickly made the newly-created institution both indispensable and stable, despite concerns over the excessive reliance on the intergovernmental method in European cooperation processes. These factors were the rise of globalisation in its multi-faceted policy dimensions; a satisfactory new-found institutional balance; the public impact of/societal actors’ connections with regular and frequent heads of government’s meetings; and the democratic legitimacy issue in European integration. The article further argues that this period witnessed the de facto emergence of the three-pillar Maastricht structure, and shows how the study of the early days of the EEC can shed light on the current development of the EU and the European Council after the 2009 Lisbon Treaty.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Mourlon-Druol, Professor Emmanuel
• Authors: Mourlon-Druol, E.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Management
• Journal Name: Contemporary European History
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• ISSN: 0960-7773
• ISSN (Online): 1469-2171
• Published Online: 23 June 2016
• Copyright Holders: Copyright© 2016 Cambridge University Press
• First Published: First published in Contemporary European History 25(3): 409-437
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher