Democracy and the European Constitution: majority voting and small Member States

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to shed light on the relation between large and small member states with regard to the majority principle. Since Maastricht at the latest the institutional discussion centers around the question of how to devise a decision
system which pays equal attention to the interests of small and large states in the European Union. This article challenges several underlying assumptions: that size is an important factor determining the political clout of a member state; the existence of 'natural' interest divergences and the competitive nature of the European politiy. Finally, it questions the intrinsic relation between majority voting and democracy.