Developing a constitution for Europe

Abstract:

This book looks at the issues surrounding the development of a legitimate constitution for the EU. It addresses such issues as the need for a constitution, the authority of a non-state entity making such a constitution, and how that constitution might impact on the future of Europe.

The work is organised over thirteen chapters divided into three parts. The first part addresses the reasons for a constitution and the arguments against that proposal. Chapter two offers the basic structure of a European constitution and compares it with the United States. Chapter three explores the process with particular focus on the Charter of Fundamental Rights, then the limitations of a constitutionalised Charter of Rights are addressed in chapter four. The constraints presented by the current state of Europe being a group of member states are the focus of chapter five, and the relationship between constitution and state is analysed in chapter six.

The seventh chapter opens the second part of the book which looks at the 'how' of making a constitution, and considers what sort of constitution Europe needs and how it might be written. Chapter eight explores two of the different constitutional traditions of Europe - the revolutionary and the evolutionary. The dangers of state-made constitutions lacking popular support are examined in chapter nine. The historical process of constitutionalising Community Law is covered in chapter ten, featuring the three stages of legal renewal: from the EEC up to the Single European Act, via the Single European Act and the Maastricht Treaty to the European Convention.

The third part of the book opens with chapter eleven, which assesses the European Convention from three angles: as an expert forum, as a diplomatic conference, and as a constituent assembly. Chapter twelve concentrates on the Convention's deliberations, testing the extent to which the process differed from classical methods of intergovernmental negotiations in the EU. The final chapter addresses the results coming from the Convention's efforts at forging a constitutional and institutional framework.

The work will interest academics, students and researchers of European Politics.

Erik Oddvar Eriksen is Professor of Political Science at the University of Oslo.