The unseen hand in treaty reform negotiations: the role and influence of the Council Secretariat

Abstract:

The Council Secretariat is the unseen hand in treaty reform negotiations - highly influential but also overlooked. This article highlights the significance of this neglect, and more generally the problems with using crude either-or dichotomies on whether EU institutions matter. A leadership model is first developed that explains when we should expect EU institutions such as the Council Secretariat to matter vis-à-vis governments. It is hypothesized that the context of the specific negotiation and the leadership strategies employed by EU institutions determines their level of influence over treaty reform outcomes. The negotiation of the Treaties of Amsterdam and Nice are then investigated. It is found that even the most intergovernmental bargaining forum in the EU is not a purely intergovernmental affair. Evidence is produced that shows that the Council Secretariat has played an influential role in recent treaty reform negotiations. While the Secretariat played a more marginal role in the 2000 IGC, and had only moderate influence over outcomes, the Council Secretariat was very influential in the 1996-97 IGC owing to a combination of its high level of expertise, its reputation among governments of being a trusted assistant, its privileged institutional position, and its skilful use of pragmatic and behind-the-scenes instrumental leadership strategies.