Guardians of EU law? Analysing roles and behaviour of Dutch legislative drafters involved in EU compliance
Publication year
2018Author(s)
Publisher
London : Routledge
Series
Journal of Public Policy Series
ISBN
9780815360001
In
Thomann, E.; Sager, F. (ed.), Innovative approaches to EU multilevel implementation, pp. 37-55Publication type
Part of book or chapter of book
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Editor(s)
Thomann, E.
Sager, F.
Organization
Bestuurskunde t/m 2019
Languages used
English (eng)
Book title
Thomann, E.; Sager, F. (ed.), Innovative approaches to EU multilevel implementation
Page start
p. 37
Page end
p. 55
Subject
Journal of Public Policy Series; Institute for Management ResearchAbstract
By drafting statutes and delegated acts, national legislative drafters play a crucial
role in European Union (EU) compliance. Given their extensive legal training,
they can be expected to operate as ‘guardians of EU law’ and thus correct
national non-compliant tendencies. Yet, they also have a role as politically
loyal civil servants, responsive to national political demands. This
conntribution answers the question of to what extent Dutch legislative
drafters fulfil a role of ‘guardian of EU law’. Using in-depth interviews, the
paper analyses legislative drafters’ role conceptions and their strategies in
case national political demands prove incompatible with EU legal
requirements. It finds that most Dutch legislative drafters try to reconcile EU
law with their ministers’ political demands, if necessary by reinterpreting EU
law. When this proves unfeasible, most respondents prioritize political loyalty
over EU legality. Ultimately, therefore, legislative drafters do not form an
insurmountable normative factor in EU compliance.
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
- Academic publications [245262]
- Nijmegen School of Management [18704]
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