New forms of EU Governance and the EEA

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New forms of EU Governance and the EEA

• Jan Ole Gudmundsen, senior adviser

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EU- developments and Norway

• Government White Paper on European Policy
  (St.meld. nr. 23 2005-2006)
• Interministerial working group on new forms of EU
  governance and concequences for Norway
• Chaired by the Ministry of Government and
  Administration - assisted by Difi (former
  Statskonsult part of Difi)
• Working group report with recommendations pending
  (based on Difi Study)

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New forms of EU governance through treaty reform

• Single Act, 1987 introduced QMV in the Council
• Maastricht, 1993
• gave the EP lawmaking powers
• Introduced the open method of coordination
• new policy areas JHA and CFSP
• Amsterdam, 1999 parts of JHA transferred to the
  Community pillar
• The Lisbon Treaty ?
• Remaining third pillar will be abolished (in
  principle)
• Extention of co-decision to more policy areas
  (ordinary legislative procedure)
• Formal role for national parliaments (yellow
  card)

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Governance reforms within existing treaties

• White Paper on European Governance, 2001
• many of the proposals in the WP would not require
  treaty reform (Danish no to Maastricht, 1992,
  Irish no to Nice 2001 fresh in mind)
• Better regulation action plan
• better use of traditional regulation (hard law)
• more use of alternative instruments (soft law)
• Use of EU agencies and networks to increase
  cooperation with national administrations
  (multi-level administration

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The European Economic Agreement

• The EEA is pre-Maastricht based on the EC
  treaty as amended by the European Single Act,
  1987
• The EEA does not comprise JHA and CFSP
• hence separate (and bilateral) agreements
  (Schengen) and consultation mechanisms (CFSP)
  outside the EEA and EFTA
• Key aspects of new forms of EU governance which
  pose new challenges for the EEA/EFTA countries
• The European Parliament has become co-legislator
  
• the increase in horizontal initiatives/legislative
  packages
• Crosspillarization in the EU and problems with
  defining EEA-relevance
• the use of the open method of coordination in
  policy areas formally outside, but related to the
  EEA.
• the emergence of a system of multilevel
  administration

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The role of the EP and the EEA

• Pre-Maastricht Council sole EU legislative body
  
• Post Maastricht EP and Council the two
  arms of the EU-legislature
• The EPs importance has become far more visible
  over the last five years (first reading of the
  services directive in 2005 a landmark)
• Participation in expert groups (decision-shaping)
  less important when Commission proposals are
  amended (often considerably) by the EP
• Tracking decision-making in the EU implies
  keeping an eye on two legislative bodies instead
  of one.

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Horizontal EU-initiatives and the EEA

• Eks maritime policy, energy and climate,
  migration pact, social agenda,
• Arctic strategy and new Baltic Sea strategy in
  the pipeline
• Partly EEA-relevant, partly not but the Norwegian
  government has an active approach to all aspects
  of such crosscutting initiatives (St. meld. nr.
  23. 2005-2006)
• Challenges related to lack of access to the
  Council are even greater when several Council
  configurations are involved
• The increased importance of the EP of course adds
  to this challenge

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The problem of defining EEA-relevance

• The EEA the internal market the EC Treaty
  (minus certain policies) used to be the guiding
  principle
• Crosspillarisation and transfer of policy areas
  from the EU treaty to the EC Treaty (currently
  policies pertaining to external border control)
  makes this increasingly difficult. Examples
• Data protection directive
• aim is to combat serious crime and terrorism
  (outside the scope of the EEA).
• but the directive affects economic operators in
  the EU, for instance in telecom (which is within
  the scope of the EEA)
• decision on whether EEA-relevant or not is
  pending
• Directives on money-laundering
• aim is to combat economic crime (which is
  outside the scope of the EEA)
• affect suppliers of financial services (within
  the scope of the EEA.
• Three directives on money-laundering have been
  incorporated into the EEA

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The open method of coordination and the EEA

• The EEA does not include participation in
  OMC-related activities (the Lisbon strategy)
• But the OMC affects policy areas which are
  regulated by the EEA hence an active approach
  is desired
• Following the Lisbon Strategy is easier said than
  done
• requires political committment across a number of
  policy areas
• no reporting requirements from the European
  Commission
• lack of access to the (mainly intergovernmental)
  coordination mechanisms of the OMC.

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Multi-level administration in the EU

• From the latter part of the 1990s increased
  cooperation between EU-level and national-level
  adminstrations
• through a strong growth of expert groups (1237 in
  2007 an increase of 40 since 2000)
• through the establishment of
• EU agencies (1975 2, 19969, 200833)
• Administrative networks Ex telecom ERG, 2003,
  Competition ECN 2004
• Stronger obligations on national regulatory
  authorities (NRAs)
• independence (i.e not take instructions from
  national governments)
• coordination with the EU-level and MS NRAs
  (through agencies and adm. networks.

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The EEA and multi-level adminstration

• NRAs have a key role on behalf of the MS in the
  evolving multi-level system of administration -
  national ministries more peripheral
• Two-hatted role for NRAs
• advisory role/implementation agent for the
  Commission
• regulatory body reporting to national political
  masters (government ministries)
• Challenges for the EEA/EFTA-states
• obtain right to participate in EU agencies which
  have a key role in networking national
  administrations with the EU-level
• The EEA gives access to participation in expert
  groups and committees but not in EU agencies
• How do you supervise regulatory bodies from a
  national government point of view when their
  functions and tasks are laid down in EU-law?
• Member states can compensate through
  participation at political level in Council)

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