Abstract:

After the surprisingly poor results of the European Council of Nice and looking ahead to enlargement, Europe is now engaged in a constitutional debate. The European Union must rethink: first, the horizontal power sharing between the Union and its Member States, to apply better the principle of subsidiarity; and, second, the vertical power sharing between European Institutions, in terms of a clear executive and legislative function for each of them. This new structure must be competent, must delegate authority clearly and efficiently, and give to European Union citizens the possibility of sanctioning the players through elections. Without excluding the other States, France and Germany will have to maintain their traditional “motor” in European integration. In bringing together their two very different political systems, they must create a governance structure sui generis for the European Union.

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