Democracy Impacts

EU Official Concedes Overstep by Brussels

April 21, 2016

During a session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker acknowledged that "European citizens are stepping away" from the EU because the supranational organization interferes with too many aspects of their daily lives.
EU Pressures Member States on Migrant Relocation Scheme

April 20, 2016

In a review of the EU's progress on the "resettlement" of migrants from Turkey and the "relocation" of migrants who are already in the EU, the European Commission praised the progress of the resettlement program but called on EU member states to do more to provide for the relocation of large numbers of migrants located in Greece and Italy.
French Minister Warns of "Consequences" upon Brexit

April 19, 2016

Reuters reports that French Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron has warned that the UK will face "consequences" if its people vote to leave the EU in the form of trade barriers and the arrival of thousands of asylum seekers from France and other EU countries.
UK Treasury Predicts Dire Economic Consequences of "Brexit"

April 18, 2016

The BBC reports that a British Treasury document forecasting that the UK would suffer permanent economic harm if its people vote to leave the EU is touching off a wide-ranging debate over how accurately government officials can predict the consequences of "Brexit" on the British economy and finances.
NGO: Post-Brexit UK Would Succeed with Free Market Reforms

April 13, 2016

The nongovernmental organization Open Europe has produced a report asserting that a combination of leaving the EU, forming trade agreements with the bloc and other countries around the world, and pushing through free-market reforms would result in economic expansion in Britain.
EU Parliament Endorses Centralized Asylum System

April 13, 2016

The European Parliament has adopted a resolution calling for the EU to develop a "central system for collecting and allocating asylum applications" in place of the current, national-government-controlled system, and acknowledging that the new system might involve a "quota" for the resettlement of refugees in each EU member state.
After Dutch Vote, EU Politicians Criticize Use of Referenda

April 08, 2016

Politico reports that various Members of the European Parliament reacted to a vote in the Netherlands against an EU-Ukraine association agreement by criticizing the use of national referenda to permit citizens a voice on foreign policy decisions at the EU level and by expressing fear that the Dutch referendum process might spill over into other EU countries.
Dutch Voters Reject EU Policies in Referendum

April 07, 2016

The Guardian reports that, in a vote widely seen as an indicator of attitudes in the Netherlands regarding EU migration and economic policies, a large majority of Dutch voters participating in a recent referendum voted against an association agreement establishing closer ties between the EU and Ukraine.
Dutch Vote on Ukraine Deal Serves as Referendum on EU

April 06, 2016

Politico reports that a referendum the Netherlands is holding today on an EU-Ukraine "association agreement" serves as a strategy for EU opponents to register citizens' discontent with the bloc.
EU Seeks Centralized Asylum Powers in Relocation Proposal

April 06, 2016

A European Commission proposal for a new resettlement plan that would impose requirements on EU member states to take in refugees first registered in other countries includes new powers for an EU agency to decide asylum requests on behalf of national governments.