On 31 January 2020 the United Kingdom (UK) left the European Union (EU). In the European Parliament (EP), Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) cried together and folded flags. It marked the... Show moreOn 31 January 2020 the United Kingdom (UK) left the European Union (EU). In the European Parliament (EP), Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) cried together and folded flags. It marked the end of an era. At the end of that year, after much agony, the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) was signed on 24 December 2020 and the ratification was completed in April 2021. The TCA allows both entities tariff-free, quota-free access to markets for goods. Services are not part of the TCA. Part of the agreement are also fishing rights as well as cooperation in the area of security (e.g., in the area of information sharing security related to matters of internal security), but no mention of security and defence collaboration. There are still many unresolved issues. Some of these issues involve fishing matters (Reuters, 2021). But collaboration in security and defence matters is also crucial as demonstrated by the need to deal with the war in Ukraine that erupted following the Russian invasion on 24 February. Show less
Concerns about democratic decline and deficit have recently led to repeated calls for institutional changes that could enhance civil participation and direct voter participation in public decision... Show moreConcerns about democratic decline and deficit have recently led to repeated calls for institutional changes that could enhance civil participation and direct voter participation in public decision-making (forms of direct democracy). An evergreen among the instruments proposed is the referendum, and in particular the constitutionally embedded referendum. This would grant a constitutional right to trigger a referendum and is something that is currently under consideration in the Netherlands. It is often assumed that constitutionally embedded referendums can correct systemic flaws in a representative democratic system, thus enhancing the overall democratic score of a country. This contribution considers these premises. By means of an empirical study, it examines whether the democracy index score of a country is related to constitutionally ratified rights to direct legislative influence of citizens, such as referendums and legislative initiatives by citizens. The initial results indicate that codifying referendum procedures as a constitutional right does indeed positively relate to the democratic scores of countries worldwide. This effect, however, does not hold true for the sample of EU countries studied. Show less
Het initiatiefwetsvoorstel van Van Raak voor het opnemen van een grondwettelijke bepaling die het mogelijkmaakt een correctief bindend referendum te organiseren is in eerste lezing aanvaard. Thans... Show moreHet initiatiefwetsvoorstel van Van Raak voor het opnemen van een grondwettelijke bepaling die het mogelijkmaakt een correctief bindend referendum te organiseren is in eerste lezing aanvaard. Thans ligt het in tweedelezing voor aan de Tweede Kamer. In eerste lezing is de uitkomstdrempel echter geamendeerd met als gevolgeen bijzonder lage kans op een geldige referendumuitslag. De huidige balans tussen directe en indirectedemocratie zal daarom met deze grondwetswijziging niet veranderen, laat staan dat de democratie erdoor zalworden versterkt. De referendumbepaling kan in deze vorm niet meer zijn dan een vergeefse poging extralegitimiteitsglans te geven aan onze stoffige Grondwet. Nu het doel van de bepaling niet verwezenlijkt lijkt tekunnen worden, rijst de vraag of het nog zinnig is om de referendumbepaling in de Grondwet op te nemen. Show less
