Rediscovering Europe in the Netherlands
National politicians and policymakers should take the lead in identifying major issues facing Europe. They must explicitly promote their choices and explain them. Only then will Dutch citizens be willing in the future to accept the legitimacy of new EU policies, the WRR concludes in its report Rediscovering Europe in the Netherlands (Report no. 78, 2007).
A future-proof policy
In the referendum held in June 2005, the Dutch people rejected the European Constitutional Treaty. The government then asked the WRR for its advice on ways of strengthening the political and social anchoring of EU policies in the Netherlands. In its report the WRR suggests a variety of instruments for a future-proof EU policy in the Netherlands. The aim of the proposals is to make Europe more relevant, more visible and, above all, more political in the Netherlands.
Strategic role for the prime minister
For example, guarantees about the significance and aims of the Netherlands’ EU membership should be inserted in the Dutch Constitution. The WRR also advocates a more strategic role for the prime minister in European affairs and calls for the introduction of a ‘preferendum’ rather than a referendum. In a preferendum, citizens would be presented with a number of substantive alternatives at an early stage of the policy-making process, rather than a simple yes-or-no question after the fact.
The WRR published this report at the request of the government.
Attachments
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Encapsulating services in the polder. The Bolkestein directive in Dutch politics
Webpublication 31 - J. Pelkmans and S. van Kessel
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The Habitats Directive. A case of contested Europeanization
Webpublication 30 - M. van Keulen
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The Accession of Turkey to the European Union: the political decision-making process
Webpublication 29 - S. Hollander
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Dutch EU-policies with regard to legal migration - The directive on family reunification
Webpublication 28 - M. den Heijer
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Connection, consumer, citizen. Liberalising the European Union gas market
Webpublication 27 - L. Hancher and T. Boersma
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How to solve the riddle of belated Euro Contestation in the Netherlands?
Webpublication 26 - E.R. Engelen
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The EU Constitutional Treaty in the Netherlands. Could a better embedding have made a difference?
Webpublication 25 - B. Crum
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Europe in the Netherlands: political parties
Webpublication 24 - H. Pellikaan, H. Vollaard and S. Otjes
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The Dutch third sector and the European Union. Connecting citizens to the EU?
Webpublication 22 - E. van den Berg and T. Brandsen
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No news is bad news! The role of the media and news framing in embedding Europe
Webpublication 20 - C.H. de Vreese
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Citizens and the legitimacy of the European Union
Webpublication 19 - J. Thomassen
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The psychology and economics of attitudes in The Netherlands
Webpublication 18 - H. Prast
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Faces of Europe. Searching for leadership in a new political style
Webpublication 17 - D. Pels
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Political Economy of European integration in the polder. Asymetrical supranational governance and the limits of legitimacy of Dutch EU policy-making
Webpublication 15 - B. van Apeldoorn