Understanding EU Decision-Making

This book presents in a concise and accessible way why the EU institutional system exists in its present form, how the EU fits into the world as a system of governance, and who is involved in EU policy processes. It outlines the historical context which has shaped the EU system, gives a summary of the system's basic principles and structures, and describes its actors, procedures and instruments. The main theme is to show that EU decision-making is not just a matter of action at some higher and separate level, of 'them and us', but rather that it involves different forms of cooperation between European, national and regional authorities, as well as interaction between public and private actors. Numerous short case studies illustrate how people's day-to-day activities are affected by EU decisions, and how individuals' concerns are represented in the decision-making process. The book provides insights and examples which will be very helpful for all students of European integration. It will also be a valuable resource for European citizens wishing to understand the basic realities and rationales, as well as some of the dilemmas, behind EU policy-making.

Edward Best (1958) is Head of Unit at the European Institute of Public Administration (EIPA), Maastricht, and honorary Senior Fellow of Maastricht University. He specializes in European institutions and the political aspects of European integration as well as comparative regionalism and the management of regional organizations. He has been responsible for successive framework contracts to provide training services to the EU institutions on European governance, and has given regular courses in the European Commission and EU Agencies. He is the author of EU Law-Making in Principle and Practice (Routledge, 2014). He is co-editor of The Institutions of the Enlarged European Union (Edward Elgar, 2008) with Thomas Christiansen and Pierpaolo Settembri, and of Rethinking the European Union: IGC 2000 and Beyond (EIPA, 2000) with Mark Gray and Alexander Stubb, and has published numerous articles on the EU and institutional arrangements for regional integration.