Chapter 4. Methods, data and research design
4.2 Indicators
We developed indicators to measure the institutional and motivational features of parliamentary involvement in EU affairs. First, we need to assess the formal capacities and their evolution in each chamber. The aggregation of institutional capacities and parliamentary practices might then allow us to determine effective parliamentary involvement. Several rankings of parliaments were made according to their institutional strength in EU affairs (Auel/Rozenberg/Tacea, In: Hefftler/Neuhold/Rozenberg/Smith, 2015; Karlas, 2011; Maurer/Wessels, 2001; Raunio, 2005; Winzen, 2012). Scholars understand parliamentary involvement differently, but all of them focus merely on formal structures and rules (Auel /Rozenberg/Tacea, In: Hefftler/Neuhold/Rozenberg/Smith, 2015). The measurement of parliamentary involvement in EU affairs does not elicit unanimity among scholars. Winzen measures parliamentary control of European affairs using indicators such as the availability and scope of information transferred to the parliament, the resources and structures to process the information (distinction between European Affairs Committees and standing committees) and the mandating rights (Winzen, 2012). Karlas focuses on the scrutiny power of parliaments using four dimensions: the information access, the scope and decentralisation of scrutiny as well as the ability of the parliament to issue binding mandates (Karlas, 2011). Bergman focuses exclusively on EACs and takes account of their composition, their competences depending on the EU policy pillars and their ability to bind their government’s position (Bergman, 1997).
The main criticism that can be addressed to these rankings is their tendency for biased and outdated results. Indeed, the authors grade parliamentary involvement according to formal capacities without including informal tools and actors’ motivations in their analysis. Most studies were conducted in the 2000’s and do not take future evolutions into account. Measuring motivations is all the more difficult as it has to found on qualitative criteria, which are absent in these quantitative-oriented rankings. Auel et al. try to integrate both formal, informal and motivational aspects of parliamentary control (Auel/Rozenberg/Tacea, 2015). They assess activities such as the issuing of mandates and resolutions, the number and times of EAC meetings and plenary debates, the number of submitted opinions to the European Commission in the framework of the political dialogue, as well as MPs’ motivation to engage in European affairs. Both institutional capacities, parliamentary activities and some motivational aspects underpinning the former are included in their analysis. However, it remains largely quantitative and gives only hints for further investigation into actors’ motivations regarding EU politics.
Treaty negotiations might affect parliamentary rules and organisation to a significant extent. Therefore, one objective will be to analyse the evolution of formal parliamentary capacities in the three chambers, determining the causes of such an evolution and further consequences. Institutional capacities comprehend parliaments’ formal capacities to deal with EU affairs, be it through their legislative function, their scrutiny function or their communication function. Institutional aspects of parliamentary involvement are easier to measure due to their predominant quantitative nature and the easy access to the sources. This first aspect can be labelled “institutional Europeanisation”. Institutional factors such as parliamentary control capacities of governmental activities or a parliament’s internal
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organisation might have an impact on the actual parliamentary involvement in EU affairs. Depending whether the EU scrutiny procedures are decentralised such as in the Luxembourg Chamber of Deputies, or centralised in the Austrian National Council and in the Finnish Eduskunta, MPs will deal differently with EU matters. Parliamentary resources in general, dependent on the small size of these countries, determine the ability of parliamentarians to make use of scrutiny instruments.
Another objective will be to examine MPs’ attitudes and ideological position towards European integration, their beliefs regarding their parliament’s role during and after negotiations, in sum their motivations for engaging in EU affairs during treaty negotiations. The establishment and measurement of motivational factors turns out to be trickier because of their blurred definition and the large leeway for subjective interpretation. As scholarly attention on motivational aspects of Europeanisation is rather new, no homogeneous method and indicators have been developed to measure incentives, even less in European matters. Thus, we developed criteria partly retrieved from secondary literature and partly elaborated according to our research objectives. Motivational factors encompass parliamentarian’s personal and/or political experiences, their current involvement in parliament and more specifically in EU affairs and finally their opinion on their parliament’s role, on EU affairs, as well as on EU and intergovernmental treaties. The following table (table 6) sums up the main indicators established in the framework of the present thesis that served as background for the analysis of parliamentary documents and interviews. Both list of explanatory factors have to be considered as constantly interdependent from each other, in the light of the new-institutionalist argument of close interdependency between agents and structures.
Table 6: Indicators measuring parliamentary involvement
MOTIVATIONAL FACTORS
Indicator Description Data
1. Experiences Political and personal experiences prior to parliamentary mandate and linked to EU affairs 1.1 political experience regarding
EU affairs and treaty negotiations
Political experience prior to parliamentary mandate 1.1.1 Membership length and
position in political party
Level and type of engagement in political party prior to
parliamentary mandate
Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 1.1.2 Experience in the Executive Functions in the Executive
(ministries, embassies etc) prior or in between parliamentary mandates Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 1.1.3 Length of parliamentary mandate Long-term or short-term membership in parliament Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 1.1.4 Overlapping mandates: local
vs national
Simultaneous political mandates on local and national level
Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 1.2 Personal experience linked to
EU affairs
Personal experience prior to parliamentary mandate
1.2.1 Studies Type of studies and link to EU
affairs
Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 1.2.2 Professional experience
linked to EU
Professional experience prior to parliamentary mandate, public vs private sector
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linked to EU
Membership in national or European associations with link to EU affairs
Interviews
2. Involvement within parliament
Individual level of involvement within parliament in EU affairs and in particular during EU and intergovernmental treaty negotiations
2.1 Distribution of functions within parliament
Positioning within parliament 2.1.1 Member of majority vs
opposition
Political positioning within parliament
Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 2.1.2 Number of committee
memberships
Multiple/ overlapping committee memberships
Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 2.2 Type of functions within
parliament
MPs’ functions and competences within parliament
2.2.1 Membership in specialised parliamentary committees vs EAC
Type of membership in parliamentary committees and reasons for membership
Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 2.2.2 Rapporteurship on issues related to EU and intergovernmental treaty Specialisation in specific EU dossiers Interviews, parliamentary documents
2.2.3 Chairman of a committee Responsibility functions Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 2.2.4 EU- or foreign affairs
speaker of a parliamentary group
Speaker function with potential specialisation in specific EU dossiers Interviews 2.2.5 Member of an interparliamentary delegation/conference Level of participation in interparliamentary cooperation formats Interviews, profiles on parliamentary websites 2.3 Parliamentary activity MPs’ effective level of
involvement in EU affairs 2.3.1 Initiatives regarding
parliamentary participation rights
Individual or party initiatives taken to strengthen parliamentary rights through amendments to legal bases
Interviews, parliamentary documents
2.3.2 Use of parliamentary instruments (questions, motions, interpellations etc)
Frequency, purpose and distribution of the use of parliamentary tools among MPs
Interviews, parliamentary documents
3. Opinion on parliament MPs’ opinion on the role of their
parliament in national and European politics
3.1 Opinion on relations with other institutions
(Dis)satisfaction with the interaction of parliament with other national and European bodies
3.1.1 Relation with executive Information policy and
coordination with the Executive on EU affairs
Interviews
3.1.2 Relation with upper chamber (AT)
Coordination on EU affairs with the Federal Council in Austria
Interviews 3.1.3 Relation with European
institutions
Direct information exchange and cooperation mechanisms with EU institutions (political dialogue)
Interviews
3.1.4 Relation with MEPs Direct contact with MEPs from the same country
Interviews 3.1.5 Relation with civil society Cooperation with civil society
(professional chambers, trade unions) on EU affairs through
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meetings, hearings, auditions, opinions etc
3.2 Opinion on parliament’s scrutiny infrastructure in EU affairs
(Dis)satisfaction with scrutiny infrastructure in EU affairs
3.2.1 Opinion on organisational structures/resources
Opinion on the availability of resources for parliamentary work
Interviews 3.2.2 Opinion on support of
parliamentary administration
Opinion on the availability, competences and support of administrative personnel within parliament
Interviews
3.2.3 Opinion on party internal organisation/support in EU affairs
Opinion on availability of resources and personnel within parliamentary groups and political parties
Interviews
3.3 Opinion on parliamentary activity
(Dis)satisfaction with the level of parliamentary activity and awareness of MPs about EU affairs, in particular during EU and intergovernmental treaty negotiations
3.3.1 Opinion on overall level of activity in EU affairs
Opinion on the level of involvement of MPs and their awareness about EU affairs
Interviews
3.3.2 Opinion on activity during EU and intergovernmental treaty negotiations
Opinion on MPs’ level of involvement in the follow-up of EU and intergovernmental treaty negotiations
Interviews
4. Opinion on EU (Dis)satisfaction with the European integration process and salience of EU treaties and intergovernmental treaties on the EMU
4.1 General opinion on EU affairs Position on European integration process and perception of EU affairs
4.1.1 Ideological/political position on EU integration
Pro-EU vs euroscepticism Interviews, party electoral programmes
4.1.2 Opinion on the nature and salience of EU affairs
Characterisation of EU issues and their level of importance for each MP, general level of interest for EU issues
Interviews
4.1.3 Opinion on cooperation with the EU level (EU institutions, interparliamentary cooperation)
(Dis)satisfaction with
interparliamentary cooperation formats and cooperation with other European bodies
Interviews
4.2 Position on EU treaties and intergovernmental treaties on the EMU
Political position on and salience level of each EU and
intergovernmental treaty 4.2.1 Ideological/political position
on EU treaties and
intergovernmental treaties on the EMU
Support or rejection of EU treaties and intergovernmental treaties on the EMU Interviews, parliamentary documents 4.2.2 Opinion on interparliamentary cooperation formats
(Dis)satisfaction about Article 13 Conference
Interviews
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Indicator Description Data
1. Legislative function Oversight functions in EU affairs 1.1 Information policy Exchange of information with
different national and European bodies
1.1.1 Legal basis Legal framework regulating
information exchange
National constitutions, laws and internal Rules of procedures 1.1.2 Coordination with
government
Mechanisms of information exchange with the government, within and outside parliament 1.1.4 Cooperation with other
national actors (civil society, national jurisdictions, professional chambers etc)
Mechanisms of information exchange with different national bodies
National constitutions, laws, parliamentary documents, interviews 1.1.5 Party meetings/parliamentary group meetings Mechanisms of information exchange internal to parliamentary groups and political parties
Interviews
1.1.6 EU working groups within parties
Organisation, composition, competences of party EU working groups
Interviews
1.1.7 Use of MEPs staff resources within NPs
Availability and mechanisms of MEPs’ staff resource mobilisation
Interviews 1.1.8 Direct cooperation with
MEPs
Direct exchange of information with MEPs, either within political party, within parliament or on European level within EP and interparliamentary cooperation formats
Parliamentary documents, interviews
1.1.9 Direct contact with parliament permanent representation in Brussels
Mechanisms of information exchanges with parliaments’ representative in Brussels
Interviews
1.1.10 Direct contact with countries’ permanent representation in Brussels
Mechanisms of information with countries’ permanent
representation in Brussels
Interviews
1.1.11 Cooperation with other NPs Mechanisms and formats of information exchange with MPs or civil servants from other NPs
Parliamentary documents, interviews
1.1.12 Individual contact networks Information gathering through personal channels
Interviews 1.2. Scrutiny infrastructure Organisation of scrutiny within
parliament
1.2.1 Legal basis Legal framework regulating the
organisation of scrutiny of EU affairs within parliaments
National constitutions, laws and internal Rules of procedures 1.2.2 Parliamentary administration Resource availability,
composition, competences, functions in EU affairs
Internal Rules of procedures, interviews
1.2.3 Parliamentary group Resource availability, composition, competences, functions in EU affairs
Interviews
1.2.4 Political party Resource availability, composition, competences, functions in EU affairs
Interviews
1.2.5 Committee system Resource availability, composition, competences, functions in EU affairs, set up of special committees to deal with EU treaties and intergovernmental treaties on the EMU
Internal Rules of procedures, interviews
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1.3 Scrutiny procedure Control mechanisms of EU affairs within parliament
1.3.1 Legal basis Legal framework regulating
scrutiny mechanisms
National constitutions, laws and internal Rules of procedures 1.3.2 Parliamentary instruments Parliamentary questions, motions,
interpellations, debates etc
National laws and internal Rules of procedures
1.3.3 Parliamentary mandates Ability to issue binding mandates Internal Rules of procedures, Interviews
1.3.4 Degree of involvement of specialised committees
Decentralisation vs centralisation of EU affairs
Internal Rules of procedures, Interviews
1.3.5 Participation of MEPs in parliamentary debates
Mechanisms and rights of MEPs’ participation in national
parliament
Internal Rules of procedures, Interviews
2. Communicative function
Parliaments’ publicity level of EU affairs
2.1 Communication instruments Websites, TV channels Parliaments websites, interviews 2.2 Public auditions/meetings on
treaties
Organisation of auditions, meetings, hearings with civil society on EU treaties and intergovernmental treaties on the EMU
Parliamentary documents, interviews
2.3 Plenary debates Frequency of plenary debates on EU affairs/ EU and intergovernmental treaties Parliamentary documents, interviews 2.4 Public party meetings/workshops on EU treaties and intergovernmental treaties on the EMU
Frequency and purpose of public party meetings on EU affairs
Interviews