Soft law and other non-standard methods of EU policy-making

Ian ThomsonUniversity of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: LibrarySeminar: New developments in EU legal research, 27 October 2008

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Structure of talk

Policy making initiatives comprising forms of co-ordination between the EU Member States

Policy making initiatives involving the EU Institutions and external stakeholders (‘civil society’)

The work of committees and agencies in the EU

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Policy making initiatives comprising forms of co-ordination between the

EU Member States

Hard Law – Soft LawHard law – legally binding actsSoft law – non legally bindingLegal instruments against versus political

instruments? Open Method of Co-ordination (OMC)

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Policy making initiatives comprising forms of co-ordination between the

EU Member States

Open Method of Co-ordination (OMC) In context of the Lisbon Strategy (2000)

to become the most competitive, dynamic, knowledge based economy

+ to modernise the European social modelAim: to spread best practice and achieve

greater convergence without adopting binding regulation at EU level

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Policy making initiatives comprising forms of co-ordination between the

EU Member States Open Method of Co-ordination

Key Concepts: Benchmarking – Peer-review – Scoreboards – Non-binding – Best practice – Policy co-ordination – Common objectives – National implementation – Surveillance by the European

Commission and Member States Guidelines: with specific timetables – Quantitative and

qualitative indicators – Translation of European guidelines into national action plans – Periodic monitoring at EU level

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Examples of OMC

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Examples of OMC

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Examples of OMC

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Further information on OMC

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Policy making initiatives comprising forms of co-ordination between the

EU Member States

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Policy making initiatives involving the EU institutions and external stakeholders

Standardisation

Social Policy

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Standardisation

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Social policy

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

The work of committees and agencies in the EU

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Committees in the EU

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

Agencies

University of Zagreb: Faculty of Law: Library: Seminar: New developments in EU legal research,27 October 2008: Soft law & other non-standard forms of EU policymaking

and finally…EU policy-making:Supranational v Intergovernmental? Financial crisis: Brussels a "bewildered by

stander"