Greece, European Democracy And The Legitimacy Of Politics

The present debate between the Greek government led by Alexis Tsipras and the Eurogroup is not just about austerity measures, reforms, or repayments. Behind this Greek tragedy also lies a growing tension between a sharpened democratic norm of giving citizens a greater say in the formulation of governmental policies on the one hand, and a growing administrative practice of making important political decisions without a clear mandate from the voters, on the other. This tension is related to different concepts of democracy; it begs the question of the exact democratic legitimacy of political decisions taken at the national level, but even more so at the European level. Social democrats cannot ignore this question, because it directly impacts on the possibilities of engaging in social policies

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Meeting: Eurogroup, Riga, 24 April 2015 http://www.europeansources.info/record/meeting-eurogroup-riga-24-april-2015/

openDemocracy: Can Europe Make It?, 22.05.15: Deficits in the EU that should worry Europeans https://www.opendemocracy.net/can-europe-make-it/john-weeks/deficits-in-eu-that-should-worry-europeans

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