Why it’s not so simple to make the EU simpler

The EU’s institutional architecture is often regarded as being too complex for citizens to properly engage with, and both Jean-Claude Juncker and Emmanuel Macron have recently proposed some form of simplification such as merging the President of the European Commission with the President of the European Council, or reducing the size of the European Commission.

Dimiter Toshkov argued that while the EU is extraordinarily complex, efforts to simplify it are likely to come at the cost of either its inclusiveness or effectiveness.

• Primary Source

Atlantic Council: Report: The European Union Could Be Simple, Inclusive, or Effective. Pick Two, 2017 http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/publications/reports/the-european-union-could-be-simple-inclusive-or-effective-pick-two

EPRS: Briefing: European Council Briefing, October 2017: The European Council and the 2017 State of the Union proposals https://libraryeuroparl.files.wordpress.com/2017/10/eprs_brie_610993_european-council-and-the-state-of-the-union-final.pdf

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