Shaping EU Policy from Below: EU Democracy and the Committee of the Regions

This book looks at the way in which the Committee of the Regions (CoR) influences EU policymaking from below, despite ts relatively weak position in the decisionmaking process. In essence, the CoR plays a significant role well beyond its formal advisory role. By applying theoretical considerations about the expression of judgment and the formation of will in democratic systems, the authors develop a normative argument about why it is opportune that local and regional concerns be involved in shaping European Union decisions. Moreover by looking at the institutional development of the CoR, the book shows how it is already an important element of multi-level democracy.