The European Union is at yet another defining moment in its integration history. The fragmentation of the Union will feature prominently, particularly after the British referendum. To provide substantive and constructive contribution to the future shape of the EU 27, CEPS convened a Task Force, chaired by Danuta Hübner, MEP.
The mission:
The mission of the Task Force was to identify the weaknesses of the current system and assess different reform options for improvement. In this endeavour, the Task Force was giving specific recommendations for the short term within the framework of the existing treaties, but also was not shy to offer long-term vision by the means of concrete suggestions to revise the EU treaties. The Task Force was composed of representatives of all relevant stakeholder groups, such as the European Parliament; the European Commission; the member states; businesses as well as from academia. These stakeholders made an effort to re-fit the EU for purpose by addressing the issues of participatory rights and obligations; economic governance, including the Economic and Monetary Union; as well as issues originating from the field of freedom, security and justice. The output of the Task Force meetings was captured in a report, which was launched during this session of the CEPS Ideas Lab 2017.
Timeline:
Four Task Force Meetings took place between October 2016 and January 2017.
Rapporteurs:
- Steven Blockmans, Senior Research Fellow at CEPS and Professor of EU External Relations Law and Governance at the University of Amsterdam
- Sophia Russack, Researcher at CEPS and PhD Candidate at Maastricht University
Members:
- Danuta Hübner, MEP for the EPP, Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs of the European Parliament, former European Commissioner for regional policy and former Polish Minister for European affairs
- Joaquín Almunia, Chairman of the Board of CEPS, former Vice-President and European Commissioner responsible for economic and monetary affairs and for competition, former Spanish Minister for employment and for public administrations
- John Bruton, Chairman of IFSC, former Prime Minister of Ireland, former Head of EU Delegation to the United States, former Vice-President of the EPP
- Petros Fassoulas, Secretary General, European Movement International
- Daniel Gros, Director of CEPS
- Heidi Hautala, MEP for the Greens, Chair of the European Parliament’s Delegation to the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly, former Minister for international development
- Christophe Hillion, Professor of EU Law at the Universities of Oslo, Leiden and Gothenburg, Senior Research Fellow at NUPI and SIEPS
- Aleksandra Kluczka, former President of AEGEE-Europe / European Students’ Forum, Board Member of European Movement International
- Ivan Krastev, Chairman of the Centre for Liberal Strategies in Sofia, and permanent fellow at the IWM, Institute of Human Sciences in Vienna
- Karel Lannoo, Chief Executive Officer of CEPS
- Jo Leinen, MEP for S&D, Member (and former Chair) of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs, President of the Delegation for Relations with China, former State Minister of Saarland for environment, former President of the Union of European Federalists
- Adam Łazowski, Professor of EU Law, University of Westminster
- Stefano Micossi, Director General of Assonime, Professor at the College of Europe and former Director General at the European Commission
- Christine Neuhold, Professor and Head of Department of Political Science, Maastricht University
- José Luis Pacheco, Head of Unit, Secretariat of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs, European Parliament
- René Repasi, Scientific Coordinator of the European Research Centre for Economic and Financial Governance (EURO-CEFG) and Academic Researcher at the European Center of the Erasmus University School of Law
- Pawel Świeboda, Deputy Head of the European Political Strategy Centre, European Commission
Final report:
Regroup and reform. Ideas for a more responsive and effective European Union
