Playing a Part at Major Moments

Abstract

This chapter considers the development rather through the memories of the MEPs who lived through the period and were active participants. They witnessed the Parliament’s passage from being merely a consultative body to becoming a co-decider on an equal footing with the Council. They saw how it moved from having no role to now electing the Commission President as well as the entire Commission after its individual members have all taken part in public confirmation hearings. They also experienced setbacks, such as not being able to establish a single seat for its activities and not managing to obtain a definitive say on the revenue side of the EU budget. They lived a dramatic period of change in EU history which will be sketched out in this chapter by looking at some particularly significant moments.

Appendix

Contributions of Members of the European Parliament Relevant to this Chapter

• Baron Crespo Enrique (1986–2009): [0:00–03:00; 04:00–31:00]

• Boege Reimer (1989–2019): [6:45–19:00]

• Bonde Jens-Peter (1979–2008): [0:00–02:00]

• Braun-Moser Ursula (1984–1989; 1990–1994): [17:00–22:00; 39:00–46:00; 52:00–58:00]

• Brok Elmar (1980–2019): [02:00–04:00; 06:00–11:00; 13:00–30:00]

• Colom i Naval Joan (1979–1998): [03:00–07:00; 11:00–12:00)

• Corbett Richard (1996–2009; 2014–2019): [15:00–40:00]

• Cot Jean-Pierre (1984–1999): [02:00–07:00; 12:00–19:00]

• Cox Pat (1989–2004): [45:00–01:06:00]

• Cushnahan John (1989–2004): [01:16:00–01:24:00]

• Daul Joseph (1999–2014): [04:00–19:00]

• Daiber Birgit (1989–1994): [07:00–10:00; 15:00–19:00]

• Desama Claude (1988–2001): [26:00–28:00]

• De Vries Gijs (1984–1999): [13:00–26:00]

• Dührkop Dührkop Barbara (1987–2009): [Part 1: 04:00–08:00; 10:00–13:00; Part 2: 0:00–01:00]

• Fayot Ben (1989–1999): [02:00–08:00; 28:00–39:00]

• Ford Glyn (1984–2009): [Questionnaire]

• Frassoni Monica (1999–2009): [03:00–12:00]

• Görlach Willi (1989–2004): [09:00–16:00; 21:00–30:00; 40:00–43:00]

• Green Pauline (1989–1999): [21:00–30:00; 35:00–38:00]

• Guy-Quint Catherine (1999–2009): [09:30–14:20]

• Hänsch Klaus (1979–2009): [31:00–58:00]

• Halligan Brendan (1983–1984): [Questionnaire; 18:00–42:00; 47:00–52:00]

• Hutton Alasdair (1979–1999): [12:00–18:00]

• Jöns Karin (1994–2009): [01:05:00–01:10:00]

• Lamassoure Alain (1989–1993; 1999–2019): [04:00–25:00]

• Langenhagen Brigitte (1990–2004): [Questionnaire; 32–37]

• Manzella Andrea (1994–1999): [15:00–23:00; 28:00–32:00]

• McGowan Michael (1984–1999): [Part 2: 7:00–8:00]

• Méndez De Vigo Iñigo (1992–2011): [09:00–26:00]

• Mulder Jan (1994–2014): [26:00–30:00]

• Napoletano Pasqualina (1989–2004): [0–4:00; 18:00–22:00]

• Pöttering Hans-Gert (1979–2014): [Questionnaire; 25:00–33:00]

• Price Peter (1979–1994): [05:00–09:00; 13:00–32:00]

• Puerta Alonso (1987–2004): [Part 2 19:30–37:10];

• Quistorp Eva (1989–1994): [14–26; 01:04:00–01:06:00]

• Read Mel (1989–1999): [31:00–39:00]

• Gil-Robles Gil-Delgado Jose Maria (1989–2004): [04:00–08:00; 12:00–14:00; 20:00–35:00; 47:00–51:00]

• Roth Claudia (1989–1998): [04:00–10:00; 12:00–17:00]

• Salisch Heinke (1979–1996): [22:00–32:00]

• Schmid Gerhard (1979–2004): [11:00–44:00)

• Schulz Martin (1994–2017): [10:00–19:00]

• Simpson Anthony (1979–1994): [34:00–41:00]

• Teverson Robin (1994–1999): [Part 2: 33:00–35:00]

• Titley Gary (1989–2009): [16:00–38:00]

• Von der Vring Thomas (1979–2004): [08:00–40:00; 44:00–53:00]

• Watson Graham (1994–2014): [17:00–21:30]

Suggestions for Further Research

The idea of looking at major moments in the development of the Parliament was the inspiration for the book by a former Secretary General of the Parliament: Priestley, J. (2008) Six Battles That Shaped Europe’s Parliament, London: John Harper. Most of those “battles” figure prominently in the interviews, providing an opportunity to compare the different, sometimes contradictory, accounts of those involved. The interviews also offer a chance to reconsider how and why the Parliament was able to acquire greater powers, a central issue in Rittberger, B. (2005) Building Europe’s Parliament: Democratic Representation Beyond the Nation State, Oxford: Oxford University Press. We would suggest the following lines of enquiry arising from the interviews:

• How important were the battles that the Parliament “lost”, such as the seat question and control of revenue, in defining the nature of the institution?

• How have some ideas such as codecision come to fruition, whereas others have not? How important is the ability of the institution to find a clear majority opinion to present to the other institutions and member governments?

• Why have the successes of the institution not made the institution a more central part of the European political scene?

• What criteria should be used to judge whether the Parliament is successful over the next twenty years?