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Unpacking the European Commission: Cabinet Composition and EU Policy-Making

Daniel, William T.; Hurka, Steffen

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Authors

Steffen Hurka



Abstract

We examine bureaucratic politics within the European Commission, using novel data on the backgrounds of individual members of Commissioners' cabinets. Although cabinet composition has become increasingly regulated in recent decades, its selection remains a key area for personalised political appointments within an organisation more commonly known for its collective responsibility and lack of individual influence. Using data on the personal and professional backgrounds of cabinet members since the first Barroso Commission, we trace how administrative reforms meant primarily to ‘de-nationalise’ the selection of appointees have led to changes in cabinet composition. We then explore how cabinet composition impacts on the complexity of Commission proposals and its subsequent inter-institutional negotiations. We find that whilst more diversity of Commission cabinets clearly enhances the input legitimacy of the EU's legislative process, it neither benefits nor threatens the quality of the Commission's policy proposals or how they are processed politically.

Citation

Daniel, W. T., & Hurka, S. (2024). Unpacking the European Commission: Cabinet Composition and EU Policy-Making. Journal of Common Market Studies, https://doi.org/10.1111/jcms.13678

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Aug 1, 2024
Online Publication Date Sep 26, 2024
Publication Date Sep 26, 2024
Deposit Date Aug 2, 2024
Publicly Available Date Sep 27, 2026
Journal JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies
Print ISSN 0021-9886
Electronic ISSN 1468-5965
Publisher Wiley
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/jcms.13678
Keywords legislative anticipation, complexity, institutions, European Commission, policy‐making
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/37924957
Additional Information Received: 2023-12-12; Accepted: 2024-08-01; Published: 2024-09-26

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J of Common Market Studies - 2024 - Daniel - Unpacking the European Commission Cabinet Composition and EU Policy‐Making (1.3 Mb)
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Licence
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Copyright Statement
©2024 The Author(s). JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies published by University Association for Contemporary European Studies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd





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