Lisbon Treaty will help to bring about a more democratic EU

CONCERNS about democracy within the EU will dominate the debate on the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland.

Unfortunately, those opposing the treaty on ‘democratic’ grounds have failed to move beyond general rhetoric about the democratic deficit of the EU to set out clear and realistic political objectives for its reform.

The real question facing European citizens and their political representatives is what forms of democracy are possible and desirable in a transnational polity like the EU, involving 27 member states and approximately 500 citizens?