Ursula von der Leyen—the accidental president
SOCIAL EUROPE – Alberto Alemanno analyzes Ursula von der Leyen’s 2023 State of the Union address.
Op-Eds
Preparing for a post-Soros Europe
POLITICO – Alberto Alemanno explains the consequences that the Open Society Foundations’ retreat from Europe will have for civil society organizations.
« Il faut empêcher la Hongrie de prendre la présidence du Conseil de l’Union européenne »
LE MONDE – Alberto Alemanno plaide pour la suspension de la présidence hongroise du Conseil de l’UE.
¿Puede Hungría ostentar la presidencia rotatoria del Consejo de la Unión?
EL PAÍS – Alberto Alemanno aboga por la suspensión de la próxima presidencia húngara del Consejo de la UE.
Suspending Hungary’s EU presidency isn’t a sanction — it’s a precaution
POLITICO – Alberto Alemanno argues for the suspension of Hungary’s upcoming presidency of the Council of the EU.
Democratizar el ‘lobbying’ para salvar nuestra democracia
EL CONFIDENCIAL – Alberto Alemanno explica la importancia de democratizar el lobbying en plena crisis de la democracia representativa
Participación ciudadana: ¿De verdad podemos cambiar las cosas?
ETHIC – Alberto Alemanno comments on citizen participation and access to lobbying, as The Good Lobby opens in Spain.
Opinion | L’éthique transparente et l’esprit du lobbying
LES ECHOS – Alberto Alemanno and Hugo Weber advocate for more transparent ethics in lobbying.
Qatargate: A Missed Opportunity to Reform the Union
VERFASSUNGSBLOG – Alberto Alemanno discusses the need to establish an EU ethics body in the aftermath of the Qatargate scandal.
Why Europe must embrace participatory policymaking
EURACTIV – New models for citizen involvement in government are critical for the survival of democratic institutions in Europe, write Alberto Alemanno and Laura Batalla.
Qatargate : « L’insouciance éthique du Parlement européen a encouragé une culture de l’impunité »
LE MONDE – Le scandale de la « corruption » par le Qatar a exposé une vérité gênante : l’argent achète l’influence dans l’UE.
The Qatar scandal shows how the EU has a corruption problem
POLITICO – The Qatar “corruption” scandal has unveiled the inconvenient truth that money does buy influence in the EU.
Catar: do Mundial da Vergonha ao Mundial da Mudança?
TRIBUNA – Miguel Poiares Maduro assina com Jamil Chade e Alberto Alemanno, um texto onde advogam a necessidade de profundas reformas na organização de eventos desportivos.
Once again, FIFA has sold its own rules and values for money
POLITICO – Throughout the many scandals that have plagued this event — from corruption to human rights violations — the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) has staunchly stood by its 2010 decision to organize the World Cup in Qatar.
Who guards the guardians in Europe?
SOCIAL EUROPE – European judges are taking legal action, given the failure of EU institutions to uphold the rule of law.
Why Academic Ivory Towerism Can’t Be The Answer
VERFASSUNGSBLOG – At a time in which a worrying number of risks conspire to threaten the end of democracy and humanity – from climate change to uncontrolled new technologies –, to confine the remit of the legal scholar to the narrow boundaries of academic purity appears ahistorical at best, irresponsible at worst.
What have we learned from the Conference on the Future of Europe? | View
EURONEWS – As the Conference on the Future of Europe just ended, Alberto Alemanno examines what we have learned from this unprecedented democratic exercise.
The Court of Justice of the EU goes (almost) public
Verfassungsblog – Thirteen years after the Lisbon Treaty, the CJEU continues to lack a fully-fledged publicity policy, albeit the growing public scrutiny over its work.
4 ideas on how businesses can be responsible for political lobbying
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM – There is growing momentum worldwide to make business responsible for the ways it impacts the planet, workers and communities it relies on.
The future of Europe: who holds the baton?
SOCIAL EUROPE – Political leaders must not turn the Conference on the Future of Europe into another EU black box.
France’s EU presidency can lay the foundations of a new Europe | View
EURONEWS – “The year 2022 must be a turning point for Europe,” French President Emmanuel Macron said in his New Year’s Eve national address.
Citizen Power Europe
Groupe d’Études Géopolitiques – In December 2021, two simultaneous events spoke radically differently on the conundrum of our age. The first, ‘The Summit for Democracy’. The other, the Conference on the Future of Europe.
The State of the Union speech was a big missed opportunity for Ursula von der Leyen | View
EURONEWS – The annual State of the European Union address provides a unique chance for all EU residents to get a sense of their lives’ shared direction.
The end of Euro-bashing
POLITICO – Euroskeptic posturing might win politicians votes at home, but it’s increasingly costing them on the European stage.
Releasing Europe’s democratic genie
SOCIAL EUROPE – The Conference on the Future of Europe might sow the seeds of a genuine European political space.
Il lobbying civico è la sola strada per salvare la nostra democrazia
DOMANI – In vista della pubblicazione in Italia il 9 giugno del suo libro The Good Lobby, il giurista Alberto Alemanno spiega perché il diffondersi di lobby civiche è una leva cruciale in un contesto in cui gli interessi pubblici sono sottorappresentati
Pourquoi il faut suivre la Conférence sur l’avenir de l’Europe
LE GRAND CONTINENT – Il est facile et tentant de disqualifier d’office la Conférence sur l’avenir de l’Europe, en la considérant comme un énième gadget bruxellois. Pourtant, elle pourrait bien être porteuse de réels changements, tant par sa méthodologie audacieuse que par son cahier des charges.
A Europa para a Escócia
PUBLICO – Somos europeus de todo o continente e de todo o mundo. Queremos que o povo da Escócia saiba que os europeus, onde quer que se encontrem, terão todo o gosto em os receber outra vez como membros da União Europeia se esse ainda for o seu desejo democrático.
The dangerous illusions of an EU ‘vaccine passport’
OPEN DEMOCRACY – Is the push for a vaccine certificate driven by an economic desire to boost travel and tourism rather than the safety of all Europeans?
Carte blanche: Manifeste pour une assemblée citoyenne européenne
LE SOIR – Le déficit démocratique de l’UE affaiblit non seulement sa légitimité mais aussi la capacité des États membres à relever les grands défis d’aujourd’hui. Les auteurs de ce texte réclament d’urgence une réforme institutionnelle ambitieuse pour l’Europe de demain.
El valor político del técnico Draghi
EL PAÍS – El nombramiento de del técnico y alto funcionario italiano, merece ser entendida a partir del espíritu de la Constitución como una expresión puramente política.
La vocation politique de Mario Draghi
LE GRAND CONTINENT – La nomination de Draghi, le technique et grand commis, mérite d’être comprise comme une expression purement politique.
Letter: Set up common travel areas on UK-Ireland model
The loss of the freedom to settle, work and travel on the continent has smashed the amount of rights associated with UK citizenship.
Le passeport vaccinal européen, une idée au mieux prématurée, au pire irréfléchie
LE MONDE – Plutôt qu’un certificat de vaccination, les institutions européennes devraient mettre l’accent sur la distribution équitable des vaccins et conjurer l’émergence d’un marché noir.
Après le Brexit, le statut de citoyen britannique en Europe est équivalent à celui du touriste chinois
Le 31 décembre 2020, 67 millions de ressortissants britanniques ont perdu le droit de s’installer et de travailler au sein de l’UE et dans d’autres pays. De la même façon, les citoyens de l’UE ont perdu ces droits sur les territoires du Royaume-Uni. C’est la plus grande perte de droits dont on se souvienne.
Perché è sbagliato introdurre il passaporto vaccinale in Europa
LA REPUBBLICA – Invece di unire i Paesi riducendo le limitazioni agli spostamenti, il documento sanitario creerebbe nuove frontiere fra le persone schedate come sicure e quelle non sicure.
All eyes on EU court for decision on religious slaughter
EU OBSERVER – Stunning animals before slaughter and avoiding unnecessary suffering is surely the least we owe these fellow sentient beings.
EU representatives and voters without borders
EURACTIV – Almost 30 years after the first transnational European party was formed, the European Parliament has proposed that in the 2024 European elections, all voters should be able to vote, in addition to their national representatives, for a second set of representatives, elected in a single European college.
Affaire Phil Hogan: l’occasion de définir une responsabilité politique européenne
LE MONDE – La démission du commissaire irlandais sous la pression de la présidence de la Commission crée un précédent en faveur d’une autonomisation de l’examen éthique de la politique européenne, analysent les juristes Alberto Alemanno et Benjamin Bodson dans une tribune au « Monde ».
Is COVID-19 philanthropy’s pandora’s box?
ALLIANCE MAGAZINE – The response to COVID-19 has revealed a gap between the rhetoric of philanthropies and the realities of the grantees. It remains to be seen how and by whom that gap will be bridged in a post-COVID-19 world.
We lived the European dream. Will any politician stand up for open borders?
THE GUARDIAN – Millions of us built our lives on the promise of free movement. Under cover of coronavirus, that dream is disappearing…
Testing the Limits of EU Health Emergency Power
VERFASSUNGSBLOG – Due to its borderless nature, COVID-19 is a matter of common European interest since its first detection on the continent. Yet this pandemic outbreak has largely been handled as an essentially national matter. Each country adopted its own different health response, according to its own risk analysis framework, with little regard for the scientific and management risk advice provided by the EU, notably the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
Europe doesn’t have to be so helpless in this crisis
THE GUARDIAN – European governments already have system for working together in a health emergency – it’s called the EU
We urgently need a coordinated European response to coronavirus. We are seeing the opposite
EURONEWS – As EU authorities struggle for any coordination at all, while still needing to pass fiscal and state-aid measures in support of the European economy, Germany has shut its borders. As a record number of citizens, including the most Eurosceptic, turn to the EU in search of emergency solutions, Brussels looks helpless.
Coronavirus : « Si vous pensez que l’Union n’en fait pas assez, tournez-vous plutôt vers les capitales européennes »
LE MONDE – Le professeur de droit Alberto Alemanno s’inquiète, dans une tribune au « Monde », des solutions nationales qui pourraient se révéler plus néfastes que bénéfiques, en offrant une illusion de sécurité et de sûreté à leurs ressortissants.
COVID-19. Por uma Europa mais coordenada
OBSERVADOR – As pandemias são um argumento para uma Europa mais coordenada. E estamos a assistir exatamente ao contrário.
The EU won’t fix its democratic deficit with another top-down ‘conference’
THE GUARDIAN – Europe needs a new mechanism for involving citizens, not another talking shop chaired by the polarising Guy Verhofstadt.
Choosing Ursula von der Leyen Weakens the European Parliament
BLOOMBERG – Parliament has been building its authority lately. Accepting the Council’s decision for Commission President reverses that.
« Facebook a empêché les partis et la société civile de mener des campagnes transfrontières »
LE MONDE – Le professeur de droit Alberto Alemanno dénonce, dans une tribune au « Monde », le rôle néfaste joué par le réseau social lors de la campagne électorale européenne en limitant les messages politiques aux frontières nationales.
There are 17 million mobile EU citizens. We deserve a political voice
THE GUARDIAN – Those of us who reside in another member state live more ‘European’ lives than anyone. Yet we feel disenfranchised.
How Brexit may harm the new EU parliament
EU OBSERVER – Amid frantic negotiations, the EU-27 leaders ultimately conceded a further extension to the UK to ratify the withdrawal agreement by 31 October 31.
Emmanuel Macron takes on Viktor Orban and Matteo Salvini
THE ECONOMIST – In European politics, the big divide is not open v closed but innovator v conservative
« Les partis transnationaux sont l’engrais d’une politique véritablement européenne »
LE MONDE – La nature et l’ampleur des enjeux auxquels l’Europe est confrontée appellent des solutions paneuropéennes que notre système politique communautaire fragmenté est incapable d’aborder et de mettre en place, estime Alberto Alemanno, professeur de droit à HEC, dans une tribune au « Monde ».
Europe Up for Grabs: The Looming Battle Lines of the 2019 European Parliament Elections
CARNEGIE EUROPE – A new wave of pan-European parties and movements could profoundly shake up and further polarize EU politics ahead of the 2019 European Parliament elections.
How the EU Can Help Protect Whistleblowers
BLOOMBERG – The public may cheer a whistleblower, but it’s not easy to be one. While they expose fraud and abuse that otherwise would remain veiled, whistleblowers in Europe often face retaliation by their employers and other repercussions. A new proposed European Union directive seeks to change that; it might also prove useful in countering the erosion of democratic values in the bloc’s east.
Fake news : « L’initiative doit venir des géants du Web »
LE MONDE – Le professeur en droit européen Alberto Alemanno estime que rien ne sert d’employer la loi contre les fausses informations. Sous la pression de l’opinion, des sociétés comme Facebook peuvent adopter des dispositifs qui contrebalancent l’effet de la désinformation.
5 big ideas to reboot democracy in the EU
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM – There is a widespread, intensifying belief that without the greater involvement of its citizens, the European Union is condemned to fail. While this realization is far from new, recent events in Catalonia along with Brexit have lent it fresh force.
How To Nip Fake News In The Bud By Choking It To Death
FORBES – The days when social networks were dismissed as entertaining outlets for teenagers are long gone. Today they have become the primary medium over which we consume news, form our political identities and spend a considerable portion of our time.
Europe needs citizen lobbyists to help shape our continent
EURONEWS – At a time of great political uncertainty for the future of Europe, the only way to shape our continent is through citizen lobbying.
How Civil Society in Europe Can Defend Itself
BLOOMBERG – The Soros-funded university in Hungary isn’t the only non-governmental organization under attack in Europe.
Lobbying transparency enhances MEPs’ freedom
EU OBSERVER – As the EU continues to take decisions affecting millions of European citizens, there is a growing expectation that it must ensure full transparency for the ones shaping those decisions, by regulating lobbying.
Why A Liberal And Pro-EU Citizen Cannot Celebrate French Presidential Hopeful Macron’s Win
In our highly-polarized nations, an electoral victory no longer ensures, nor translates, into societal acceptance and popular support for change.