ABSTRACT
The notion of ‘civil society’ has gained unprecedented popularity in European Union (EU) politics. The term features prominently in the general reform discourse of the 1990s, from which some concrete proposals have emerged at the EU level. Responding to the crisis of 1999, which saw the departure of the Commission, a historically low voter turnout in the European Parliament (EP) elections and an increase of Euroscepticism throughout the member states, the Commission has devoted itself to promoting ‘genuine reform to usher in a new era’ (European Commission 1999). The EU's ‘new governance’ is supposed to make European politics more legitimate by strengthening its democratic structures and processes. In these efforts, citizens, civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are expected to play a prominent role, since their active engagement is considered to be necessary to remedy various (perceived or actual) defects and deficiencies. Two of the EU's institutions have taken on a leading role in the drive for improved legitimacy: the Commission and the Economic and Social Committee (ESC).
