ABSTRACT
A central feature of democracies is institutional power giving both governing
and opposition parties in parliament some measure of control or scrutiny over
executive decision-making. Indeed, democratic accountability is often to be
found primarily in the actions of opposition parties, because their interests
are not as aligned with current governments as is the case with governing
parties. Here we are interested in the power of opposition parliamentary
party groups (PPGs) when scrutinising their governments’ decision-making
concerning European Union (EU) issues, an important component in assuring
democracy within the emerging multi-level system of governance in the EU
and the Member States.
