ABSTRACT
The aim of this contribution is to assess whether ‘multi-level’ parliamentary cooperation does exist within the European Union (EU) and to what degree there is vertical and horizontal collaboration between the European Parliament (EP) and national parliaments (NPs).1 For the purpose of this chapter, the British and Italian Parliaments have been taken into consideration. This choice has been motivated by the need to provide two distinct parliamentary models that reflect largely opposing viewpoints with regard to the future of the EU. The Westminster democracy represents one of the most established parliamentary traditions and has typically shown an adverse attitude to a ‘deepening’ of the European integration process. By contrast, the Italian parliament stands for a ‘continental’ model with a traditionally favourable stance towards the creation of a fully-fledged European federation.
