Theorising the Legitimacy of EU Regulatory Agencies

They are independent bodies appointed by the European Commission in various specialised fields of the EU market, such as food safety, pharmaceuticals or financial supervision, in which the Commission itself - due to the complexity of the sector-specific regulation - is not able to prepare expertise alone. The agencies are therefore expert institutions, which form administrative support to the EU authorities and the member states. Despite the fact that the agencies are already an irremovable element of the EU decision-making and rulemaking processes there are still justified doubts about their legitimacy. The book offers an in-depth analysis of the current theoretical concepts surrounding the questions of empowerment, rightfulness and legitimacy of EU agencies' activities.
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