EUDemocrats
Encyclopedia
The EUDemocrats – Alliance for a Europe of Democracies – is a eurorealist
alliance of parties and movements from 15 European countries. It operates as a transnational party
at a European level (European political party
), according to Regulation (EC) No 2004/2003. It incorporates members from both the centre-left and the centre-right of the political spectrum
.
on 8 November 2005. Its first congress was held on 24 February 2006. Former Danish MEPs
Jens-Peter Bonde
and Hanne Dahl
inspired the EUD’s creation and first years. In January 2009, Swedish economist and former MEP Sören Wibe
succeeded Bonde as President of the EUD. Following Wibe's sudden death in December 2010, former Irish Green MEP Patricia McKenna
was named president of the EUD.
The EUD’s platform is not concerned with matters of right or left wing ideology because it believes that such issues are best considered by national and regional parliaments under their citizens’ democratic control. It is committed to enhancing transparency, subsidiarity, diversity and most importantly budget control in the European Union.
In 2009, four of its affiliated MEPs were members of the Independence and Democracy group in the European Parliament
. Also, two affiliated MEPs - Roger Helmer
and Daniel Hannan
, both British Conservatives - sat as independents. Helmer and Hannan left EUD in October 2009 to join the newly formed Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists
. Since 2010, EUD has one member in the European Parliament: Søren Søndergaard
, who sits as an associate member of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left Group.
Eight members of national and regional parliaments from six countries are also affiliated to the EUD network. (March 2009)
), thus giving an effective voice to the citizens of member states, regions and national minorities. It aims to unite those who are critical of the EU for its undemocratic development and its ever-more centralising political features.
The EUD is opposed to the centralisation of political power in EU institutions, and demands democratic scrutiny and control over EU institutional powers and actions by national and regional assemblies.
Its four political core objectives are:
The operational aim of EUD is to act as an effective political platform and campaigning organisation which is able to influence pan-European politics towards extending democratic structures in the EU. The EUD also seeks to have candidates elected in European elections from both center-right and center-left that share its core eurorealist political ideas and thus influence politics in the European Parliament itself.
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Eurorealism
Eurorealism or Euro-realism is an attempt to maintain a realistic but reformist perception of the European Union and European integration as a whole. The term originates in the broader anti-federalist movement but is currently in use as a completely separate and independent ideology within the...
alliance of parties and movements from 15 European countries. It operates as a transnational party
Transnational political party
A transnational political party is a single political party with members or representatives in more than one country.A well-known example is the Arab Baath Socialist Party, established as an Arab nationalist and socialist party aspiring to pan-Arab political union...
at a European level (European political party
European political party
A European political party, formally a political party at European level, informally a Europarty, is a type of political party organization operating transnationally in Europe and in the institutions of the European Union. They are regulated and funded by the European Union and are usually made up...
), according to Regulation (EC) No 2004/2003. It incorporates members from both the centre-left and the centre-right of the political spectrum
Political spectrum
A political spectrum is a way of modeling different political positions by placing them upon one or more geometric axes symbolizing independent political dimensions....
.
Overview
The party was set up under Danish law on 7 November 2005 and founded as a European Party in BrusselsBrussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
on 8 November 2005. Its first congress was held on 24 February 2006. Former Danish MEPs
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
Jens-Peter Bonde
Jens-Peter Bonde
Jens-Peter Rossen Bonde is a former Member of the European Parliament with the June Movement. He resigned as an MEP in May 2008. Bonde was elected to the European Parliament in the first election in 1979 with the People's Movement against the EU. He has been re-elected 6 times consecutively...
and Hanne Dahl
Hanne Dahl
Hanne Dahl is a Danish priest and politician from Aalborg. She is a member of the European Parliament, representing the June Movement .-References:...
inspired the EUD’s creation and first years. In January 2009, Swedish economist and former MEP Sören Wibe
Sören Wibe
Sören Axel Wibe was a Swedish economist and eurosceptic politician, born in Östersund, who was formerly a social democratic Member of the European Parliament 1995–1999, member of the Riksdag 2002–2006, and who since 6 July 2008 was party leader of the June List...
succeeded Bonde as President of the EUD. Following Wibe's sudden death in December 2010, former Irish Green MEP Patricia McKenna
Patricia McKenna
Patricia McKenna is an Irish independent politician. She served as a Green Party Member of the European Parliament for the Dublin constituency from 1994 to 2004.-Background:...
was named president of the EUD.
The EUD’s platform is not concerned with matters of right or left wing ideology because it believes that such issues are best considered by national and regional parliaments under their citizens’ democratic control. It is committed to enhancing transparency, subsidiarity, diversity and most importantly budget control in the European Union.
In 2009, four of its affiliated MEPs were members of the Independence and Democracy group in the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
. Also, two affiliated MEPs - Roger Helmer
Roger Helmer
Roger Helmer is a British politician and a Conservative Party Member of the European Parliament for the East Midlands region. He has described himself as a eurosceptic and is a supporter of the Better Off Out campaign. He was first elected to the European Parliament in 1999 as a Conservative Party...
and Daniel Hannan
Daniel Hannan
Daniel John Hannan is a British journalist, author and politician who is currently a Member of the European Parliament, representing South East England for the Conservative Party and the European Conservatives and Reformists political group...
, both British Conservatives - sat as independents. Helmer and Hannan left EUD in October 2009 to join the newly formed Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists
Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists
The Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists, abbreviated to AECR, is a centre-right anti-federalist European political party defending broader conservative and classical liberal principles. It consists of twelve parties in nine EU member states and Iceland...
. Since 2010, EUD has one member in the European Parliament: Søren Søndergaard
Søren Søndergaard
Søren Fjordback Søndergaard is a former amateur boxer from Denmark. He won the bronze medal at the 1987 European Championships in Turin, Italy in the Men's Light Welterweight division. Nicknamed Mr...
, who sits as an associate member of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left Group.
Eight members of national and regional parliaments from six countries are also affiliated to the EUD network. (March 2009)
Political Platform
The political aim of the EUDemocrats is to reform the present structures of the European Union. According to its political platform, the EUD believes that decisions should be made at the lowest possible level (subsidiaritySubsidiarity
Subsidiarity is an organizing principle that matters ought to be handled by the smallest, lowest or least centralized competent authority. The Oxford English Dictionary defines subsidiarity as the idea that a central authority should have a subsidiary function, performing only those tasks which...
), thus giving an effective voice to the citizens of member states, regions and national minorities. It aims to unite those who are critical of the EU for its undemocratic development and its ever-more centralising political features.
The EUD is opposed to the centralisation of political power in EU institutions, and demands democratic scrutiny and control over EU institutional powers and actions by national and regional assemblies.
Its four political core objectives are:
- enhancing transparency on all political levels, especially in the EU by giving citizens insight into all documents and meetings;
- strengthen real subsidiarity in the EU thus taking decisions at the lowest political level possible;
- improving democracy and accountability by reforming EU institutions and structures making them function more democratically;
- defending diversity in the EU by making it possible for member states to implement politics according to their national reality and by promoting flexible cooperation instead of fixed harmonisation.
The operational aim of EUD is to act as an effective political platform and campaigning organisation which is able to influence pan-European politics towards extending democratic structures in the EU. The EUD also seeks to have candidates elected in European elections from both center-right and center-left that share its core eurorealist political ideas and thus influence politics in the European Parliament itself.
Recent activity
In March 2011, the EUDemocrats launched a campaign against the idea of direct-tax income for the European Union (including a tax on citizens, the banking sector, or the air traffic sector. The campaign was launched as www.noeutax.com.Membership
:- Gun-Mari LindholmGun-Mari LindholmGun-Mari Lindholm is a politician on the autonomous Åland Islands. She is Vice-President of the EUDemocrats - Alliance for a Europe of Democracies.* Member of the Lagting 2005-...
member of the Parliament of ÅlandParliament of ÅlandThe Lagting, or Lagtinget, is the parliament of Åland, an autonomous, demilitarised and unilingually Swedish-speaking territory of Finland. The Lagting has 30 seats.- Elections :- See also :*Government of Åland, or Ålands landskapsregering... - Danne SundmanDanne SundmanDanne Sundman is a politician from the Åland Islands, an autonomous and unilingually Swedish territory of Finland.* Member of the Lagting 2001-...
member of the Parliament of ÅlandParliament of ÅlandThe Lagting, or Lagtinget, is the parliament of Åland, an autonomous, demilitarised and unilingually Swedish-speaking territory of Finland. The Lagting has 30 seats.- Elections :- See also :*Government of Åland, or Ålands landskapsregering...
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- Arise the RepublicArise the RepublicArise the Republic is a political party in France that used to be a faction within the ruling Union for a Popular Movement . The party claims itself to be a traditional Gaullist group....
(Debout la République) 2 MPs: Nicolas Dupont-AignanNicolas Dupont-AignanNicolas Dupont-Aignan is a French gaullist and souverainist politician. He has been a MP of the Essonne's 8th constituency since 1997 and a mayor of Yerres, Essonne since 1995....
and François-Xavier VillainFrançois-Xavier VillainFrançois-Xavier Villain is a member of the National Assembly of France. He represents the Nord department, and is a member of Arise the Republic, a small Gaullist party led by Nicolas Dupont-Aignan. He is also mayor of Cambrai.-References:...
:
- National PlatformNational PlatformThe National Platform for EU Research and Information Centre shortened to National Platform is an Irish Eurosceptic lobby group which campaigns against greater European Union integration, and against a Federal superstate...
- People's MovementPeople's Movement (Ireland)People's Movement is an Irish pressure group which campaigns on a number of issues such as protecting Irish neutrality and against greater European Union integration...
:
- Euro Sceptic Party (Euro Scettici – Partito Animalista Italiano)
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- Party of Action (Ricibas Partija)
- Normunds Grostins
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- New Democracy (Portugal)New Democracy (Portugal)New Democracy Party is a liberal conservative political party in Portugal without parliamentary representation. In voting ballots its name appears only as New Democracy, with the acronym unchanged. It is a new party which resulted from Manuel Monteiro separation from the Democratic and Social...
(Partido Da Nova Democracia) 1 member of the Parliament of MadeiraMadeiraMadeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
: Baltazar Aguiar
:
- Direct Democracy (Slovakia) (Priama Demokracia - Hnutie Domova)
- Vladimir Kostilnik member of the regional parliament of PrešovPrešovPrešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
- Rudolf Kusy member of the regional parliament of BratislavaBratislavaBratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
- Peter KopeckýPeter KopeckýPeter Kopecký is a Slovak romanist and politician.Previously the Slovakian Ambassador to Romania and Moldova and Rector of Comenius University in Bratislava, he is now Assistant Director of the Institute of European Studies and International Relations at Comenius.He is also leader of the Slovak...
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- June List (Slovenia) (Junijska lista)
- EUD Slovenia
- Gorazd Drevensek
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- June ListJune ListThe June List is a Swedish, eurosceptic political party. Founded in 2004, it received 14% in the European Parliament election of the same year - gaining three seats. In the elections of 2009, however, it saw an 11% slump in support and lost all of its seats...
(Junilistan)
Literature
- Laure Neumayer: Euroscepticism as a political label; in: European Journal of Political Research 2/2007.
- Géraud de Ville: Eurosceptics are Eurocritics or Eurorealists; in: Politeia 10/2007.
External links
- EUDemocrats official site
- Independence and Democracy group in the European Parliament official site
- EUD blog
- EUD Malta official site
- European Referendum Campaign official site
- Article by Géraud de Ville in Politeia: Eurosceptics are Eurocritics or Eurorealists.
- Article by Jens-Peter Bonde in the EUObserver: New composition of the European Parliament should be a wake-up call.