<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Parliamentary questions are a direct form of parliamentary scrutiny of other EU institutions and bodies, traditionally being an important tool for the opposition. This study examines how parliamentary questions are used in the European Parliament. We ascertain whether political groups representing opposition differ in their use of parliamentary questions from those who are represented in the European Commission. The article presents two main findings. First, such a difference does exist in all types of questions at the aggregated level. Groups not represented in the European Commission pose more questions than those who are represented. Secondly, it appears that the type of parliamentary question determines the groups’ behaviour. The article thus contributes to our understanding of how opposition functions in the European Parliament.</p></abstract>

Parliamentary questions are a direct form of parliamentary scrutiny of other EU institutions and bodies, traditionally being an important tool for the opposition. This study examines how parliamentary questions are used in the European Parliament. We ascertain whether political groups representing opposition differ in their use of parliamentary questions from those who are represented in the European Commission. The article presents two main findings. First, such a difference does exist in all types of questions at the aggregated level. Groups not represented in the European Commission pose more questions than those who are represented. Secondly, it appears that the type of parliamentary question determines the groups’ behaviour. The article thus contributes to our understanding of how opposition functions in the European Parliament.

Parliamentary Questions: Expressions of Opposition(s) within the European Parliament?

Department of International Relations and European Studies, Faculty of Social Science

TalTech Journal of European Studies

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Parliamentary questions are a direct form of parliamentary scrutiny of other EU institutions and bodies, traditionally being an important tool for the...

Parliamentary Questions: Expressions of Opposition(s) within the European Parliament?

Published Online: Jul 30, 2019

Page range: 33 - 56

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/bjes-2019-0003

Keywords
European Parliament, MEPs, opposition, parliamentary questions, parliamentary scrutiny, political groups in the EP, supervisory powers

© 2019 Petr Kaniok et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Parliamentary Questions: Expressions of Opposition(s) within the European Parliament?

Published Online: Jul 30, 2019

Page range: 33 - 56

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/bjes-2019-0003

KeywordsEuropean Parliament, MEPs, opposition, parliamentary questions, parliamentary scrutiny, political groups in the EP, supervisory powers

© 2019 Petr Kaniok et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
European Parliament, MEPs, opposition, parliamentary questions, parliamentary scrutiny, political groups in the EP, supervisory powers