Serving one client only? Assessing the openness and inclusiveness of European Parliament's intergroups

Abstract

ABSTRACT Openness and inclusiveness are central mechanisms for civil society participation in EU governance. Focusing on European Parliament’s intergroups, this article explores unofficial participatory venues and their receptiveness towards civil society. Based on a novel data set with 135 intergroup meetings and 435 civil society speakers across four intergroups in the 8th European Parliament (2014-2019), this study delivers the first empirical account of intergroup participants, and thereby provides original insights into the types and functions of intergroups as participatory mechanisms. Employing openness and inclusiveness to assess the density, diversity and insider status of civil society, this explorative study maps intergroups on a continuum of participatory vehicles that serve both pluralist interests and individual clients. It reveals an insider status for different types of interests across the four intergroups and points to the special role of EU associations in intergroups. By opening the black box of intergroups, this study explores an understudied phenomenon in EP-civil society research and sheds light on civil society practices taking place beyond the official structures of the Parliament. It adds to the literature on civil society access in EU governance and contributes to the wider political and academic debates on civil society’s contribution to the EU’s democratic legitimacy.