The European Union Centre of Excellence at Dalhousie University presents the following talk:
Title: Parliamentarism in Crisis: The Impact of the Eurozone Crisis on the Legitimacy and Autonomy of the Greek Parliament
Date: Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Time: 12.30-2pm
Location: Lord Dalhousie Room, Henry Hicks Building, Dalhousie University
Speaker: Emmanuel Sigalas, Visiting Professor at Carleton University, formerly at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Vienna, Austria
Description: Political scientists started recently examining the political aspects of the Greek economic crisis, but a crucial dimension has remained unexplored: the impact on the legitimacy and powers of the Greek parliament. This talk discusses the wounded autonomy of the Greek parliament and its rapid deligitmation as a consequence of the European economic crisis. Hostility toward the Greek parliament was accompanied with government blows to the parliament’s legislative and control functions that can only further injure the parliament’s legitimacy. Despite these problems, hardly any steps have been taken so far to reform the parliament and restore public trust. As a result, the Greek parliament remains hostage to volatile utilitarian support resting on the country’s economic performance. Given that the country’s economic future is more precarious than ever, the prospects for parliamentary democracy in Greece appear bleak.