Past Event

The School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa, with the Centre for European Studies at Carleton University present,

“Parliamentarism in Crisis: The Impact of the Eurozone Crisis on the Greek Parliament”
with Emmanuel Sigalas

Lecture Abstract:
Political scientists recently started 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 lecture will discuss the wounded autonomy of the Greek Parliament and its rapid de-legitimization as a consequence of the European economic crisis. Hostility toward the Greek Parliament has been accompanied by government blows to the parliament’s legislative and control functions, which has only caused further injury to the parliament’s legitimacy. 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.

About the Lecturer:
Professor Sigalas is a lecturer at the Vienna Institute of Advanced Studies where his current research interests focus on the crisis of parliamentarism, on the European Union’s Space Policy, and on the electoral connection at the EU level. His most recent research focused on the curbing of Parliamentary privileges in the aftermath of the Greek Crisis.

For details and real time event information please visit the original CES event page here.