“The European Parliament
and the European political space”

organised by The Federal Trust with support from UACES and EU-CONSENT

30 March 2006, 11:00 – 18:00
Goodenough College, Mecklenburgh Square, London WC1N 2AD

PROGRAMME

Welcome:
Mr Brendan Donnelly, Director of the Federal Trust
Dr. Andreas Maurer, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, Berlin

Arrival and registration: 11.00 onwards

Session 1: 11:30 – 12:15

KEYNOTE  ADDRESS
Chaired by Professor Jo Shaw, Edinburgh University

Nick Clegg MP
Foreign Affairs Spokesman, Liberal Democrats, and former MEP 1999-2004

Questions and Answers

Lunch: 12:15 – 13:00

Session 2: 13:00 – 14:00

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND POLITICAL CONFLICT
Chaired by Professor Vernon Bogdanor, Oxford University

Professor Simon Hix – London School of Economics and Political Science
“Party cohesion and voting behaviour since Enlargement”

Pierpaolo Settembri – European Institute of Public Administration, Maastricht
“Is the European Parliament competitive or consensual - and why bother?”

Questions and Answers

Tea and Coffee: 14:00 – 14:20

Session 3: 14:20 – 15:20

ENLARGEMENT AND PARTY SYSTEMS IN THE EP AND NATIONAL PLIAMENTS
Chaired by Francis Jacobs, European Parliament

Dr. Kai-Olaf Lang – Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, Berlin
“Confusion or Consolidation? Implications of the EU's Eastern Enlargement for the EP's Party System”

Professor Dobrin Kanev – Bulgarian European Community Studies Association (BECSA) and New Bulgarian University – Sofia
“Europeanisation and Party Systems: The Case of Bulgaria”

Questions and Answers

Session 4: 15:25 – 16:25

THE EU¹S NEW MEMBER STATES : FIRST EXPERIENCES IN THE EP

Chaired by Michael Shackleton, European Parliament

Professor Paul Taggart/Dr. Tim Bale – University f Sussex
“The newest of the new?  Accession state MEPs: who they are and who they think they are”

Melchior Szczepanik – Loughborough University
“The European Parliament after enlargement: any different?”

Questions and Answers

Tea and Coffee: 16:25 – 16:45

Session 5: 16:45 – 17:45

THE EP’S RELATIONS WITH EUROPEAN AND NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
Chaired by Brendan Donnelly, The Federal Trust

Dr. Andreas Maurer/Daniela Kietz – Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, Berlin
“Interinstitutional Agreements and European Integration”

Dessislava Yordanova – Bulgarian European Community Studies Association (BECSA) and Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
“The Political Pledges of Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation: The Relations between the European Parliament and the Bulgarian Parliament”

Questions and Answers

END OF CONFERENCE