Parliamentary Institutions in Regional and International Governance [electronic resource] : Functions and Powers.

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Cover; Half Title; Title Page; Copyright Page; Table of Contents; List of figures; List of tables; Abbreviations and Acronyms; Introduction; Research questions, the structure of the book ... and some caveats; Notes; References; 1. What are the conditions? A review of the literature on parliamentary empowerment; 1.1 The new institutionalism; 1.2 Comparative regionalism; 1.3 Concluding remarks: two propositions on the empowerment of international parliamentary institutions; Notes; References; 2. Institutional features: appointment, representation and internal organization

2.1 The origins of parliamentary institutions and the 'time factor'2.2 The institutional setting of regional international organizations; 2.3 Size and distribution of seats of parliamentary institutions; 2.4 Selection modalities for members of parliamentary institutions; 2.5 Time spent in plenary sessions and internal organization; 2.6 Groupings in the assemblies and required majorities; 2.7 Concluding remarks: what do international parliamentary institutions represent?; Notes; References; 3. Parliamentary functions and powers

3.1 Assessing the strength of parliamentary institutions: towards a parliamentary powers index3.2 Policymaking: consultative and legislative functions; 3.3 Budgetary functions; 3.4 Accountability: oversight and appointment functions; 3.5 Concluding remarks: an overview of parliamentary functions and powers; Notes; References; 4. Explaining the empowerment of international parliamentary institutions; 4.1 Two main roads: between normative spillover and spurred emulation; 4.2 Alternative strategies? The role of informal rules, inter-institutional alliances and the 'parliamentarist ideology'

NotesReferences; 5. Conclusion; Note; References; Primary sources; Index

This volume offers an original and theoretically grounded conceptualization and measurement of international parliamentary institutions and their role in ensuring the accountability of regional international organizations. Through a comparative analysis of the establishment, evolution, institutional organization, oversight and policymaking functions of 22 parliamentary institutions, mainly from European, African and Latin American regional international organizations, the book serves a twofold purpose. First, it allows assessment of the extent to which parliamentary institutions have (measurable) influence on the outcome of regional organizations' decision-making processes. Second, drawing on the literature on new institutionalism and comparative regionalism, the volume investigates the conditions under which the influence of parliamentary institutions is expected to grow, thus advancing the understanding of the variation and development of this poorly explored type of international institution.The book is aimed at scholars of global governance, international organization and comparative regionalism, and will also be of interest to parliamentarians and parliamentary practitioners from national and international institutions.

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