COMITOLOGY - FUSION IN ACTION - POLITICO-ADMINISTRATIVE TRENDS IN THEEU SYSTEM

Studying the administrative infrastructure of the EU is an intriguing affair. Comitology committees, in particular, are significant indicato rs for analysing and assessing the evolution of the EU's administrativ e system. Relevant integration-related theories, however, offer severa l diverging analyses and assessments of their function and significanc e. Some of the existing empirical data denote considerable growth in a dministrative participation and a significant differentiation of proce dures and forms, indicating a considerable Europeanization of national administrations. Insights into the behavioural patterns within commit tees indicate an interactive style in which the fundamental constituti onal issues and the exact legal form are controversial, but where dail y routine is characterized by business-like workings based on technocr atic expertise and camaraderie, and geared to consensus among civil se rvants from several levels. Comparing realist, federalist, neo-functio nalist and functionalist approaches, as well as erosion and governance views, the evolution of comitology committees can best be described a s an indicator of a multi-level fusion process in action, leading to a yet undefined new stage in the evolution of West European states.