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6 Eur. L.J. 1 (2000)

handle is hein.journals/eurlj6 and id is 1 raw text is: European Law Journal, Vol. 6, No. 1, March 2000, pp. 1-3. () Blackwell Publishers Ltd. 2000, 108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JK, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA Editorial Francis Snyder The New Year and the New Millennium should be a time of change for the European Union. The Intergovernmental Conference, enlargement, and the difficult but neces- sary reform of EU institutions loom on the horizon. In the wider society, globalisation, the deepening of the information society, unemployment, social injustice, increasing social inequality, and the controversial processes of further economic, social and political integration represent major challenges, with which EU institutions, national and regional governments, social groups, and individuals will inevitably have to cope. This issue of the European Law Journal explores some of these issues; others will be taken up later during what we hope and expect will be a fruitful, socially engaged and productive year for the ELJ and its readers. The article by Rawlings takes as its focus the general powers of the European Commission to take infringement proceedings against the Member States. It argues for - and provides - a fundamental reconsideration of the role and nature of Article 226 EC (ex Article 169 EC) infringement proceedings. It gives special attention to the role of citizens and other private actors. It makes very specific practical proposals for reform of infringement procedures, the role of the Commission, and also for the related role of the European Ombudsman. But the contribution of the article is much greater than a reform-oriented analysis of a single administrative procedure, even though the latter task is extremely important. This is because, in analysing the enforcement process, Rawlings expressly sets out to articulate and deploy contrasting and more widely applicable theoretical models. The article identifies 'three faces' of enforcement: the traditional 6lite model of regulatory bargaining, a complaint procedure involving a range of actors, and technocratic, formalised and routinised enforcement of EC law. These 'three faces' provide an elegant way of contrasting competing administrative aims and functions. They also supply criteria for evaluating the operation of the Commission, as it is and as it could and should be in the future. In addition, though focused here mainly on particular institutions and specific procedures, these theoretical models make it possible to situate the Commission (and other institutions) in the broader context of different visions of the EU and of European integration. In this way, they not only identify but also illuminate paths for more wide-ranging institutional, administrative, and constitutional reform. The article by Britz and Schmidt continues the evaluation of specific institutional arrangements in the light of more general criteria. It analyses the legislative procedure established by Article 138s of the Amsterdam Treaty. This novel procedure enables the social partners, management and labour, to conclude agreements which then can be implemented by a Council decision. The procedure is much more recent than the Article 226 (ex Article 169) infringement procedure, and it involves a different relationship between private actors and EC institutions. However, it is no less

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