Articles

De Europese eenmaking in de Vlaamse publieke opinie : onbekendheid, onverschilligheid, gelatenheid of machteloosheid

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Abstract

Unlike France, Denmark, Sweden, Austria and other E.U. countries Belgium has not yet organised a referendum on European policy matters, however important these may be. So one is constrained to opinion polls and survey data to grasp the attitude of the Flemish community towards European integration. Five important policy matters are examined: the introduction of the euro, the involvement in E.U. countries, the enlargement of the E.U. , the institutional design and the position ofthe Flemish community in the E.U. At the end, with about 20 % of the electorale trying to follow the intricate European polities, on the whole public opinion on Europe in Flanders seem to be a mixture of unfamiliarity, indifference, resignation and acceptance of the policy advocated by the elitist consensus in Belgium on these matters. The missing impetus is the incentives provided by a referendum to become concerned with the complex policy-making and policies in Europe.

How to Cite:

Dewachter, W., (2003) “De Europese eenmaking in de Vlaamse publieke opinie : onbekendheid, onverschilligheid, gelatenheid of machteloosheid ”, Res Publica 45(2-3), 481-505. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/rp.v45i2-3.18487