Abstract

The essay investigates the relationship between the independent authorities and politics, with specific reference to the government and parliament. In the case of the independent authorities, the possession of normative and remedial powers erases the distinction between politics and administration. It thus becomes necessary to constrain activities by the authorities which go beyond routine administration to the functions attributed to the political system. There has arisen a sort of deferral whereby the parliament believes that it can act upon organs characterized by their technical nature and which seek to maintain a neutral positions as third parties. Moreover, if activities addressed to political ends must originate with the government and the parliament, the author argues that the independent authorities are part of the process of policy formation. As to political responsibility, the author emphasises that this does not apply to the authorities as subjects but to whatever arises from their activity. The actor responsible instead resides in the political system: namely parliament.