Abstract

The paper aims to analyse the ambivalence of the term governance within the debate on European constitutional law, as well as within the "White Paper" on governance issued by Prodi's Commission in 2001. On the one hand, governance means something less than government, because of the lack of transparent and effective democratic procedures. This is a deficiency to be overcome or reduced. On the other hand, governance means a combination of more open, inclusive, horizontal public policies aiming at updating old mechanisms of parliamentary and party dominated representation. The Euro crisis and the prevalence of intergovernmental organisations on supranational ones made the first concept of governance prevailing, thus leading to the request of the constitutionalisation of the Union. Should the idea of political Europe be re-launched, the second and more innovative dimension of governance might be recovered.