Representing diffuse interests in EC policy-making

Protecting diffuse interests has long been recognized as a central challenge in any system of governance, and has proven problematic in the European Community (EC) as well. Indeed, a number of analysts have argued that the EC is a 'businessman's Europe', privileging concentrated and mobile capital over other interests and precipitating a deregulatory 'race to the bottom'. EC institutions, however, present opportunities as well as risks for diffuse interests such as environmentalists, consumers, and women. In particular, the institutions of the EC - characterized by both multiple tiers of government and by a separation of powers at the Community level - provide diffuse interests with multiple points of access, which they have used effectively to secure the adoption and the implementation of EC policies. These arguments are illustrated through a brief examination of EC policies in the areas of environmental protection, consumer protection, and women's rights.