Tom R. Burns

Democratic institutions such as modern parliaments are inspired by the concept of rule by and for the people. The concept envisions a polity of " the people," or Demos, who choose their representatives to Parliament and in whose name Parliament deliberates and decides on laws and policies. Parliament is the symbol and agent of Demos. In European societies (as well as most other parts of the world), it is also the major basis for legitimizing political authority and legislation. No other societal agents - whether government agencies, intergovernmental authorities such as OECD, World Bank, World Trade Organization, or non-government organizations (NGOs), political parties, and groups of scientists and experts - can compete with Parliament in symbolizing "the people" and providing political legitimacy. Parliament, however, is not only a symbol of a polity but its agent, ultimately accountable to "the people" for laws and regulation. Yet today many of the most important changes in society take place through mechanisms beyond the scope of parliamentary purview. Some of these changes may threaten to have, or are already having, significant negative impacts on economic, political, and cultural dimensions of life and are, therefore, matters of considerable public concern. If Parliament is not to be marginalized in the face of globalization and other major societal transformations, new conceptions and institutional arrangements must be considered. The clock cannot be turned back to simpler, more consistent arrangements for governance. Modern society is all too differentiated, too complicated and dynamic to be overseen in any detail from a 'center'. At the same time, there has emerged in many policy areas a variety of highly flexible and adaptable forms of 'self-governance' that make the old forms of regulation - e.g., detailed legal and administrative regulation - less applicable and less effective. This is particularly so in the case of specialized, technically advanced sectors of modern society.