Download or read book Rediscovering Europe in the Netherlands written by and published by Amsterdam University Press. This book was released on 2007 with total page 180 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 2005, the Dutch referendum on whether to ratify the treaty establishing a European constitution dramatically exposed the rift between political and public opinion in European policymaking. Additionally, the referendum demonstrated that politicians had failed to function as adequate links between Europe as an entity and its Dutch citizens. Against this turbulent background, the authors analyze the European Union’s relative lack of legitimacy in the Netherlands and advise how its image might earn more popular appeal by going beyond traditional institutional approaches.