A Ranking of the Polish Members of the European Parliament

The long-term project The Activity and effectiveness of Polish MEPs in the European Parliament has already reveal a few important things. In 2007 the Kosciuszko Institute, as the first in Poland, summarised in one of its reports the performance of Polish MEPs in the EP. In 2009, in cooperation with the main Polish research centres – the Jagiellonian University, the Cracow University of Economics and the Polish Academy of Sciences – prepared the first Ranking of the Polish Members of the European Parliament 2009 and organised a pre-election public debate about the role of Poland and Polish MEPs in the EU. The Ranking was published in “Rzeczpospolita”. The Ranking will be repeated periodically and its results will be subject to political analysis.

Ranking of the Polish members of European Parliament 2012

Currently, the Kosciuszko Institute in cooperation with the internet portal VoteWatch.eu is working on the second edition of the research programme: “Activity and effectiveness of Polish MEP’s - RANKING OF THE MEMBERS OF EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 2012”

Similarly to the first edition of the project, realized in 2009, this year project aims in evaluation of Polish MEP’s activities, effectiveness and their participation in the work of European political fractions. The works on the ranking will finish in January 2012 and they will cover the first half of VII term of the EP.

The innovatory model of evaluation – this year with addition of some new criteria- will help to make even more detailed and reliable summary of the real achievements of Polish MEP’s in realization of the affairs important for both Poland and EU.

Methodology of the ranking was based on well known multidimensional data analysis, so called methodology of organizing multi-features objects and with the cooperation of political scientists and experts from The Jagiellonian University, Polish Academy of Sciences and Economical University of Kraków. This method is used also in such prestigious research projects like Human Development Index, or the ranking of competitiveness of Polish regions and cities. In the “criteria comparing” process, which is the most innovative aspect of the ranking, the focus group (experts, journalists, EU administration workers) takes part.

Using of this method allows to analyze legislative and political activity of MEP’s based on transparent quantitative criteria with special factors (multipliers) assigned in reference to two assumptions:

1. Effectiveness in representing of Polish interests in EP

2. Most important, positive influence on EP’s works from the Polish point of view.

In this edition, the ranking will also evaluate the activities of the President of European Parliament prof. Jerzy Buzek and former president of ECR political group – Michał Kamiński, who, because of their positions, had much bigger possibilities of influencing EP’s works than other MEP’s. That is also a reason why they will not be evaluated the same way as the other MEP’s will be.

We would like the final results of the ranking not only to contain quantitative data. That’s why we created the special surveys for MEP’s to let them share their opinions about their activities and effectiveness. The surveys were recently send do all Polish MEP’s.