Eurocrats
EU institution officials
Eurocrats are officials and administrators of the European Union, especially those working in Brussels.
The term carries a dismissive or derisive tone, suggesting faceless bureaucrats imposing regulations from afar: Eurocrats in Brussels have decided what shape our bananas can be.
Critics use it to evoke the perceived distance between EU institutions and ordinary citizens.
Belgian capital
- commissionersOfficials heading regulatory bodies
- technocratsExpert-led administrators
- mandarinsEasy-peel citrus fruits
- apparatchiksPolitical party operatives
Strasbourg · cabinets · spokespersons · advisors · attachés · diplomats · negotiators · translators
Superior select group
- detachedApart or uninvolved
- unelectedNot chosen by voters
- privilegedHaving special advantages
- gravy trainEffortless source of income
bloated · wasteful · unaccountable · faceless · anonymous · aloof · ivory tower · groupthink
Bureaucratic obstacles to action
- regulationsEnforced rules and standards
- directivesFormal commands or instructions
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- proceduresSet methods for tasks
paperwork · protocols · dossiers · formalities · officialdom · administration · civil servants · functionaries
Supreme independent authority
- democracyRule by the people
- accountabilityObligation for one's actions
- transparencyState of being see-through
- legitimacyLawful or rightful status
representation · jurisdiction · federalism · supranational · intergovernmental · consensus · summits · vetoes
Official enactment of statutes
- treatiesFormal agreements between states
- LisbonPortugal's largest city
- MaastrichtDutch border city
- SchengenBorder-free European area
Eurozone · integration · enlargement · harmonization · framework · consultation · deliberation · lobbying
Brussels
Belgian capital
- commissionersOfficials heading regulatory bodies
- technocratsExpert-led administrators
- mandarinsEasy-peel citrus fruits
apparatchiks · Strasbourg · cabinets · spokespersons · advisors · attachés · diplomats · negotiators · translators
elite
Superior select group
- detachedApart or uninvolved
- unelectedNot chosen by voters
- privilegedHaving special advantages
gravy train · bloated · wasteful · unaccountable · faceless · anonymous · aloof · ivory tower · groupthink · arrogance
red tape
Bureaucratic obstacles to action
- regulationsEnforced rules and standards
- directivesFormal commands or instructions
- complianceAdhering to requirements
procedures · paperwork · protocols · dossiers · formalities · officialdom · administration · civil servants · functionaries · clerks
sovereignty
Supreme independent authority
- democracyRule by the people
- accountabilityObligation for one's actions
- transparencyState of being see-through
legitimacy · representation · jurisdiction · federalism · supranational · intergovernmental · consensus · summits · vetoes · electorate
legislation
Official enactment of statutes
- treatiesFormal agreements between states
- LisbonPortugal's largest city
- MaastrichtDutch border city
Schengen · Eurozone · integration · enlargement · harmonization · framework · consultation · deliberation · lobbying · advocacy
- public paysalary, gross pay, net pay, pay, pay grades
- EuroscepticismBrexit, Euroscepticism, euroskeptic, UKIP, Brexiteer
Eurocratselected representatives
Chosen holders of public office
grassroots activists · MEPs · voters · elected officials · the people
Europe, European, Europeans, Europeanization, bureaucrat, bureaucrats, bureaucracy, bureaucracies, bureaucratic