Centre Stage: Ken Collins, the European Parliament, and Environmental Policy, 1979-1989

Environmental policies and politics are an important component of European integration history, yet they remain underexplored. They were sources of conflict, contestation, and alternative visions and had a profound impact on the history of European integration. This article offers an analysis of the role played by key individuals at a time when the European Parliament’s power was increasing. It also uses the experiences of Ken Collins, the first Chair of the directly elected Environment Committee, as a lens through which to view the increasing importance attached to environmental issues at the Community level.