Unveiling Inconsistency: Consensus and Contestation along the Council–Comitology Cycle of EU Policy‐Making

Do Member States behave inconsistently along the EU policy life cycle? Existing research has extensively examined patterns of conduct in Council and comitology. However, question whether national governments' behaviours differ both stages policy-making is under-explored. This article examines under what conditions voting outcomes Council–comitology cycle differ. Based on a dataset combining records comitology, study tests hypotheses derived from delegation theory demonstrates that legislative contestation, changing preferences, stringent procedures increase inconsistency. Moreover, it inconsistency increases when there contestation changes preferences between two votes increase. Ultimately, associated with reversal