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"Five years have passed since the introduction of the subsidiarity test in the Lisbon Treaty. Hence, an evaluation of this instrument to enhance the position of national parliaments in European political decision-making is due. Looking back, parliaments have to decide whether the limited benefits (in terms of increased public trust and influence on the European Commission or national government) have been worth the considerable administrative costs. The glaring differences in the actual use of the instrument from one EU member state to the next have surprised both politicians and academics. Arguably, neither external factors, such as the level of euroscepticism, nor internal procedural differences offer satisfactory explanations for these disparities. In spite of broad agreement on most European policy issues, Berlin and The Hague beg to disagree on this test. In the Bundestag, the prevailing opinion holds that upholding the subsidiarity principle is first and foremost the responsibility of the government as guarantor of the national interest. The parliamentary subsidiarity test is regarded as a measure of last resort at best. For the Dutch Tweede Kamer, however, irrespective whether it trusts national government or even the European Commission, the subsidiarity instrument epitomizes parliamentary self-esteem." (author's abstract)