subsidiarity
/səbˌsɪdɪˈarɪti
/noun [mass noun]
(In politics) the principle that a central authority should have a subsidiary function, performing only those tasks which cannot be performed at a more local level: [as modifier]: the Maastricht Treaty reasserts the rights of member nation states through the subsidiarity principle...
- They have also applied the principle of subsidiarity to empower sub-national and not merely national governments vis-à-vis Brussels.
- Social policy as embodied in the welfare state belongs, following the principle of subsidiarity, to the member states.
- Most groups now also suggest localization and subsidiarity as key principles opposed to globalization.
