> If we make the EU more democratic, will it become less effective too?

This is probably the first time I'm hearing somebody claiming EU was effective ;)

However you are right - the fact that there is less attention on EU legislation enables different dynamics.

However I think it is quite different between countries how well they do. Here in Germany I am quite optimistic that the new government will do quite a few good things ... but maybe I'm too optimistic, but lots of good signals from my pov