Showing papers in "Journal of Common Market Studies in 2013"
TL;DR: The authors explored the link between the financial crisis and Euroscepticism at the level of public opinion, building on and developing further the literature on the impact of economic, identity and institutional factors on Eurocepticism.
Abstract: This article explores the link between the financial crisis and Euroscepticism at the level of public opinion, building on and developing further the literature on the impact of economic, identity and institutional factors on Euroscepticism. It argues that the economic crisis did not substantially bring economic factors back in as an important source of Euroscepticism, even though the most pronounced increase in Euroscepticism has taken place in the countries most affected by the crisis. By contrast, national identity and political institutions play an increasingly important role in explaining public Euroscepticism.
256 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors define "demoicracy" as "a Union of peoples, understood both as states and as citizens, who govern together but not as one" and argue that the concept is best understood as a third way, distinct from both national and supranational versions of single demos polities.
Abstract: This article offers an overview and reconsideration of the idea of European demoicracy in the context of the current crisis. It defines ‘demoicracy’ as ‘a Union of peoples, understood both as states and as citizens, who govern together but not as one’, and argues that the concept is best understood as a third way, distinct from both national and supranational versions of single demos polities. The concept of ‘demoicracy’can serve both as an analytical lens for the European Union-as-is and as a normative benchmark, but one which cannot simply be inferred from its praxis. Instead, the article deploys a ‘normative-inductive’ approach according to which the EU’s normative core ‐ transnational non-domination and transnational mutual recognition ‐ is grounded on what the EU still seeks to escape. Such norms need to be protected and perfected if the EU is to live up to its demoicratic nature. The article suggests ten tentative guiding principles for the EU to continue turning these norms into practice.
241 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that the European Union is a "demoicracy" polity of multiple demoi and has to be evaluated as such, and propose a new methodology for evaluating the EU's democratic deficit.
Abstract: The debate on the European Union's democratic deficit usually operates within a national-democratic framework of analysis. This article argues for a change in methodology. It follows the thesis that the EU is a ‘demoicracy’– a polity of multiple demoi– and has to be evaluated as such. Core principles of demoicracy are developed and the EU is assessed accordingly. Such an evaluation is not only more adequate, but also provides original insights: it is found that, whereas the constitutional development of the EU has approached demoicratic standards in general, major deficits remain at the national level.
173 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that publics, interest groups and political parties against the integration process have become embedded and persistent, at both European and national levels, and this will have considerable consequences for the Union itself and the way it has chosen to largely ignore sceptical voices to date.
Abstract: In the two decades since the emergence of the European Union at Maastricht there has been a concerted attempt to build a European political space, typified by the debates on constitutionalization and democratization. Much less noticed, but no less important, has been the mobilization of publics, interest groups and political parties against the integration process. In the light of the failure to realize the Laeken objectives, the stabilization of an anti-integration bloc in the European Parliament, recurrent ‘no’ votes in national referendums and the emergence of an increasingly co-ordinated movement of critical interest groups, it is argued in this article that this opposition has become embedded and persistent, at both European and national levels. This will have considerable consequences for the Union itself and the way it has chosen to largely ignore sceptical voices to date.
145 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the implications of the financial crisis for the relationship between monetary integration and democratic government in the European Union (EU), and conclude that the present course towards executive federalism can be justified for preventing euro dissolution and recognizing the value of national self-government.
Abstract: This article explores the implications of the financial crisis for the relationship between monetary integration and democratic government in the European Union (EU). As the crisis has exposed the original balance that economic and monetary union (EMU) sought to maintain between monetary integration and policy diversity to be unsustainable, the eurozone is put before the choice of one of three governance models: executive federalism, democratic federalization or EMU dissolution. Notably, these three governance models perfectly illustrate Dani Rodrik's 'trilemma of the world economy', which maintains that of the three goods - economic (and monetary) integration, the nation-state and democratic politics - one will always have to give. In light of this, the article concludes that the present course towards executive federalism can be justified for preventing euro dissolution and recognizing the value of national self-government. Nevertheless, it threatens to come at a democratic price. Hence, it is imperative to consider possible flanking measures that can mitigate this effect. © 2013 The Author(s) JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
141 citations
TL;DR: The second half of 2012 was dominated by debates surrounding the construction of an EU banking union as discussed by the authors, which was to be based on five components: a single rule book; a single framework for banking supervision; a common deposit guarantee scheme; a framework for the managed resolution of banks and financial institutions; and a common backstop for temporary financial support.
Abstract: In 2012, the European Commission celebrated the 20th anniversary of the European Union ‘single market’. In a climate of trepidation about the future of the European project, the Commission organized a series of events to remind Europeans of the great strides in market integration since the late 1980s. However, the year itself was marked by little progress on internal market legislation. In the context of the ongoing sovereign debt crisis and instability in Europe’s banking sector, the one exception to legislative inactivity was in the area of financial services. A series of major pieces of legislation have continued their slow progress through the EU’s legislative process. Notably, the capital requirements directive and regulation were the topic of intense debate (European Commission, 2010; see Buckley et al., 2012) and the Member States failed to reach a final agreement on the package details. The second half of 2012 was dominated by debates surrounding the construction of an EU banking union. In June, the European Council and eurozone summit agreed to deepen economic and monetary union (EMU) creating ‘banking union’, which was to be based on five components: a single rule book; a single framework for banking supervision; a common deposit guarantee scheme; a single framework for the managed resolution of banks and financial institutions; and a common backstop for temporary financial support. Indeed, the verb officially – and hyperbolically – used was to ‘complete’ EMU, suggesting that these elements – rarely discussed in European policy-making circles prior to 2012 – were the sine qua non of ‘full’ EMU (European Council, 2012b). The Member States decided to make the creation of the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) the precondition for possible direct recapitalization of banks by the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) – the funding mechanism created to help tackle the sovereign debt crisis. In September 2012, the Commission adopted a set of legislative proposals as first steps towards banking union: a regulation giving strong powers for the supervision of all banks in the eurozone to the European Central Bank (ECB) (European Commission, 2012a); a regulation with limited specific changes to the regulation setting up the European Banking Authority (EBA) to ensure a balance in its decision-making structures between eurozone and non-eurozone Member States (European Commission, 2012b); and a communication
125 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that formal voting is avoided because it would disclose the identity of opponents and would be detrimental to the negotiation process, and that ministers tend not to register their opposition even when they remain unsatisfied with an adopted measure because they expect to be blamed by their constituencies for having failed to defend national interests.
Abstract: According to conventional wisdom, in areas where the Council of the European Union is supposed to decide by qualified majority voting, it does not vote but rather decides ‘by consensus’. This article aims to explain why the Council does not vote and what ‘consensus’ means. Given that consensus is often used by international organizations and EU institutional bodies, it is important to explain how it differs from unanimity. The article argues that formal voting is avoided because it would disclose the identity of opponents and would be detrimental to the negotiation process. Furthermore, ministers tend not to register their opposition even when they remain unsatisfied with an adopted measure because they expect to be blamed by their constituencies for having failed to defend national interests. Consensus is not necessarily used to signal that a general agreement is reached. It sometimes results from a strategy of blame avoidance that conflicts with democratic accountability.
89 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors use the changed landscape of Euroscepticism to look broadly across a set of cases of government participation by parties holding Eurosceptical positions to examine whether government participation has an effect on their European positions.
Abstract: The focus of the article is to use the changed landscape of Euroscepticism to look broadly across a set of cases of government participation by parties holding Eurosceptical positions to examine whether government participation has an effect on their European positions and whether participation by Eurosceptic parties in government has had an effect on their European policy. In general, while there does seem to be a moderating effect of government participation on a party's Euroscepticism, there are notable cases of Eurosceptic party participation in government having some discernible impact on policy, but under somewhat specific conditions. The impact is clearly different for major and minor parties and, in the case of the latter, moderating their Euroscepticism is often a signifier of a wider process of party mainstreaming. In some cases, while parties continue to use Eurosceptic rhetoric when in office, this does not appear to translate into substantial policy change
87 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the European External Action Service (EEAS) is conceptualized as an interstitial organization, that is, an organization emerging in interstices between various organizational fields and recombining physical, informational, financial, legal and legitimacy resources stemming from organizations belonging to these different organizational fields.
Abstract: This article argues that the European External Action Service (EEAS) could be conceptualized as an interstitial organization – that is, an organization emerging in interstices between various organizational fields and recombining physical, informational, financial, legal and legitimacy resources stemming from organizations belonging to these different organizational fields. This interstitial status creates a situation in which there are different and sometimes conflicting organizational principles and practices introduced within the organization of the EEAS and different and sometimes conflicting sets of expectations in relation to the Service from actors within the organization as well as from outside. Based on empirical data collected in interviews with EEAS officials and study of official documents in 2011 and 2012, the article documents the interstitial nature of the EEAS. In broader terms, the emergence of the EEAS hence provides a fertile ground for studying patterns of institutional innovation in organizational fields via the establishment of interstitial organizations.
84 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined why the European Union (EU) is recognized as a relevant actor in some international institutions, but not in others, and they developed a theoretical approach toward EU actorness that demonstrates under which conditions third parties gain an interest in recognizing this actor as relevant party to international institutions and how the EU can become an actor in its own right.
Abstract: This article examines why the European Union (EU) is recognized as a relevant actor in some international institutions, but not in others. Drawing on theories of international institutions and corporate action, it develops a theoretical approach toward EU actorness that demonstrates under which conditions third parties gain an interest in recognizing this actor as a relevant party to international institutions and how the EU can become an actor in its own right. The EU is expected to be recognized as a relevant actor in an international institution if it has acquired action capability in the relevant governance area, while formal status plays an inferior role. This hypothesis is subsequently assessed for six international institutions that vary regarding the degree of EU action capability and the EU's formal status, including the WTO and IMF, FAO and WHO as well as two international environmental regimes. Empirical results confirm the fruitfulness of the theoretical approach. © 2013 The Author(s) JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
74 citations
TL;DR: The effect of this announcement was quite dramatic. It took away the fear factor that dominated the eurozone in 2012: the fear that the eurozone could collapse soon as mentioned in this paper, which was a game changer and put meat onto the bones of Mario Draghi's July 2012 promise to do whatever it takes to save the euro.
Abstract: On 6 September 2012 the European Central Bank (ECB) announced its ‘Outright Monetary Transactions’ (OMT) programme, which promised to buy unlimited amounts of sovereign bonds during crises. It is interesting to quote Mario Draghi who justified the OMT programme as follows: "[Y]ou have large parts of the euro area in a bad equilibrium in which you may have self-fulfilling expectations that feed on themselves. […] So, there is a case for intervening […] to ‘break’ these expectations, which […] do not concern only the specific countries, but the euro area as a whole. And this would justify the intervention of the central bank". After long hesitation the ECB appears to have made the fateful, but correct, decision to become a lender of last resort, not only for banks but also for sovereigns, thereby re-establishing the stabilizing force needed to protect the system from market fears and panic that have destabilized the eurozone. The effect of this announcement was quite dramatic. It took away the fear factor that dominated the eurozone in 2012: the fear that the eurozone could collapse soon. By taking away this existential fear, the ECB made it possible for government bond spreads to decline dramatically. Thus the decision of the ECB was a game changer and put meat onto the bones of Mario Draghi's July 2012 promise to ‘do whatever it takes’ to save the euro. Will this new role for the ECB be sufficient to save the eurozone? The question is analyzed in this article in two steps: first, we look at the risks that have been created by austerity; and second, we ask what kind of macroeconomic policies would be most appropriate.
TL;DR: The authors argued that although the term was first coined during the mid-1980s in Britain, its features were present since the early stages of integration, and called for a holistic approach that would examine the phenomenon beyond the study of party politics and public opinion.
Abstract: Euroscepticism has been treated as a marginal phenomenon in European Union studies. It has been portrayed as exceptional, belonging to the realm of pariah politics. This article contests this view arguing that although the term was first coined during the mid-1980s in Britain, its features were present since the early stages of integration. Pointing to its changing nature over time, it calls for a holistic approach that would examine the phenomenon beyond the study of party politics and public opinion. It urges scholars to explicitly treat Euroscepticism as an ‘independent’ as well as a ‘dependent’ variable. The next generation of Euroscepticism should be performing comparative analysis identifying and explaining different patterns of opposition to the EU, and focusing on their implications for the process of European integration, the direction of EU policy, domestic European politics and the development of EU studies.
TL;DR: The authors investigates the rationale of the German stance in light of the (corporatist-etatist, neo-mercantilist) German socioeconomic model and the widespread concern about losing the competitiveness that Germany regained through painful reforms and changes in the last two decades.
Abstract: The large current account imbalances in the eurozone reflect persistent diverging trends between core and periphery countries, also fed by low interest rates and abundant capital flows brought about by the introduction of the euro. With the global financial crisis, the market sentiment has changed, and capital has left the periphery countries suffering from debt and growth problems due to their failure to bring price–wage dynamics into uniformity with those of the more disciplined countries. Germany is called upon to provide financial assistance and additional external demand; however, though the euro is at stake, Germans are recalcitrant. This article investigates the rationale of the German stance in light of the (corporatist-etatist, neo-mercantilist) German socio-economic model and the widespread concern about losing the competitiveness that Germany regained through painful reforms and changes in the last two decades.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the implications of extension of competence to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in the area of immigration policy and show that an EU rule of law has developed that can constrain the executive branch of Member State governments.
Abstract: This article examines the implications of extension of competence to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in the area of immigration policy. Through analysis of the implications for Italy, France and the Netherlands of CJEU decisions on expulsion and family reunification it is shown that an EU rule of law has developed that can constrain the executive branch of Member State governments. This means that the EU can no longer be conceptualized in the area of immigration policy as merely an external venue to which Member States ‘escape’ in order to circumvent legal constraints at national level. The growing role of the CJEU forces instead a reconceptualization of the dynamics of immigration law and policy in Europe.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a composite indicator measuring the extent of economic integration within the European Union, the EU Index, which is designed to capture the specific European dimensions, and it is shown that the prevailing economic heterogeneities in the EU are combined with a strong and even growing clustering of its members.
Abstract: European integration is a multilayer process consisting of significant differences in efforts and capabilities of the Member State's individual EU participation. Hence, general statements about the national level of European economic integration are very vague. In order to fill this gap, this article presents a composite indicator measuring the extent of economic integration within the European Union – the EU Index. Existing composite indicators concerned with economic integration (globalization indices) were not designed to capture the specific European dimensions. The EU Index offers a unique basis, as now the national differences can be illustrated by one statistical measure. Large heterogeneities are found between the Member States with respect to overall European economic integration and to various sub-indices. By using cluster analysis, it is also shown that the prevailing economic heterogeneities in the EU are combined with a strong and even growing clustering of its members, thereby challenging present and future steps of European integration.
TL;DR: The authors argued that the unequal success of financial lobbyists depended on how their demands fitted into the government's overarching negotiation strategy, which resulted from the high saliency of financial regulation and hedge funds in particular.
Abstract: The virulent European Union hedge fund debate led many observers to suspect a paradigmatic battle between liberal market economies and countries in favour of tighter regulation. By contrast, this article points to the economic interests that drove government agendas. However, national preferences were not defined by the aggregate of a country’s economic interests, but by very specific stakeholders only, despite the existence of opponents with considerable resources. This article argues that the unequal success of financial lobbyists depended on how their demands fitted into the government’s overarching negotiation strategy. The primacy of government objectives, in turn, resulted from the high saliency of financial regulation and hedge funds in particular.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that regional integration can follow three different developmental paths, depending on the centrality of external economic actors and economic asymmetries in regional trade networks.
Abstract: This article argues that regional integration can follow three different developmental paths, depending on the centrality of external economic actors and economic asymmetries in regional trade networks. The first path causes intra-regional interdependence, the second path reinforces dependence on extra-regional actors, and the third path reinforces asymmetries in the region. The article illustrates this argument using diachronic network visualization of trade networks in three world regions. The European Union (EU) corresponds to the first path, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to the second and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to the third. The theoretical argument and empirical analysis in the article demonstrate how regional organizations get locked into these developmental paths, and how regional integration reinforces rather than changes existing economic structures.
TL;DR: In this paper, the European Union's constitution-making is used as a case study to examine how political actors can emerge through contestation by political actors in response to political opportunities, and the findings demonstrate the transformative impact of the French referendum as a specific opportunity.
Abstract: This article takes the European Union's constitution-making as a case study to examine 'how' politicization can emerge through contestation by political actors in response to political opportunities It advances understanding of the conditions and processes through which politicization emerges by undertaking empirical analysis The primary data source is an original sample of political actors' claims-making over European integration issues retrieved from news samples in France, Germany and Britain during the constitution event (2000-05) Main tenets of prominent theories on politicization are unpacked and tested in relation to the evidence from the claims-making analysis The findings demonstrate the transformative impact of the French referendum as a specific opportunity: politicization was largely restricted to internal national contestation by French actors; political party competition was the prominent contestation form; and the Socialists mobilized against the constitution by advocating 'Social Europe' This transformed the political space by introducing competition over Europe into the party system's core
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors systematically investigated both regional and issue-specific variation in external perceptions of the European Union (EU) as a global power and an international leader, and made a contribution to the debate on the perception of third states on the international role of the EU.
Abstract: This article systematically investigates both regional and issue-specific variation in external perceptions of the European Union (EU) as a global power and an international leader. While most studies on EU external perceptions focus on a one-dimensional vision of EU leadership and/or great-powerness, it is argued here that these perceptions are highly issue-specific, multilayered and differentiating. This study draws on data collected through elite interviews in three regions: the Pacific, Southeast Asia and Africa. The findings make a contribution to the debate on the perception of third states on the international role of the EU.
TL;DR: The European Union's role in CSR has changed from social-liberal standardsetter to neo-liberal cheerleader and back as mentioned in this paper, arguing that Europe's institutional diversity hampers standard-setting while economic crises and declining levels of business legitimacy facilitate it.
Abstract: What drives European Union (EU) policy change in a sensitive and contentious area? To answer this question, this article tells the story of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the EU from its beginnings until the present. The EU’s role in EU CSR has changed from social-liberal standardsetter to neo-liberal cheerleader and back. This article attempts to explain these shifts. It argues that Europe’s institutional diversity hampers standard-setting while economic crises and declining levels of business legitimacy facilitate it. Contention has been fuelled by CSR’s inherent ambiguity: is CSR a means to regulate the economy, or a domain of voluntary activity that must remain free of state regulation? Fearful of regulation, business groups – German employers in particular – have forcefully advocated the latter view. In addition to converting EU CSR from social-liberal to neo-liberal, business has neutralized two of the Commission’s standard-setting advocates. The financial crisis, the power of arguments and discourse, and the impact of global policy developments in the field of CSR have re-empowered standard-setters. The article concludes with a critical analysis of the EU’s renewed CSR strategy and non-financial reporting agenda.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that civil-society-based Euroscepticism can be interpreted as a form of grass-roots civic engagement with the EU that mobilizes mainly around the salience of EU-related referendums.
Abstract: This article seeks to broaden the study of Euroscepticism by developing a basic system of analysis for investigating civil-society-based opposition to European integration. Existing studies of Euroscepticism have almost exclusively focused on examining political parties and, as a result, theoretical approaches to understanding opposition to European integration have been strongly influenced by the party-based literature. By drawing from the body of work on both party-based Euroscepticism and European civil society, this article formulates a series of hypotheses and applies them to the case studies of Ireland, the United Kingdom and Denmark. Its main conclusion is that civil-society-based Euroscepticism generally conforms to the hard/soft model of opposition to the EU, but that this Euroscepticism is drawn from a more mainstream societal base than its party equivalent. Additionally, this study argues that civil-society-based Euroscepticism can be interpreted as a form of grass-roots civic engagement with the EU that mobilizes mainly around the salience of EU-related referendums
TL;DR: In this article, the role of welfare systems in shaping migration patterns in central and eastern Europe is analyzed and the authors argue that states have played a crucial role in affecting migration by creating and widening opportunities for potential and actual migrants through welfare system policies.
Abstract: This article analyzes the role of welfare systems in shaping migration patterns in central and eastern Europe. It argues that states have played a crucial role in affecting migration by creating and widening opportunities for potential and actual migrants through welfare system policies. This explains why CEE countries where social spending figures have been lower, unemployment benefit schemes less extensive and where labour market mismatches remained unaddressed, experienced greater out-migration. The article contributes to our understanding of how sending countries’ institutional factors affect out-migration by investigating the role of sending states’ institutions.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors review the findings of research on informal governance and explore whether analytical concepts can be applied to the EU, with the aim of bringing greater conceptual clarity to the field and identifying future research agendas in this area.
Abstract: Traditionally, much of the focus of the study of politics has been on formal arrangements and formal institutions. In recent years, however, this dominant focus has given way to an increasing concern with informal aspects of politics. This can be said for both the study of comparative politics and international relations more generally and for research on governance within the European Union in particular. Against this background, the aim of this research note is, first, to review the findings of research on informal governance and, second, to explore whether analytical concepts can be applied to the EU, with the aim of bringing greater conceptual clarity to the field and identifying future research agendas in this area. In a final section, the article also addresses the normative dimension of informal governance in the EU, discussing both the benefits and the risks of such arrangements from the perspective of transparency, efficiency and democratic accountability.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyze the leadership of three Commission Presidents: Jacques Delors, Jacques Santer and Romano Prodi, and conclude that only Delors was able to act as a transforming leader, whereas Santer, Prodi and Prodi mainly performed as transactional leaders.
Abstract: This article analyzes the leadership of three Commission Presidents: Jacques Delors, Jacques Santer and Romano Prodi. It questions whether these Presidents performed as transactional or transforming leaders – that is, whether they ‘mattered’ as forceful promoters of the European project. Drawing on leadership theory, the article identifies three factors providing opportunities and setting constraints, as decisive for exercising political leadership: the institutional setting, the situational context and the personal qualities of the office holders. It analyzes to what extent these factors, and the interplay among them, shape the leadership of the Commission Presidents, and which of these factors are conditional for the exercise of transforming leadership. It concludes that only Delors was able to act as a transforming leader, whereas Santer and Prodi mainly performed as transactional leaders. These differences are explained by variations in the situational context and the personal qualities of the incumbents and the interplay between all three factors determining political leadership.
TL;DR: In this article, it was argued that actors sceptical of a high target could be rhetorically entrapped in 2007, but such entrapment was impossible in the 2009-11 period.
Abstract: In 2007, the EU decided to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 20/30 per cent, something which was considered a proof of the EU's willingness to take on high targets independently of others. In the period 2009-11, the EU was debating but could not reach an agreement on stepping up to a 30 per cent reduction target. This raises the question: why did the EU go from being capable of adopting high targets independently of others to being incapable of agreeing whether it should increase its mitigation effort? It is argued that whereas actors sceptical of a high target could be rhetorically entrapped in 2007, such entrapment was impossible in the 2009-11 period. The lack of entrapment can be explained in terms of changes in the international and socio-economic contexts, which led to changes in the policy processes and the normative environment, which again made effective entrapment impossible.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that the clear polarization of the ‘no' vote among those from socio-economically less well-off backgrounds is not only the sign of a further widening of the gap between mainstream political elites and their supporters with regard to European integration, but also having a significant impact at a party level in terms of the galvanization of Eurosceptic political parties, particularly the radical right.
Abstract: In the spring of 2005, the European Union was plunged into a state of crisis when two of the Union's founding members (France and the Netherlands) rejected the proposed EU Constitution in two separate referendums. In this article, it is argued that the ‘no’ votes in both countries, despite the support of mainstream political elites and the bulk of the media, should not be viewed with surprise. The article begins by examining the background debate to the referendums in both countries before considering the major issues that dominated the ‘no’ campaigns as well as the issues that motivated the two countries' electorates in their decisions to reject the EU Constitution. From here, the article examines the significance of the 2005 ‘no’ votes in the current context within France and the Netherlands and argues that the clear polarization of the ‘no’ vote among those from socio-economically less well-off backgrounds is not only the sign of a further widening of the gap between mainstream political elites and their supporters with regard to European integration, but that in turn it is also having a significant impact at a party level in terms of the galvanization of Eurosceptic political parties – particularly the radical right. The article concludes with the argument that 2005 has contributed to the growing salience of Euroscepticism within both countries, which in the context of the crisis in the eurozone is likely to lead to further re-evaluation of the European project among political elites.
TL;DR: The work in this article analyzes how Eurosceptic MEPs from the "untidy right" conceive and carry out their representative mandate in an institution they despise and proposes a typology of parliamentary roles to account for their attitudes and behaviours inside the chamber.
Abstract: For the last 20 years, Euroscepticism has become a stable component of European politics and has attracted much attention. European elections have provided Eurosceptic parties with an opportunity to get parliamentary representation. While there is a burgeoning literature on the Eurosceptic stances of these parties, there remains relatively little research on their strategies once inside the European Parliament. This article analyzes how Eurosceptic MEPs from the ‘untidy right’ conceive and carry out their representative mandate in an institution they despise. First, it takes an historical perspective to show that despite the persistence of Euroscepticism in the European Union's elected chamber, the body of research remains comparatively limited. Second, it examines the institutional constraints faced by Eurosceptic representatives resulting from the institutional environment and the ideological heterogeneity of these actors. The final part proposes a typology of parliamentary roles to account for their attitudes and behaviours inside the chamber.© 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
TL;DR: In this paper, the assignment of legislative rapporteurships to Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) is examined, and the assumption that committee reports are routinely awarded to MEPs with higher levels of education and seniority at the European level is tested.
Abstract: This article examines the assignment of legislative rapporteurships to Members of the European Parliament (MEPs). Original data sources are used to test the assumption that committee reports are routinely awarded to MEPs with higher levels of education and seniority at the European level. The hypotheses are supported by an extensive multivariate regression analysis, which also demonstrates the increasing value of rapporteurships, following the initiation of Parliament's veto player status under co-decision. The article surpasses existing accounts of committee work in the European Parliament to include data on the individual balance of legislative power for the legislature's full history, 1979–2009.
TL;DR: In this paper, a post-structuralist framework is applied to account for the development of the European Union's legitimation strategies over time, and Narrative analysis is proposed as a useful methodological tool to analyze structures of meaning that restrain the Commission in its choice of legitimation strategy.
Abstract: Throughout its history, the legitimacy of the European Union has constantly been challenged. Eroding levels of political support have not left political elites unaffected. This article focuses on legitimation strategies formulated by the Commission between 1973 and 1994 and applies a post-structuralist framework to account for the development of legitimation strategies over time. The formulation of legitimation strategies becomes possible within distinct discourses while other plans of action to generate political support remain unthinkable. Narrative analysis is proposed as a useful methodological tool to analyze structures of meaning that restrain the Commission in its choice of legitimation strategies.