Showing papers in "West European Politics in 2002"
TL;DR: In this article, the principal-agent framework that explains delegation to NMIs through functional logics for principals is presented, along with alternative explanations based on sociological and historical institutionalism.
Abstract: The article summarises the analytical frameworks, questions, and empirical findings of the volume It defines the key concepts used It then sets out the principal-agent framework that explains delegation to NMIs through functional logics for principals It sets out alternative explanations based on sociological and historical institutionalism Thereafter, it relates the empirical findings of the volume to these wider debates about delegation It argues that although functional demands for delegation can almost always be identified, purely functional accounts of delegation to NMIs are inadequate Explaining the decision to delegate and the institutional forms of that delegation involves including and specifying interests, policy learning/institutional isomorphism and institutional inheritances Delegation has also had major consequences on the distribution of power, policy making processes and substantive policy choices, both through its direct effects, and via feedback effects Finally, delegation has ra
555 citations
TL;DR: In this article, it is argued that governments choose central bank independence because delegation has important legitimising and symbolic properties that are attractive to political leaders in times of economic uncertainty, and that delegation to independent central banks is rational, efficient, and acceptable in a democratic society because of the cultural processes which define it as such.
Abstract: The conventional wisdom in support of central bank independence rests on a series of contestable arguments about the relationship between democracy, policy making, and economic outcomes. Empirical work casts doubt on the severity of the inflationary problems purportedly solved by delegation to independent central banks, as well as raising questions about the linkages between delegation and superior economic outcomes. So why delegate? Theories of institutional isomorphism, or the copying of organisational models, provide an alternative sociological explanation of the diffusion of central bank independence. Drawing on this approach, it is argued that governments choose central bank independence because delegation has important legitimising and symbolic properties that are attractive to political leaders in times of economic uncertainty. Delegation to independent central banks is rational, efficient, and acceptable in a democratic society because of the cultural processes which define it as such, not because...
320 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a functionalist analysis of the pressures on elected officials and the functions that IRAs perform is presented, and the authors examine selected examples in Britain, France, Germany, and Italy.
Abstract: Independent Regulatory Agencies (IRAs) have spread across many domains in Western Europe. The article examines selected examples in Britain, France, Germany, and Italy. A functionalist analysis of the pressures on elected officials and the functions that IRAs perform provide a valuable starting point for analysis. Nevertheless, it confronts cross-national and cross-domain variations in the timing of the creation of IRAs, their spread and their institutional forms. In order to offer a fuller account, contextual factors that mediate pressures must be considered. These factors include learning and institutional isomorphism; state traditions and structures; political leadership; state reforms. Finally, IRAs have had far-reaching consequences that have often been unanticipated at the time of their creation.
296 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that the current enlargement has generated its own mode of governance, characterised by asymmetry and conditionality, and that the absence of common EU rules and norms, and the variation of domestic preferences about administrative reform, lead to varying degrees of success in administrative institution building.
Abstract: Does the EU governance of the Central and Eastern European candidate states unleash a process of Europeanisation? It is argued here that the current enlargement has generated its own mode of governance, characterised by asymmetry and conditionality. Enlargement governance has recently focused on developing administrative capacity or 'institution-building', defined as the creation of institutions necessary for the adoption and implementation of the acquis communautaire. This article examines horizontal administrative reform and attempts to define the conditions determining the success or failure of the EU's efforts in institution-building. The absence of common EU rules and norms, and the variation of domestic preferences about administrative reform, lead to varying degrees of success in administrative institution-building.
260 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that the expected consequences of delegation motivate governments to confer certain functions to supranational institutions, and the nature of these functions influences the design of mechanisms for controlling the institutions.
Abstract: Why, how, and with what consequences do national governments delegate political authority to supranational institutions? Contrary to the static conceptions of delegation that dominate the existing literature, this article adopts a dynamic approach, where the stages of the delegation process are integrated into a coherent rational institutionalist framework. With demonstrations from the case of the European Union, the article argues that: (1) the expected consequences of delegation motivate governments to confer certain functions to supranational institutions; (2) the nature of these functions influences the design of mechanisms for controlling the institutions; (3) institutional design shapes the consequences of delegation by facilitating or obstructing attempts by the institutions to implement private agendas; and (4) the consequences of previous rounds of delegation affect future delegation, institutional design, and interaction, through positive and negative feed-back loops.
237 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine how politics has shaped the design of EU regulatory agencies and how the growing power of the European Parliament as a political principal has changed the politics of agency design.
Abstract: The establishment of agencies at the European level is one of the most notable recent developments in EU regulatory policy. This article examines how politics has shaped the design of EU regulatory agencies. Building on the American politics literature on delegation, the article explains how principal-agent concerns and political compromise have influenced agency design in the EU context; shows how conflicts between the EU's primary legislative actors - the Council and the Parliament - and its primary executive actor - the Commission - have influenced the design of new bureaucratic agencies; and discusses how the growing power of the European Parliament as a political principal has changed the politics of agency design.
207 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the theoretical and empirical bases of such claims are examined and are found to be inadequate, and wider implications of the critique are brought out both for globalisation theorists' notions of epochal change and for their views of the kind of social science that the 'global age' requires.
Abstract: 'Grand' theories of globalisation - those that treat globalisation as a social and cultural as well as an economic process - regularly feature claims that fundamental changes are involved in the nature of class inequalities in modern (or 'post-modern') societies, in the form of the class structure itself, and in the relationship between class and politics. The theoretical and empirical bases of such claims are critically examined and are found to be inadequate. Some wider implications of the critique are brought out both for globalisation theorists' notions of 'epochal change' and for their views of the kind of social science that the 'global age' requires.
146 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the methodological challenges of testing hypotheses about the conditions under which agents might enjoy some degree of autonomy from their legislative principals, and draw lessons from the recent Americanist literature.
Abstract: European(ist) scholars have largely followed their American(ist) colleagues in the formulation of theories about delegation of powers to non-majoritarian institutions, most notably through the application of principal-agent models of relations between legislative principals and their executive and judicial agents. This article suggests that Europeanists can once again learn from recent developments in both theory and method in the study of delegation in American politics. The first section discusses the methodological challenges of testing hypotheses about the conditions under which agents might enjoy some degree of autonomy from their legislative principals, and draws lessons from the recent Americanist literature. The section examines the development in American politics of a second wave of principal-agent analysis which aims to formulate and test hypotheses about the conditions under which legislative principals might delegate authority and discretion to bureaucratic agents. The third and final section...
119 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify a West-East axis of political value orientations in Europe, where Democratic attitudes decrease the further to the East while at the same time there is an increase in etatist orientations.
Abstract: The constitution of a European demos with a collective identity is one of the preconditions for adjusting the legitimacy problem of the European Union (EU). The analysis attempts to clarify empirically whether there is sufficient commonality regarding Europeans' political value orientations to substantiate a collective identity. Particularly in view of the European Union's eastward enlargement, the question arises whether widespread cultural heterogeneity in Europe allows the formation of a European demos at all. In Europe we can identify a West-East axis of political value orientations. Democratic attitudes decrease the further to the East while at the same time there is an increase in etatist orientations. Thresholds can be observed which distinguish Western European countries on the one hand and Central and Eastern European countries on the other. Within the group of Central and Eastern Europe a further distinction can be made between the three Slavic republics of the former Soviet Union and the rest o...
119 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the relationship between electoral systems and extremist political parties and concluded that the share of the vote going to extremist parties appears unrelated to the type of electoral system employed.
Abstract: This article examines the relationship between electoral systems and extremist political parties. Focusing on the West European parties of the extreme right, it first investigates the extent to which district magnitude and electoral formula - the two main dimensions of electoral systems - influence the scores of these parties. It then considers the overall impact of the disproportionality of the electoral system. The article concludes that whilst proportional electoral systems do undeniably make it easier for extremist parties to gain legislative representation, there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that they promote extremism. Instead, the share of the vote going to extremist parties appears unrelated to the type of electoral system employed.
112 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the tendency for governments to create independent competition agencies is analysed in the cases of Directorate General IV of the Commission, the German Cartel Office, the Office of Fair Trading, and the Competition Commission.
Abstract: The tendency for governments to create independent competition agencies is analysed in the cases of Directorate General IV of the Commission, the German Cartel Office, the Office of Fair Trading, and the Competition Commission. Analysis of the historical process of agency design, and the re-definition of agency missions, indicates a progression from a symbolic and constitutional rationale to a more material impact on contemporary market economies. Drawing loosely on principal-agent theory, changing agency roles are ascribed partly to the activism of independent agents, partly to the changing priorities of majoritarian principals. The unanticipated consequences of delegation include an escape from business capture but a shift to legalism or economic purism.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors assess the creation and subsequent evolution of systems of constitutional justice in West Europe, in light of delegation theory, and argue that constitutional judges are better conceptualised as trustees, exercising fiduciary responsibilities, than as agents, who operate in the shadow of principals.
Abstract: The article assesses the creation and subsequent evolution of systems of constitutional justice in West Europe, in light of delegation theory. The author argues that constitutional judges are better conceptualised as trustees, exercising fiduciary responsibilities, than as agents, who operate in the shadow of principals. The zone of discretion that organises the activities of constitutional courts is unusually large, in some contexts close to unlimited. The author then surveys why, and to what extent, constitutional adjudication has transformed the nature of parliamentary governance, focusing on the cases of France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Notwithstanding important variation, certain trends are both pan-European and irreversible: traditional separation of powers doctrines are steadily eroding; legislators and administrators are being placed under the authority of an expansive, continuously evolving constitutional law; and the judiciary's participation in law making processes is becoming more overt and ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the extent and content of Europeanisation in Central and East European (CEE) countries at the level of market making is discussed. But, the authors focus on the most successful CEE countries with their strong states and weak social and economic actors converged towards a moving target towards EU countries in the process of supranational market making with dramatically different constellation of powers among key economic actors.
Abstract: This study deals with the extent and content of 'Europeanisation' in the Central and East European (CEE) countries at the level of market making. It argues that Europeanisation at the level of market making was about creating states with strong capacities to preserve and regulate markets and with increased and reconstructed administrative and planning capabilities. The most successful CEE countries with their strong states and weak social and economic actors converged towards a moving target, that is, towards EU countries in the process of supranational market making with dramatically different constellation of powers among key economic actors. The paper discusses the specifics of national level market making in the CEE countries, the factors of divergence within the region, and the 'diverging convergence' between the CEE and the EU countries.
TL;DR: The authors discusses the relationship of Malta with the European Union in the light of Malta's status as an example of a "nationless state" and explores the possible dialectics of an emerging nationalism with an entrenched two-party political system and its totalising discourse.
Abstract: This article discusses the relationship of Malta with the European Union in the light of Malta's status as an example of a 'nationless state'. The article first develops the relevance of this under-researched concept by locating it within the discussion of post-colonial, small island nationalism. It then provides a historical critique of the emergence of the Maltese nationless state and of its various integrationist attempts with France, Italy, Britain and, most recently, the EU. Finally, the article explores the possible dialectics of an emerging nationalism with an entrenched two-party political system and its totalising discourse.
TL;DR: In this article, the influence of Europeanisation on domestic politics and institutions is investigated and it is shown that it is not the number of veto points as such that matters most, but the strength of the actors that activate them or threaten to do so.
Abstract: Although studies of the influence of Europeanisation on domestic politics and institutions are numerous, a consistent and systematic analytical framework is still lacking. This article tries to overcome this weakness and presents a comprehensive framework that examines the conditions under which Europeanisation is likely to lead to national adaptation. We identify three main independent variables, including domestic power configurations, mediating domestic institutions, and actors' strategies. This model is applied to the agreement on the free movement of persons between Switzerland and the European Union. Our results suggest that it is not the number of veto points as such that matters most, but the strength of the actors that activate them or threaten to do so, and the counter-strategies available to actors favouring change.
TL;DR: This paper examined the transition in Ireland over the last 15 years from a relatively uncoordinated approach to pay determination to a co-coordinated approach linking pay policy into the broader context of national economic governance.
Abstract: This article examines the transition in Ireland over the last 15 years from a relatively unco-ordinated approach to pay determination to a co-ordinated approach linking pay policy into the broader context of national economic governance. The new political model of 'social partnership' was central to the remarkable experience of growth, employment expansion, and rising living standards in Ireland during the 1990s. This very success brought new challenges to the strategy of politically mediated pay pacts. The prospects for the sustainability of these new networks of economic governance are examined.
TL;DR: The use of the concept "Europeanisation" has burgeoned, though its link with party adaptation and change is still under-explored by as discussed by the authors, who argue that Europeanisation has accelerated the mellowing of Green ideology and professionalisation of Green party politics.
Abstract: The use of the concept 'Europeanisation' has burgeoned, though its link with party adaptation and change is still under-explored. This article concedes the difficulties, outlined recently by Peter Mair and others, of linking Europeanisation and party change. However, it suggests that a more modest but systematic examination of the EU's impact on one party family (European Green parties) reveals both empirical and conceptual insights. Examining the Europeanisation of Green parties across several dimensions (party ideology, institutions and transnational activities) this article argues that Europeanisation has accelerated the mellowing of Green ideology and 'professionalisation' of Green party politics.
TL;DR: The post-communist welfare regimes in East-Central Europe are often portrayed as a hybrid consisting of the relics of communist social policy and a neophyte imitation of the US model of welfare as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Post-communist welfare regimes are frequently portrayed as a hybrid consisting of the relics of communist social policy and a neophyte imitation of the US model of welfare. Both components of that hybrid are regarded as incompatible with the 'European social model'. At the same time, most welfare reformers in East-Central Europe try to avoid falling into the trap of first, conserving the statist, inefficient and pseudo-egalitarian character of the old system of social policy; second, seeking new forms of welfare collectivism along the national-conservative/populist 'third roads' between capitalism and communism; third, triggering popular discontent by dismantling the old welfare regimes too rapidly, or in a haphazard way; and fourth, targeting an end-state which has become unsustainable in the Western world during the past two decades. Meanwhile, the emerging welfare regimes in the region are far from being identical and the reformers do not find stable institutional arrangements in the West to copy. In a...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors plot the course of institutional development in Central and Eastern Europe, outlining some of the major cases of institutional redesign and highlighting both the positive and negative impact of 'Europe' on the process.
Abstract: The end of communism in Central and Eastern Europe offered the region a unique opportunity for institutional redesign. Thanks to the variety of historical experiences, inherited structures, transition paths and deal sweeteners during the round-table talks, post-communist Europe initially witnessed much institutional diversity. Throughout the course of the past decade, however, there has been a notable convergence of institutional designs across the region. The process of convergence has been, in part, a response to domestic political concerns, but the demands of the European Union have also played a role. This article plots the course of institutional development in the region, outlining some of the major cases of institutional redesign and highlighting both the positive and negative impact of 'Europe' on the process.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyse the resurgence of national-level social bargaining in Portugal and Spain and argue that this development was the result of the reorientation of the strategies of the social actors.
Abstract: This article analyses the resurgence of national-level social bargaining in Portugal and Spain. It argues that this development was the result of the reorientation of the strategies of the social actors. In a new economic and political context, marked by a process of institutional learning and the increasing autonomy by unions from political parties, trade unions have supported social bargaining as a defensive strategy to retake the initiative and influence policy outcomes. The incentives leading governments and employers to agree to new social pacts reflect their failure to control wages in a relatively fragmented and decentralised wage setting. Finally, co-operation among the social actors has been helped by the emergence of state institutions for tripartite macroeconomic and social bargaining.
TL;DR: The main argument is that a genetic code, inherent to the system of government institutions, has routinely auto-piloted choices that involved the design and control of agencies away from principal-agent-like considerations as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Although the delegation of government functions to non-majoritarian bodies such as independent agencies has accelerated throughout the OECD, Germany has followed a different path so far. In particular, administrative agencies have only rarely been granted autonomy from direct political control. The main argument is that a genetic code, inherent to the system of government institutions, has routinely auto-piloted choices that involved the design and control of agencies away from principal-agent-like considerations. The elements of this genetic code are outlined and the likelihood of their future persistence is assessed. Even if the pressure to create new agencies at arms length from government has increased, there are still strong incentives to keep them in a subordinate position.
TL;DR: The French elections of 2002: After the Earthquake, the Deluge as discussed by the authors were the first to be studied in the West European Journal of West European Politics, Vol. 25, No. 4, pp. 207-220.
Abstract: (2002). ELECTION REPORT - The French Elections of 2002: After the Earthquake, the Deluge. West European Politics: Vol. 25, No. 4, pp. 207-220.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors highlight some of the weaknesses of the Spanish Senate in terms of its constitutional design and institutional development, and explain how attempts at reforming political institutions are influenced by the historical context in which the institution was originally designed and the political context, in which it has subsequently developed.
Abstract: Attempts in recent years to reform the Spanish Senate have proven futile Using an institutionalist approach, this article highlights some of the weaknesses of the Spanish Senate in terms of its constitutional design and institutional development The article explains how attempts at reforming political institutions are influenced by the historical context in which the institution was originally designed and the political context in which it has subsequently developed The debate over Senate reform is analysed by examining the Senate's institutional setting and its relationships to broader political settings such as the legacy of the transition to democracy, political party discourse, and a competitive culture in Spain's system of intergovernmental relations
TL;DR: This article evaluated the extent to which there is a cultural divide separating member states of the EU from Eastern European applicant states, based on data from language use, religion and exposure to popular culture, and concluded that despite the vibrancy of national cultures within Europe, there is an emergent cultural configuration that unites the continent.
Abstract: Relying on data from language use, religion and exposure to popular culture, this contribution evaluates the extent to which there is a cultural divide separating member states of the EU from Eastern European applicant states. To address this issue, the study makes three claims. First, despite the vibrancy of national cultures within Europe, there is an emergent cultural configuration that unites the continent. Second, the applicant states are very much part of this European cultural zone. In fact, with the cultural characteristics of the original six members of the EC held up as the European model, the applicant states are closer on several dimensions than are the later entrants into the EC. Third, there are greater incentives for individuals in the applicant states to co-ordinate culturally with the European configuration than for individuals living in the heart of Europe. The conclusion therefore is that there is no evidence of a cultural divide that would justify holding back membership of Eastern Eur...
TL;DR: The policy-making processes that allowed for institutional change, as well as achievements and shortcomings of the implementation processes that followed, are analyzed in Italy, Portugal, Greece, Spain.
Abstract: Italy, Portugal, Greece and Spain have enacted reform laws during the last 20 years with the intention of turning their health insurance systems into national health services. Universalisation of access to public health care was at the centre of the political debates which led to the passing of the reform laws. This article analyses the policy-making processes that allowed for such institutional change, as well as achievements and shortcomings of the implementation processes that followed. The analysis draws on the insights of the actor-centred neo-institutionalist approach in the policy sciences.
TL;DR: In this paper, a broad range of empirical evidence is introduced to challenge many of the theoretical assumptions about the scope, form and meaning of diversity in the process of European integration, and especially in the context of the forthcoming eastward enlargement.
Abstract: It is now taken as given that the European Union will be a much more diversified entity following its planned eastward enlargement. But precisely how much diversity will there be, and what are its implications? These questions are addressed in this article, as well as in the broader collection of essays which it introduces. By introducing a broad range of empirical evidence, we seek to challenge many of the theoretical assumptions about the scope, form and meaning of diversity in the process of European integration, and especially in the context of the forthcoming eastward enlargement. In fact, the map of unity and diversity in the enlarged EU proves to be extremely complex, and does not simply correspond to the old East-West divide. We also suggest that much of this diversity should be seen as welcome rather than as threatening for the Union, and that the enlargement process constitutes an important factor generating adaptation and accommodation.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined judicial review of secondary legislation in three countries and found that the level of judicial activism in the UK has been low but may be increasing, probably related both to congressional inefficiency in passing amending statutes and judicial recruitment and career patterns.
Abstract: Legislatures frequently enact primary legislation that delegates secondary law making powers to administrative agencies. Judicial review designed to ensure that this secondary legislation is in accord with the primary legislation necessarily involves judicial interpretation of the primary legislation and hence also some degree of judicial law making. Both the relative degree of judicial law making and its causes may vary from country to country. Judicial review of secondary legislation in three countries is examined. Judicial activism is great in the United States and probably related both to congressional inefficiency in passing amending statutes and judicial recruitment and career patterns. The level of judicial activism in the UK has been low but may be increasing. It is severely constrained by the capacity of parliament rapidly to 'correct' judicial interpretations but encouraged by judicial career patterns. The formal decisions of the French Council of State show little judicial intervention against ...
Journal Article•
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify the main threats to post-communist liberal democracies, especially those perils related to the weakness of pluralist traditions, institutions, and values and the rise of movements and ideologies rooted in cultural and political malaise, ressentiment, and disaffection.
Abstract: This article tries to identify the main threats to post-communist liberal democracies, especially those perils related to the weakness of pluralist traditions, institutions, and values and the rise of movements and ideologies rooted in cultural and political malaise, ressentiment, and disaffection. Nine such perils are identified in the second half of the article, including Leninist legacies, salvationist popular sentiments, the rhetoric of reactionary nostalgia, the fluidity of political formations, the crisis of values, authority, and accountability, and the tensions between individualistic and communitarian values. The concern here is with a diagnosis of the main vulnerabilities of Eastern Europe's post-communist states in order to evaluate prospects for further democratic consolidation and risks for the rise and affirmation of ethnocratic parties and movements. Understanding the post-communist political and cultural situation, including persistent isolationist, anti-globalisation, populist and nationa...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors use a case study of the introduction of new policy machinery to analyse competing claims about the nature of the Labour Party's organisational transformation and demonstrate that whilst the new policy process was presented as a move towards greater democracy, both its general design and its modes of operation rendered inevitable the production of a general election manifesto in 2001 (the culmination of the process) whose contents coincided very closely to the leadership's tastes.
Abstract: This article uses a case study - the introduction in 1997 of new policy machinery - to analyse competing claims about the nature of the Labour Party's organisational transformation. It aims to demonstrate that whilst the new policy process was presented as a move towards greater democracy, both its general design and its modes of operation rendered inevitable the production of a general election manifesto in 2001 (the culmination of the process) whose contents coincided very closely to the leadership's tastes. The article then seeks to account for the form Labour's transformation took, drawing on the work of Michels and Lipset and his colleagues.