The Political System of the European Union

by Simon Hix

• ISBN13: 9780312225353
• ISBN10: 0312225350
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Trade Book
• Copyright: 1999-08-14
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

The Political System of the European Union sets out a new way of analyzing, researching and teaching the EU. This approach starts from the recognition that the EU possesses all the attributes of a modern "political system." The book subsequently argues that we should use general theories and methods in political science to understand how the EU works. For each of the main processes in the EU political system, the book introduces the key political science tools, applies these in a detailed description of the workings of the EU, and compares the results to the latest theoretical and empirical research on the EU.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures	xiv	(3)
Preface	xvii	(3)
Abbreviations	xx
1 Introduction: Explaining the EU Political System	1	(20)
The EU: a political system but not a state	2	(3)
How the EU political system works	5	(4)
Actors and institutions: the basics of modern political science	9	(5)
Theories of European integration: the neo-functionalist legacy	14	(2)
Structure of the book	16	(5)
PART I GOVERNMENT	21	(112)
2 Executive Politics	21	(35)
Theories of executive power, delegation and discretion	21	(4)
Government by the Council and the member states	25	(7)
Treaties and treaty reforms: deliberate and unintended delegation	26	(2)
Political leadership by the European Council and the Council	28	(2)
Administrative `fusion: natural coordination of EU policy	30	(2)
Government by the European Commission	32	(9)
A cabinet: the EU core executive	32	(4)
A bureaucracy: the EU civil service	36	(3)
A regulator: the EU quango(s)	39	(2)
Comitology: the interface of the EU dual-executive	41	(4)
The committee procedures	42	(2)
Interinstitutional conflict	44	(1)
Democratic control of the EU executive	45	(5)
Political accountability: selection and censure of the Commission	46	(2)
Administrative accountability: parliamentary scrutiny and transparency	48	(2)
Explaining the organization of executive power in the EU	50	(4)
Demand for EU government: selective delegation by the member states	50	(2)
Supply of EU government: Commission preferences, entrepreneurship and capture	52	(2)
Conclusion: the politics of a dual-executive	54	(2)
3 Legislative Politics	56	(43)
Theories of legislative coalitions and organization	56	(4)
Development of the legislative system of the EU	60	(3)
Legislative politics inside the Council	63	(11)
Agenda organization: the presidency, sectoral councils and committees	63	(5)
Voting and coalition politics in the Council	68	(6)
Legislative politics inside the European Parliament	74	(10)
MEP behaviour: reelection versus promotion and policies	75	(1)
Agenda organization: leaderships, parties and committees	75	(4)
Coalition formation in the Parliament	79	(5)
Legislative bargaining between the Council and the EP	84	(12)
Theoretical models of EU bicameralism: Tsebelis and his critics	88	(6)
Empirical evidence of EP power	94	(2)
Conclusion: complex but familiar politics	96	(3)
4 Judicial Politics	99	(34)
Political theories of constitutions and courts	99	(4)
The EU legal system and the European Court of Justice	103	(4)
Composition and operation of the European Court of Justice	104	(2)
Jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice	106	(1)
`Constitutionalization' of the European Union	107	(6)
Direct-effect: EU law as `the law of the land' for national citizens	108	(1)
Supremacy: EU law as `the higher law of the land'	109	(1)
`Integration through law' and `economic constitutionalism'	110	(1)
State-like properties: external sovereignty and internal coercion	111	(2)
Penetration of the EU constitution into national legal systems	113	(5)
Quantitative: national courts' use of ECJ preliminary rulings	113	(2)
Qualitative: national courts' acceptance of the EU legal systems	115	(3)
Explanations of the development of the EU constitution	118	(9)
Legal formalism and legal cultures	118	(2)
`Activism' by the European Court of Justice	120	(1)
Strategic national courts: judicial empowerment, national political contexts and inter-court competition	121	(3)
Transnational litigants and lawyers: the other `interlocutors' of the ECJ	124	(1)
Strategic member-state governments	125	(2)
Conclusion: `unknown destination' or `emerging equilibrium'?	127	(6)
PART II POLITICS	133	(78)
5 Public Opinion and Political Cleavages	133	(33)
Theories of the social bases of politics	133	(1)
Mass support for the European Union	134	(6)
End of the `permissive consensus'?	134	(4)
Easton's theory of affective and utilitarian support	138	(2)
More or less integration: `Europe -- right or wrong?'	140	(14)
National cultures, interests and politics: the national cleavage	140	(4)
Transnational economic interests: the class cleavage	144	(4)
`New' transnational divisions: generation, education, knowledge, region	148	(6)
What the EU should do: `Europe -- right or left?'	154	(4)
The `electoral connection': strategic dilemmas for Euro-elites	158	(6)
Conclusion: a politicized plural society	164	(2)
6 Parties, Elections and EU Democracy	166	(22)
Theories of elections: choosing parties, leaders and policies	166	(2)
The European Union party system	168	(5)
Party organization at the European level	173	(7)
Party behaviour and cohesion in the European Parliament	176	(2)
Party leaders' summits and the European Council	178	(2)
European Parliament elections: second-order national contests	180	(4)
Alternative mechanisms: direct democracy and presidentialism	184	(2)
Euro-referendums?	184	(1)
Election of the Commission president?	185	(1)
Conclusion: towards representative government?	186	(2)
7 Interest Representation	188	(23)
Theories of interest intermediation	188	(3)
Lobbying Europe: interest groups and EU policy-making	191	(10)
Business interests: `the large firm as a political actor'	193	(2)
Trade unions, public interests and social movements	195	(3)
Territorial interests: at the heart of `multi-level governance'	198	(3)
National interests and the consociational cartel	201	(3)
Explaining the pattern of interest representation	204	(3)
Demand for representation: globalization and Europeanization	204	(2)
Supply of accommodation: policy expertise and legislative bargaining	206	(1)
Conclusion: a mix of representational styles	207	(4)
PART III POLICY-MAKING	211	(155)
8 Regulation of the Single Market	211	(30)
Theories of regulation	211	(4)
Deregulatory policies: negative integration	215	(8)
The single market: the `1992 programme' and beyond	215	(2)
Competition policies	217	(4)
Impact of the single market: liberalization and regulatory competition	221	(2)
Reregulatory policies: positive integration	223	(9)
Environmental policy	224	(2)
Social policy	226	(4)
The EU's reregulatory regime: between harmonization and voluntarism	230	(2)
Explaining EU regulatory policies	232	(6)
Demand for regulation: intergovernmental bargaining	232	(2)
Demand for regulation: private interests and Euro-pluralism	234	(1)
Supply of regulation: policy entrepreneurship and decision-framing	235	(2)
Institutional constraints: legislative rules and political structure	237	(1)
Conclusion: neo-liberalism meets the social market	238	(3)
9 Redistributive Policies	241	(37)
Theories of public expenditure and redistribution	241	(3)
The budget of the European Union	244	(6)
Revenue and the own-resources system	246	(1)
Expenditure	246	(2)
The annual budget procedure: the `power of the purse'	248	(2)
The Common Agricultural Policy	250	(6)
Objectives and operation of the CAP	250	(1)
Problems	251	(1)
Reform of the CAP: towards a new type of (welfare) policy	252	(1)
Making agricultural policy: can the iron triangle be broken?	253	(3)
Cohesion policy	256	(8)
Operation of the policy	257	(3)
Impact: a supply-side policy with uncertain convergence implications	260	(2)
Making cohesion policy: Commission, governments and regions	262	(2)
Other internal policies	264	(5)
Research and development	264	(3)
Infrastructure	267	(1)
Social integration and a European civil society	268	(1)
Explaining EU redistributive policies	269	(7)
Intergovernmental bargaining: `national' cost-benefit calculations	269	(3)
Private interests: farmers, regions, scientists and `Euro-pork'	272	(1)
Commission entrepreneurship: promoting `multilevel governance'	273	(1)
Institutional rules: unanimity, majority and agenda-setting	274	(2)
Conclusion: a series of welfare bargains	276	(2)
10 Economic and Monetary Union	278	(29)
The theory of monetary union	278	(4)
Development of economic and monetary union in Europe	282	(7)
The Delors Report	282	(2)
The Maastricht Treaty design	284	(1)
Who qualifies? meeting (and fudging) the convergence criteria	285	(1)
Resolving other issues: appeasing an unhappy French government	286	(3)
Explaining economic and monetary union	289	(8)
Economic rationality: economic integration and a core OCA	291	(1)
Inter-state bargaining: a Franco-German deal	292	(1)
Agenda-setting by non-state interests: the Commission and central bankers	293	(2)
The power of ideas: the neo-liberal policy consensus	295	(2)
Making monetary and economic policy in EMU	297	(7)
Independence, credibility and reputation of the ECB	297	(1)
Interest-rate policy of the ECB: accountability versus political bargaining	298	(1)
Labour mobility and labour-market flexibility	299	(2)
Fiscal policies: national deficits, fiscal federalism and tax harmonization	301	(2)
The external impact of EMU	303	(1)
Conclusion: political commitment and political flexibility	304	(3)
11 Citizen Freedom and Security Policies	307	(24)
Theories of citizenship and the state	307	(3)
Freedom and security policies of the EU	310	(8)
Freedom movement of persons: towards open borders	310	(2)
Citizenship: from economic to political rights	312	(2)
Immigration policies: third-country nationals and refugees	314	(2)
Police and judicial cooperation: fighting `drugs and thugs'	316	(2)
Explaining EU freedom and security policies	318	(11)
Exogenous pressure: immigration and international crime	319	(3)
Governments' interests: high politics, regulatory failure, voters' concerns	322	(3)
Bureaucrats' strategies: bureau-shaping and the `control' paradigm	325	(2)
Supranational entrepreneurship: supplying credibility and accountability	327	(2)
Conclusion: skeleton of a pan-European state	329	(2)
12 Global Policies	331	(26)
Theories of international relations/political economy	331	(3)
External economic policies: free trade or `fortress Europe'?	334	(7)
The pattern of EU trade	334	(2)
The Common Commercial Policy	336	(2)
Multilateral trade agreements: GATT and the WTO	338	(1)
Bilateral preferential trade agreements	339	(1)
Development policies: trade and aid	340	(1)
External political relations: a common foreign policy?	341	(7)
Development of foreign policy cooperation and decision-making	341	(5)
Policy success and failure: the `capability-expectations' gap	346	(2)
Explaining the global policies of the EU	348	(7)
Global economic and geopolitical (inter)dependence	348	(2)
Security identity/interests of the western European nation-states	350	(1)
`Domestic' economic interests: EU governments and multinational firms	351	(2)
Supranational institutional context: decision-rules and agenda-setting	353	(2)
Conclusion: economic heavyweight but political lightweight	355	(2)
13 Conclusions: Rethinking the European Union	357	(9)
What does political science teach us about the EU?	357	(6)
Operation of government, politics and policy-making in the EU	357	(3)
Connections between government, politics and policy-making in the EU	360	(3)
What does the EU teach us about political science?	363	(3)
Appendix: Decision-making Procedures of the European Union	366	(10)
Bibliography	376	(41)
Index	417