CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2014
| Author | Stein, Juliane Sophie |
|---|---|
| Title | The Euro Crisis, European Economic Governance and the Politics of Constrained Choice - The Cases of Ireland and Spain |
| Summary | The institutional arrangements of European economic governance that have been put in place in response to the euro crisis have raised serious concerns about the state of democracy in the EU and its Member States. Notwithstanding, our understanding of the emergent European economic governance system�s impact on the practice of democracy in the euro area member states is so far fragmentary. Engaging in a structured, focused comparison of tax policies in Ireland and Spain in the period 2008-2013, this study investigates the role of euro-area specific constraints and political parties� agency in national fiscal policy choices and their legitimisation. The analysis is guided by a conceptual framework that is developed based on Peter Mair�s concept of responsive and responsible government. As the findings suggest, the new instruments of EU economic governance have significantly reduced national governments� ability to both keep their mandate and remain responsive to the demands of citizens. At the same time, political parties retain an important role in building legitimacy for policy choices that are made in the context of constrained choice. The study concludes that political parties need to adapt to the conditions of strengthened economic and fiscal integration in order to manage the democratic challenge that national governments are facing down the road. |
| Supervisor | Bohle, Dorothee |
| Department | Political Science MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2014/stein_juliane.pdf |
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