West European welfare states: The old politics of retrenchment

Analysing endeavours to restructure welfare provision, Paul Pierson proposes that the 'politics of retrenchment' is very different from the politics of welfare expansion. In particular, the difficulties of welfare retrenchment are not to be explained by existing theories of welfare expansion; and the 'old' politics of welfare expansion has little to offer in explaining the 'new' politics of welfare retrenchment. This article questions these claims. First, contemporary societal developments are considered in the light of three major theories advanced to explain the emergence of welfare states in Western Europe: the logic–of–industrialism, the crisis of capitalism, and nation–building. Secondly, focusing on trade unions, mainstream left parties, and traditions of governance, the current status of the political forces regarded as vital in building welfare states is assessed. The conclusion drawn is that the resilience of the welfare state in Western Europe lies less in the 'new' politics of 'policy lock in' and 'client interest groups' than in the persistence of the 'old' forces that led to the founding and expansion of welfare states.     

The puzzle of Dutch welfare state retrenchment

In the literature on welfare state retrenchment and in the general emphasis on the resilience of welfare states, the Dutch case appears puzzling by virtue of the fact that significant retrenchments have actually taken place in the Netherlands. It appears even more puzzling considering that the arguments in this literature as to the difficulties in welfare state retrenchments apply very well to this case, whereas the arguments as to why after all welfare state retrenchments are possible do not apply particularly well. This article argues that the explanation for the Dutch puzzle should be found in Dutch politics. Due to the power of the CDA as a pivotal centre party, the PvdA was at an early stage forced to accept welfare state retrenchment. A party consensus thus emerged allowing Dutch governments to define the issue of welfare state retrenchment as a matter of economic necessity.     

The state of the welfare state: German social policy between macroeconomic retrenchment and microeconomic recalibration

Multiparty Government: The Politics of Coalition in Europe. By Michael Laver and Norman Schofield. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990. Pp. vii + 308. 32 figures, 26 tables. £35. ISBN 0–19–827292–8.

Minority Government and Majority Rule. By Kaare Strom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990. Pp. vii + 293. £25. ISBN 0521–37431–6.

Small Parties in Western Europe. Edited by Ferdinand Müller‐Rommel and Geoffrey Pridham. London: Sage Publications, 1991. Pp.240. £28.50. ISBN 0–8039–8261–5.

Legislatures. Oxford Readings in Politics and Government Series. Edited by Philip Norton. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Pp. ix + 336. £27.50 (hardback); £8.95 (paperback). ISBN 0–19–827582‐X and 827581–1.

Advances in the Spatial Theory of Voting. By Jamese Enelow and Melvin J. Hinich. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990. £27.50. ISBN 0–521–35284–3.

Political and Economic Encyclopaedia of Western Europe. Edited by Frances Nicholson. Longman Current Affairs, Harlow, 1990. Pp. 411. ISBN 0–582–06848–7.

World Guide to Environmental Issues and Organizations. Edited by Peter Brackley. Longman Current Affairs, Harlow, 1990. Pp.386. £75. ISBN 0–582–06270–5.

Portugal: O Sistema Político e Constitutional 1974–1987. Edited by Mario Baptista Coelho. Lisbon: Instituto de Ciéncias Sociais 1989. Pp. 1044. £15.

The Regions and European Integration. Edited by R. Leonardi and R.Y. Nanetti. London: PinterPublishers 1991. Pp. vi+200. £27.50 (hardback). ISBN0–86187–149–9.

Extremismus und Demokratie. Uwe Backes and Eckhard Jesse, Bonn, Bouvier Verlag, 1990. Pp.vi + 472; 13 tables, 10 documents. DM38 (hardback). ISBN 3–416–02255–6.

Political Loyalty and Public Service in West Germany: The 1972 Decree against Radicals and its Consequences. Gerard Braunthal, Amherst, University of Massachusetts Press, 1990. Pp.xvi + 249, £18.40 (hardback). ISBN 0–87023–707–1.

Britain's Future in Europe. By Michael Franklin with Marc Wilkie. London: RIIA/Pinter, 1990. Pp.viii + 133. £19.50 (hardback); £7.95 (paperback). ISBN 0–86187–046–8 and 047–6.

European Competition Policy. Edited by Peter Montagnon. London: RIIA/ Pinter, 1990. Pp. vii + 135. £19.50 (hardback); £7.95 (paperback). ISBN 0–86187–885‐X.

The Technical Challenges and Opportunities of a United Europe. Edited by Michael Steinberg. London: Pinter, 1990. Pp.195. £30 (hardback). ISBN 0–86187–344–2.

Public Policy in Northern Ireland: Adoption or Adaptation? Edited by M. E. H. Connolly and S. Loughlin. Policy Research Institute, 1990. Pp.335. ISBN 1–870654–10–2.

Interpreting Northern Ireland. By John Whyte. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990. Pp.xii + 308. £35. ISBN 0–19–827848–9.

The Future of Northern Ireland. Edited by John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990. Pp.xx + 376. £40. ISBN 0–19–827329–0.     

Regional politics: The European union and citizenship

This article examines the development of citizenship within the European Economic Community as a model for citizenship as such, within a global environment. In historical terms, citizenship evolved within the nation‐state, but the nation‐state, which is no longer valid as the exclusive model of economic development, may be inappropriate as a framework for social rights. The fluidity of labour within the European community means that traditional means of political representation within the nation‐state are irrelevant. Within a global context, the economic barriers which are required by nation‐states constitute political barriers to social rights through the vehicle of citizenship. The article considers the European experience of regional politics as lessons for citizenship reform in a global system.     

The politics of corporate crises in West Germany

This article examines the experience of corporate crisis in the major industrial economy of Western Europe. West Germany's experience of corporate crisis is analysed by reference to its legal framework, political context and economic history. Particular attention is given to two modes of crisis management: ‘bank‐led’ rescue and ‘the crisis cartel’. Case studies include AEG, Grundig, the steel corporations of the Ruhr and the Saar, shipbuilding corporations and Krupp. The argument draws on the evidence of mounting problems of corporate crisis management to assess the prospects for the theory and practice of the social market economy in West Germany.     

The increasingly difficult art of comparative European politics

Abstract. Those writing textbooks on comparative European politics, or the cross–national study of European democracies, have a number of key choices to make. They must decide whether to cover Western Europe as well as Central and Eastern Europe; whether to focus on a limited number or a broad range of countries; whether to include the EU in the analysis or exclude it; whether to adopt a thematic or a country–by–country approach; whether to survey events or test a broader argument; and whether to focus on the politics of institutions and representation or to include more social and economic–oriented concerns as well. The evidence from the most recently published texts in this area is that different writers make different choices. Moreover, the context within which European politics now operates also suggests that their choices are becoming increasingly difficult ones to make.     

The politics of productivity and the politics of anti-communism: American and European labour in the Cold War

The ‘politics of productivity’, an attempt to raise levels of industrial productivity in Europe by transcending class conflict and creating a consensus in society for economic growth, was a prominent element in Marshall Plan thinking. It constituted a central focus of the European Recovery Program's labour programme administered by American trade union officials who staffed the Marshall Plan's Labor Division. This programme was initially supported by the American Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), until hostility to collective bargaining in the local business community, combined with the unwillingness of senior Marshall Plan administrators to insist on collective bargaining as the price of receiving American assistance, blighted the project. This contribution contrasts the CIO's initial support for the productivity programme with the American Federation of Labour's (AFL) more direct strategy of combating communism at the level of organization and propaganda. It concludes by describing how the competing claims of these two American labour organizations for US government funding became a significant factor in American labour's conduct of Cold War politics.     

Choosing the path of austerity: how parties and policy coalitions influence welfare state retrenchment in periods of fiscal consolidation

What are the conditions under which some austerity programmes rely on substantial cuts to social spending? More specifically, do the partisan complexion and the type of government condition the extent to which austerity policies imply welfare state retrenchment? This article demonstrates that large budget consolidations tend to be associated with welfare state retrenchment. The findings support a partisan and a politico-institutionalist argument: (i) in periods of fiscal consolidation, welfare state retrenchment tends to be more pronounced under left-wing governments; (ii) since welfare state retrenchment is electorally and politically risky, it also tends to be more pronounced when pursued by a broad pro-reform coalition government. Therefore, the article shows that during budget consolidations implemented by left-wing broad coalition governments, welfare state retrenchment is greatest. Using long-run multipliers from autoregressive distributed lag models on 17 OECD countries during the 1982–2009 period, substantial support is found for these expectations.     

Genealogies of European states: Foucauldian reflections

Abstract

The public lectures given by Foucault at the Collège de France that are only now being published demonstrate that, just before he turned his attention to the history of sexuality, Foucault's thorough historical research had laid out many of the elements needed for a genealogy of modern practices of state governance. This review essay pieces together elements provided in the lectures, and in a few already published writings, to prove that research on state powers and state knowledges can benefit a great deal from a close reading of the lectures.     

Interdoc and West European Psychological Warfare: The American Connection

Interdoc, or the International Documentation and Information Center, was established in The Hague in early 1963 in order to coordinate a transnational network of institutes active in the field of analysing trends in communist ideology and societies. The product of deliberations between intelligence agencies and the private sector in Western Europe during the late 1950s, Interdoc reflected a need to develop and project a European stance on Cold War issues separate from an all-dominant US influence. Yet the Americans were present from the beginning, and their involvement gradually increased over time. This article covers the details of this involvement and uses it to comment on how Interdoc represents an interesting case of inter-service cooperation in anti-communist activities in the West.     

Partisan politics,welfare states,and environmental policy outputs in the OECD countries, 1975–2005

Building on the burgeoning literature on the association between the welfare state and the environmental state, this study empirically examines how the politics of the former has affected the development of the latter. We suggest that the size of the welfare state shapes the calculus of environmental policy costs by partisan governments. A generous welfare state lowers the costs perceived by the left‐wing government, as large redistributive spending allows the government to mitigate the adverse impact of the new environmental policy on its core supporters, industrial workers. A generous welfare state also implies diminished marginal political returns from additional welfare commitment by the left‐wing government, which lowers the opportunity costs of environmental policy expansion. To the contrary, because of lower overall regulatory and taxation pressure, a small welfare state reduces the costs of environmental policy expansion as perceived by a right‐wing government. Our theoretical narrative is supported in a dynamic panel data analysis of environmental policy outputs in 25 Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development member states during the period 1975–2005.     

The judicialisation of politics: Contemporary trends in research on European and other courts

Courts, Law, and Politics in Comparative Perspective. By Herbert Jacob, Erhard Blankenburg, Herbert M. Kritzer, Doris Marie Provine and Joseph Sanders. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1996. Pp.408, index. $20 (paper). ISBN 0–300–06379–2.

The Constitutional Jurisprudence of the Federal Republic of Germany, 2nd ed. By Donald P. Kommers. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1997. Pp.617, notes, sources, index. $75 (cloth), $34.95 (paper). ISBN 0–8223–1838–5.

The Global Expansion of Judicial Power. Edited by C. Neal Tate and Torbjörn Vallinder. New York: New York University Press, 1995. Pp.556, index. $25 (paper). ISBN 0–8147–8227–2.

Judicial Misconduct, A Cross‐National Comparison. Edited by Mary Volcansek. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 1996. Pp.163, index. $56 (cloth). ISBN 0–8130–1421–2.

Law Above Nations, Supranational Courts and the Legalization of Politics. Edited by Mary Volcansek. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 1997. Pp.177, index. $50 (cloth). ISBN 0–8130–1537–5.     

Deregulating broadcasting: the West European experience

Abstract. This article is concerned with the relationship between systemic and ideological changes affecting West European broadcasting and the nature of the regulatory responses. In theoretical terms the research interest Lies in the question of the extent to which changes in the nature of West European broadcasting regulation are determined by technological factors and forces in the international political economy. Particular attention is given to the factors impeding or constraining deregulation and to the argument that national institutional structures and traditions are mediating the impacts of technology, markets and ideology. Whilst the ultimate effects on future broadcasting regulation remain controversial, certain broad trends can be identified.     

新旧制度主义政治学研究范式的比较分析

制度是政治学的一个主要研究对象.但是,制度研究范式在政治学的不同发展时期却有着不同的境遇.旧制度主义政治学特别注重对宏观静态制度的研究,坚持"制度决定论";而新制度主义政治学,义将制度研究重新纳入了自己的研究视野,开创了制度研究的新范式.新旧制度主义政治学的制度研究范式之间虽然有着紧密的关联性,但是二者之间也有明显的差异性.     

European Community politics and electoral representation: Evidence from the 1989 European Elections Study

Abstract: In spite of the fact that the European elections were, in most countries, not fought over the issue of Community building and European integration, this article shows that only a few parties take positions towards the Community which are clearly out of line with the average position of their voters. The parties involved are the orthodox-Protestant combination in the Netherlands, the Workers Party in Ireland, the Italian MSI, and the greens in Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland and, to a somewhat lesser extent, Luxembourg. The discrepancies between these parties'positions and the attitudes of their electorates - in combination with their generally successful electoral performance - underscores what is known from other analyses: Parties do not acquire votes on the basis of European issue concerns, but on the basis of national political concerns. The result of the European elections may still, however, be considered as an ex post facto , endorsement and legitimation of parties'policies towards European integration.     

Economic voting and welfare programmes: Evidence from the American states

While scholars have hypothesised that a strong welfare state should reduce voters' incentives to base their votes on economic outcomes, evidence for this proposition remains mixed. This article tests whether differences in welfare protections across American states affect the relationship between economic performance and support for the president's party in 430 state legislative elections from 1970 to 1989. Analysing the results of over 42,000 contests in which an incumbent was running for re‐election, it finds that while unemployment insurance programmes do not affect the importance of economic performance, the electoral fortunes of presidential co‐partisans are less strongly tied to the national economy in states with generous anti‐poverty programmes. Thus by reducing vulnerability to poverty, economic safety‐nets lower the salience of the economy and provide electoral cover for politicians during economic slowdowns.     

Enlargement processes and distributional conflicts: The politics of discriminatory membership in the European Union

This paper examines discriminatory membership in the European Union from a game-theoretical perspective. I argue that discriminatory membership enables the enlargement of international organizations with heterogenous member states. EU members impose discriminatory measures on new members to redistribute enlargement gains from new members to particularly negatively affected EU members as to render expansion pareto-efficient. The empirical findings of a probit analysis on the EU accession negotiations and outcomes of all five EU enlargement rounds support the theoretical claim. The EU grants acceding states restricted membership rights if distributional conflicts emerge. Moreover, the candidate’s bargaining power and the possibility of alternative compensation schemes influence the enlargement outcomes.