Europeanization and Multilevel Governance: Cohesion Policy in the European Union and Britain(Governance in Europe Series)

Europeanization has become a major theme within European studies in recent years, emphasizing the domestic effects of the EU on its member and applicant states. At the same time, multilevel governance has emerged as an important concept, highlighting shifts both in horizontal relations between state and society and in vertical links between actors at different territorial levels. In this state-of-the-art study, Ian Bache traces the relationship between these two key elements, considering the extent to which Europeanization advances multilevel governance within member states through the requirements of EU cohesion policy. Bache focuses especially on Britain, a member state whose political system has been increasingly characterized by multilevel governance since it became an EU member. Comparing Britain's case to that of ten other member states, the author distinguishes between the EU's effects in simple polities—in which voice, influence, and power are diffused through multiple levels and modes of governance—and in compound polities, where voice, influence, and power are more concentrated. Bringing together the conceptual tools of multilevel governance and policy networks and developing a framework for using these tools together in future research, this clearly written study will be valuable for scholars and students of EU and British politics.

Table of Contents:
Introduction Chapter 1: Europeanization: A Framework for Analysis Chapter 2: Multilevel Governance and Policy Networks Chapter 3: EU Cohesion Policy Chapter 4: EU Cohesion Policy and Domestic Governance Chapter 5: The Changing Nature of British Governance Chapter 6: Cohesion Policy and Governance in Britain: 1989–1997 Chapter 7: Cohesion Policy and Governance in Britain: 1997–2006 Conclusions

About the Author :
Ian Bache is reader in politics at the University of Sheffield.

Review :
[Bache's] deep understanding and prolonged focus upon the British dimension of the phenomenon grants him a solid vantage point to qualitatively assess change. . . . Written concisely and accessibly. A strong volume that combines an elaborate theoretical framework with a careful empirical analysis. . . . This is a well-written study that will be of interest to scholars of both EU and British politics. The book delivers valuable, refined theoretical insight, applicable for policy analysis in other domains. The authoritative examination of key developments in policy, from the creation of ERDF in 1975, through the Thatcher, Major and Blair administrations, deepens our understanding of the broader, ongoing process of British institutional reform. Subtle yet concise. In-depth analysis . . . comparative framework. Rich empirical work cited. This book injects some welcome realism and clarity into the discussion, by providing through careful theoretical argument and empirical case studies an authoritative and detailed assessment of the process of Europeanization and its impact on multilevel governance in Britain and elsewhere. It will be an important reference point in all future debates on the nature of contemporary governance. The empirical backbone of this conceptually thoughtful book consists of multiple case studies of EU cohesion policy’s effect on Britain’s polity. These are enriched by broad-ranging East-West comparisons. Ian Bache suggests provocatively that, perhaps, the most profound impact of EU-induced multilevel governance is on state preferences.