Jale Tosun

Hierarchy, networks, or markets : how does the EU shape environmental policy adoptions within and beyond its borders?

In this study we scrutinize the strength of the European Unions ‘external governance’ in the area of environmental policy. We explore whether accession candidates and third countries adopted European environmental legislation along with the member states. In doing so, we focus on Community laws that limit nitrogen oxides in the emissions into the air from large combustion plants, and introduce the European ecolabel scheme and environmental impact assessments. Our analysis reveals that hierarchical governance is the most significant and robust determinant of policy adoption. Additionally, our results lend some support to the relevance of network governance, indicating that this mode could become more effective at greater length.

The EU in Crisis: Advancing the Debate

ABSTRACT The European Union (EU) has experienced an unprecedented economic and financial crisis since 2007, the effects of which form the object of analysis in this Special Issue. In particular, it addresses the questions of whether and how the crisis has served as an obstacle or an opportunity for further integration. It concentrates on two broad types of implications for the EU that are central elements of theories on integration and policy and public opinion change. First, the crisis has triggered events of proposed and actual change of policies and institutions. Second, the crisis and the EU’s response to it have had an impact on how citizens perceive the EU and its democratic legitimacy. Based on the contributions by scholars of European integration, this Special Issue concludes that, at least in the short run, the crisis has (overall) created an opportunity structure for European integration rather than an obstacle. At the same time, the contributions show the need for further research on the nexus of public opinion and politicization on the one side and institutional and policy change on the other.

HOW THE EU HANDLES UNCERTAIN RISKS: UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE

ABSTRACT The European Union (EU) has adopted the precautionary principle (PP) as a legal principle for dealing with uncertain risks; that is situations in which the relationship between activities and their potential hazard cannot be established. While the PPs application has been defined by the European Commission and EU case law, political considerations ultimately determine whether and how it is invoked. This article reviews the literature on the PPs application in EU policy making by addressing three research questions: When do EU policy makers invoke the PP? How are EU precautionary policies made? Is the making of EU precautionary policies different from the making of regulatory policies addressing certain risks? While the conceptual literature provides some insights regarding all three questions, the empirical literature is particularly instructive regarding the first two questions. Future studies have the task of merging the two literatures in order to obtain a comprehensive understanding of EU precautionary policy making.

Absorption of Regional Funds: A Comparative Analysis

This article evaluates the determinants of the absorption performance of European Union Member States with regard to the European Regional Development Funds (ERDF) 2000–06 programming period. Theoretically grounded in Europeanization research and studies of regional governance, the empirical analysis concentrates on the ERDF absorption performance of 25 Member States at the end of the programming period in 2008. The results of Tobit models show a positive relationship between ERDF absorption and government capacity. The estimation findings also demonstrate that new Member States generally had higher absorption rates than old Member States. Furthermore, Member States with high income levels were less likely to maximize the absorption of their ERDF allocations. Finally, there is some support for the hypothesis that fiscal decentralization has a negative impact on absorption performance.

External dimensions of European environmental policy: An analysis of environmental treaty ratification by third states

The European Union has become an important leader in international environmental affairs – particularly through the negotiation of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) with favourable terms. In this article, EU environmental leadership is studied from a new perspective, focusing on the ratification stage of environmental regime formation. Specifically, it investigates whether the EU is also capable of motivating third states to join its preferred MEAs. It is argued that third states join the EUs preferred MEAs to signal their compliance with EU environmental standards in an effort to become eligible for various rewards that the EU could potentially offer, including a credible membership perspective, access to its lucrative markets, and aid and assistance. The argument is tested by examining the ratification behaviour of 25 non-EU Member States with regard to all 21 MEAs negotiated under the auspices of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The results provide robust support for the theory that EU rewards motivate third states to ratify these treaties. The results withstand a number of statistical tests, even when alternative explanatory factors such as trade intensities, transnational communication and geographic proximity are controlled for. The study is the first large-scale demonstration of the EUs external influence at the ratification stage of environmental regime formation. By identifying three different channels of EU influence, the research permits a more refined understanding of the EUs role as a promoter of environmental protection standards.

Co-governing common goods : interaction patterns of private and public actors

Abstract This article addresses co-governance which can be defined as a dynamic interaction between public and private actors to secure the provision of common goods. Which types of relationship between public and private actors exist? Do the forms of co-governance change over time? When is the relationship between public and private actors cooperative, when is it competitive, and when do we witness conflictual relationships? These research questions lie at the heart of this introductory article, which seeks to shed further light on the origins and impacts of the various co-governance patterns. By reviewing the body of research on this topic, we show that different relationships between public and private actors exist, and that the forms of co-governance can also change over time. While the dominant form of co-governance is cooperation, one can also observe instances of competition or even conflict between public and private actors. Most importantly, we find that both public and private actors are ready to reclaim competences in areas where they perceive the other actor to have gained too much influence. As we discuss in this article, the degree of cooperation and competition mostly depends on the existing regulatory arrangements, the congruence of goals of the different actor groups, and the institutionalization of industrial relations. These insights help us to better understand the role co-governance can play in addressing complex public problems.

Proportionate and disproportionate policy responses to climate change: core concepts and empirical applications

ABSTRACT A fresh perspective on policy-making and planning has emerged which views disproportionate policy as an intentional policy response. A disproportionate policy response is understood to be a lack of ‘fit’ or balance between the costs of a public policy and the benefits that are derived from this policy, and between policy ends and means. This paper applies this new perspective on the proportionality of policy-making to the area of climate change. The first part of the paper discusses the underlying causes of disproportionate policy responses in broad terms and then applies the theoretical reasoning to understand the conditions in which they are likely to appear in relation to climate change. These conditions are hypothesized to relate to four main factors: economic considerations; levels of public demand; focusing events; and strategic considerations. It concludes with the suggestion that societal actors may be able to manipulate these four factors to encourage politicians to adopt policies that mitigate climate change more rapidly than is currently the case in most countries.

Contesting climate change: mapping the political debate in Poland

We examine the effectiveness of norm diffusion by the European Union (EU) using the example of the climate debate in Poland. To explore the relationship between the salience of an issue and the internalisation of the externally initiated debate, we analyse both quantitatively and qualitatively votes and speeches in the Polish parliament. We find that the Members of Parliament regardless of their placement on the right–left dimension or their participation in government have paid growing but still little attention to climate change. Furthermore, when climate change is concerned the political debate is mostly characterised by negative assessments of the EUs initiatives.

Giving Less by Doing More? : Dynamics of social policy expansion and dismantling in 18 OECD countries

ABSTRACT Protection against social risks is generally popular among voters and should enjoy the benefits of institutional inertia. Yet retrenchment occurs rather frequently in advanced welfare states without this systematically leading to electoral punishment. We solve this paradox by, first, arguing that governments can avoid the blame of retrenchment by pursuing a strategy of ‘expansionary dismantling’ where new policies and instruments are used to compensate reform losers and to obfuscate cutbacks. Second, we test our argument with a huge new dataset consisting of changes in unemployment legislation and replacement rates in 18 OECD countries from 1976 to 2000. The statistical tests provide robust support for our argument, suggesting that the introduction of new policies and instruments leads to cutbacks in replacement rates. We also find that left-leaning governments are least likely to engage in expansionary dismantling.

Women’s Parliamentary Representation in the Czech Republic Does Preference Voting Matter?

The U-shaped trajectory of women’s parliamentary representation in Central and Eastern Europe over the post-communist era has generated interest among scholars and non-governmental organizations. One particularly interesting case of the recent increase in women’s parliamentary representation can be found in the Czech Republic. After the initial post-communist drop in representation, the proportion of female members of parliament (MPs) hovered around 15 percent for nearly 15 years. However, in the 2010 parliamentary election, something happened. After years of little change, the percentage of women MPs jumped from 15.5 percent to 22 percent. What caused this increase? Here, we conceive the 2010 elections as a “natural experiment” and discuss the primary factors that produced such an increase: the change in preference voting rules, activities of non-governmental organizations, and the political context surrounding the election. To test the effectiveness of these factors, we carry out a multi-method research design based on original data. We find that the reduction in the preference vote share threshold required to move up the ballot benefitted female candidates more than men in the 2010 election.