Second Edition - Comprehensively Revised and Updated
A substantially revised and updated new edition of this highly-successful and ground-breaking text which analyzes the EU as a political system using the methods of comparative political science.
As the definition, role, and significance of the European Union continues to change rapidly, this much-praised book offers a timely introduction to the subject. Originally published in 1989 and updated in 1991 (as The Government and Politics of the European Community), this third edition has again been thoroughly revised to reflect the momentous changes that have taken place in Europe in recent years. It has also been expanded to incorporate new chapters on the Treaty on European Union (the so-called Maastricht Treaty) and on external relations of the Union. Organized into three main sections, the first part of the book examines the origins and historical development of the European Union. The second section describes the powers, influence, and methods of functioning of the principal institutions and political actors; the third and final section reviews the Union's policy interests and processes.
Based on exhaustive research, this book explains how the European Union makes decisions in seven major policy sectors. Written in a clear, user-friendly style, it brings the EU alive for a student and non-specialist audience. The book's central themes are that informal norms often matter more than formal rules, agency often matters more than structure, and abrupt change often punctuates deadlock. It offers a theoretically-based introduction to the lively, humorous and fascinating politics of a unique experiment in modern governance.
Leading scholars explore the complex questions arising from the ongoing transformation of Europe through the deepening and widening effects of European integration. Based on authoritative analyses, the book takes account of the many national, transnational and international processes and contexts in which European integration has become embedded.
Governance, Neighbours, Security
This book provides an analysis of the European Neighbourhood Policy by focusing on the impact of norms of justice and home affairs on EU external relations. Drawing on the literature of 'new governance' it designs a framework for analysis which clarifies the contents, tools and processes of the external dimension of EU justice and home affairs.