West European Politics articles from January 2001

West European Politics archives from January 2001

Author's Correction.
January 1, 2001... With reference to the article 'Convergent Co-ordination Patterns in the French and German Core Executive: The BSE Crisis', which appeared in Vol.22, No.3, July 1999, pp.64-86 of this journal, its author, Dr G.P.E. Walzenbach has requested a...

Modelling Coalitions that Cannot Coalesce: A Critique of the Laver--Shepsle Approach.
January 1, 2001... PATRICK DUNLEAVY WITH SIMON BASTOW The Laver and Shepsle (LS) model assumes that coalition government partners can never co-operate to agree policy jointly, but must allocate ministerial portfolios between them, with each side's ministers...

'New Politics' in Finland: The Greens and the Left Wing in the 1990s.
January 1, 2001... This article examines the development of two Finnish political parties (the Green Association and the Left-Wing Alliance) from a 'New Politics' perspective, focusing on changes in their electoral, programmatic and organisational profiles, with...

Trade Unions for EMU: Sectoral Preferences and Political Opportunities.
January 1, 2001... Surveys conducted on the political economy of Europe's Economic and Monetary Union have seldom considered the response of domestic interest groups, notably trade unions. This article contrasts and explains the positions on EMU adopted by major...

When is Unemployment Politically Important? Explaining Differences in Political Salience Across European Countries.
January 1, 2001... This article explores alternative hypotheses for variation in the political salience of unemployment. The differences between the political opinions of employed and unemployed people are used as a proxy for the qualitative importance of...

Families of Nations and Public Policy.
January 1, 2001... Employing cluster analysis, this article reconsiders a concept formulated by Francis G. Castles that stresses the existence of four families of nations, which markedly differ in respect of public policymaking. For two policy fields -- social...

A 'Southern Model' of Electoral Mobilisation? Clientelism and Electoral Politics in Spain.
January 1, 2001... It is often argued that clientelism is a key feature of electoral mobilisation in southern European democracies. This article examines the evidence for clientelism in the Spanish case, assessing the recruitment, redistributive strategies and...

The Portuguese Parliament During the First Two Decades of Democracy.
January 1, 2001... This article sets out the main stages in the development of the Portuguese parliament over the past two decades. This development has been characterised by the growing rationalisation of the internal operation of parliament, notably through an...

Political Parties and Corruption in Portugal.
January 1, 2001... Portugal is often considered an example of successful democratic consolidation. Yet it has not been exempt from corruption scandals. By the mid-1990s, transparency and the moralisation of political life had come to dominate parliamentary...

The European Parliament -- A Model of Representative Democracy?
January 1, 2001... This article argues that the European Parliament (EP) provides a poor model of representative democracy, as the nature of its representativeness is rooted in a pre-democratic form. If this is correct, the EP's experience might indicate that...

Some Methodological Issues in the Statutory Characterisation of Central Banks.
January 1, 2001... Many authors have supposed that it is appropriate to measure the independence of central banks by some interpretation of their statutes. These measures are typically used both to test (and generally speaking, confirm) the hypothesis that...

Democratic Accountability and Central Bank Independence: A Reply to Various Critics.
January 1, 2001... Academic folklore tells us that the average journal article is read by only three people: the author and two anonymous reviewers. Whatever its imperfections, the least that can be said about my article on democratic accountability and central...

Denmark's Referendum on the Euro: The Mouse that Roared ... Again.(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Just as they had almost a decade earlier, Danish voters on 28 September 2000 went to the polls and sent shockwaves through the European Union by rejecting a government-sponsored referendum on joining the EU's single currency, the 'euro'. Danes...

Comprendre les Evolutions Electorales. La theorie des realignements revisitee & Critical Elections. British Parties and Voters in Long-Term Perspective.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Comprendre les Evolutions Electorales. La theorie des realignements revisitee. PIERRE MARTIN. Paris: Presses de la Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques, 2000. Pp.472, 4 maps, 66 tables, 22 figures, biblio, index. EF 245 (paper) ISBN...

Democracy in the European Union & European Integration After Amsterdam: Institutional Dynamics and Prospects for Democracy.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Democracy in the European Union. By CHRISTOPHER LORD. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1999. Pp.146, biblio, index. [pound]10.95 (paper) ISBN 1850758689. European Integration After Amsterdam: Institutional Dynamics and Prospects for...

How to Democratize the European Union ... and Why Bother?(Review)
January 1, 2001... How to Democratize the European Union... and Why Bother? By PHILIPPE C. SCHMITTER. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2000. Pp.150, biblio., index. [pound]46 (cloth) ISBN 0-8476-9904-8; [pound]13.95 (paper) ISBN 0-8476-9905-6. No scholar...

Federalism and the European Union: A Political Economy Perspective.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Federalism and the European Union: A Political Economy Perspective. By DAVID MCKAY. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999. Pp.viii + 200, biblia, index. [pound]15.99 (paper) ISBN 0-19-829677-0. David McKay's 180-page book on federalism and...

Das Ausschusswesen der Europaischen Union: Praxis der Risikoregulierung im Binnenmarkt und ihre rechtliche Verfassung.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Das Ausschusswesen der Europaischen Union: Praxis der Risikoregulierung im Binnenmarkt und ihre rechtliche Verfassung, Edited by CHRISTIAN JOERGES and JOSEEF FALKE. Baden-Baden: Nomos Verlag, 2000. Pp.407, 17 charts, biblio. DEM 98 (paper) ISBN...

Governing with Judges: Constitutional Politics in Europe.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Governing with Judges: Constitutional Politics in Europe. By ALEC STONE SWEET. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. Pp.xiii + 232, bibljo, index. u35 (cloth) ISBN 0-19-829730-0; u16.99 (paper) ISBN 0-119-829771-8. This is a bold and...

Parliamentary Party Groups in European Democracies: Political Parties Behind Closed Doors.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Parliamentary Party Groups in European Democracies: Political Parties Behind Closed Doors. Edited by KNUT HEIDAR and RUUD KOOLE. London: Rouledge/ECPR, 2000. Pp.xv + 303, biblio, index. [pound]60 ISBN 0-415-22336-9. This edited collection...

Power and Prosperity: Outgrowing Communist and Capitalist Dictatorships.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Power and Prosperity: Outgrowing Communist and Capitalist Dictatorships. By MANCUR OLSON. New York: Basic Books, 2000. Pp.xxvii + 233, biblio, index. [pound]19.50 (cloth) ISBN 0-465-05195-2. Why are only a few countries in the world rich,...

Institutions and Institutional Change in the Federal Republic of Germany.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Institutions and Institutional Change in the Federal Republic of Germany. Edited by LUDGER HELMS. London: Macmillan, 2000. Pp.xiii + 229, biblio, index. [pounds]42.50 (cloth) ISBN 0-333-73663-X. Post-war Germany's specific brand of...

The New Politics of British Local Governance & The New Management of British Local Governance & Cities in Contemporary Europe.(Review)
January 1, 2001... The New Politics of British Local Governance. Edited by GERRY STOKER. London: Macmillan, 1999. Pp.xvi + 294, biblio, index. [pound]16.95 (paper) ISBN 0-333-72817-3; ISBN 0-333-72818-1. The New Management of British Local Governance. Edited...

Debating Governance: Authority, Steering, and Democracy.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Debating Governance: Authority, Steering, and Democracy. Edited by JON PIERRE. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. Pp.xi + 247, index. [pound]35 (cloth) ISBN 0-19-829514-6; [pound]16.99 (paper) ISBN 0-19-829772-6. For some time, there...

Democratic Governance and New Technology: Technologically Mediated Innovations in Political Practice in Western Europe.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Democratic Governance and New Technology: Technologically Mediated Innovations in Political Practice in Western Europe. Edited by JENS HOFF, IVAN HORROCKS and PIETER TOPS. London: Routledge, 2000. Pp.xiv + 191, index. [pound]50 (cloth) ISBN...

The Politics of Telecommunications. National Institutions, Convergence, and Change in Britain and France.(Review)
January 1, 2001... The Politics of Telecommunications. National Institutions, Convergence, and Change in Britain and France. By MARK THATCHER. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. Pp.370, biblio, index. [pound]45 (cloth) ISBN 0-19-828074-2. This book has...