This book provides an account of the development of the EU, from a relatively specialised organ of economic cooperation in the 1960s to the complex, quasi-federal entity that today governs over an increasingly diverse set of policy domains. In 1950, a European political space existed, if only as a very primitive site of international governance. Today, the European Union governs in an ever-growing number of policy domains. Increasingly dense networks of transnational actors representing electorates, member state governments, firms, and specialized interests operate in arenas that are best understood as supranational. At the same time, the capacity of European organizations - the Bank, the Commission, and the Court of Justice - to make authoritative policy decisions has steadily expanded, profoundly transforming the very nature of the European polity. This book, a companion volume to European Integration and Supranational Governance, offers readers a sophisticated theoretical account of this transformation, as well as original empirical research. The editors elaborate an innovative synthesis of institutionalist theory that contributors use to explain the sources and consequences of the emergence and institutionalization of European political arenas. Some chapters examine the evolution of integration and supranational governance across time and policy domain. Others recount more discrete episodes, including: the development of women's rights, the judicial review of administrative acts, a stable system of interest group representation, and enhanced cooperation in foreign policy and security; the creation of the European Central Bank; the emergence of new policy competences, such as for policing and immigration; and the multi-dimensional impact of European policies on national modes of governance.

Also available in printed form ISBN 9780199247950

Electronic reproduction. Askews and Holts. Mode of access: World Wide Web.