EST1030 - Introduction to Comparative Politics of Europe Past Paper PDF

EST1030 -- Introduction to Comparative Politics of Europe 1 A PATCHWORK OF STATES - An analysis of the different types of state-systems to be found in Europe from federal states to unitary states. The latter will be analysed further to show how unitary states can resemble federations...

EST1030 -- Introduction to Comparative Politics of Europe 1 A PATCHWORK OF STATES - An analysis of the different types of state-systems to be found in Europe from federal states to unitary states. The latter will be analysed further to show how unitary states can resemble federations but can differ from them in important ways. Ultimately, the question can be raised as to whether we are witnessing the fragmentation of Europe into self-governing regions. **Comparative politics**: situated in real world politics / centred on empirical questions Aims: establish typologies and classifications / explain similarities and differences / predict outcomes **International relations**: explains the dynamics between states [The Political Landscape of Europe] - What do we understand by Europe? - Is European integration unique? - Europe is not only the EU and the EU is not the only concept of what it means to be European. - Can we speak of a Common European Experience? [Basic Definitions] - **State**: a sovereign political community + the territory occupied by that community - **Sovereignty**: the right to decide how a state will be run + its direction - **Internal Sovereignty**: the internal affairs of the state and the location of supreme power within it / a government that has been elected by the people and has the popular legitimacy - **External Sovereignty**: the relationship between sovereign power and other states - **Nation**: a community of people bound by language, history etc. - **Nation-state**: a country where the boundaries of a nation correspond to the territory of a state e.g. Malta A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles that constitute the legal basis of an entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. Constitutions can be written or unwritten[^1^](#fn1){#fnref1.footnote-ref}. Constitutions act as powers -- they ensure the triumph of law over arbitrary power. Constitutions are key in the establishment of a federal state. Constitutions have an amendment clause. Constitutions aim to: - serve as an expression of ideology, philosophy and the basic laws of the regime - provide organizational frameworks - can state whether the system is a single level of government, two levels, multi-level etc. Europe has some of the oldest constitutions[^2^](#fn2){#fnref2.footnote-ref} and the most recent in the world[^3^](#fn3){#fnref3.footnote-ref}. A federal state is one in which territorial subnational government enjoys constitutionally guaranteed autonomy and functional competence. The power of the regions is enshrined in the constitution. The federal government may be responsible for defence and external relations, whereas the regional governments may be responsible for policy. Federalism can complicate EU decision-making for federal states due to the split in competence. The European federal states are: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium and Bosnia and Herzegovina. States opt for a federal government because of: - Fear of external forces - Economic and military benefits - Unification of diverse nation-groups - Greater subsidiarity and experimentation [Belgium: from unitary to federal (p. 43-45)] - 1830: The modern state of Belgium emerged. - From 1945 onwards, Belgium saw a radical shift in the wealth of Flanders and Brussels. - 1962/3: laws establishing the linguistic areas of Belgium - 1970: constitutional amendments to create linguistic-based communities with legislative powers - 1980: the addition of executive government to communities - 1988/9: Brussels given regional executive and legislative body - 1993: Belgium becomes a federation - Continued political reform and the crisis of 2009 - Video: The 3 regions are Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels. The 3 language communities are the Flemish community, the French community; the German-speaking community. A unitary state is one in which regional government is really only local administration of centrally determined (and often financed) services, and where any power exercised by regional government is ultimately dependent on the consent of the central state. In unitary states, power can be delegated in 3 ways: - **Deconcentration**: the spreading of government administration out of the core - **Decentralization**: the delegating of policy execution to sub-national bodies e.g. local councils - **Devolution**: the centre delegates decision-making authority to lower levels The two types of unitary states are regionalized[^4^](#fn4){#fnref4.footnote-ref} and decentralized[^5^](#fn5){#fnref5.footnote-ref}. Malta is the most extreme example of unitary state. [Spain: a de facto federation / \"imperfect federation\" / \"federation in all but its name\" (p. 45-48)] - The Spanish Civil War and the Franco regime - 1978 Constitution: the State of the Autonomies - Between 1979 and 1983, all the regions in Spain were constituted as autonomous communities - 1996: the process was closed with the autonomous status of Ceuta and Melilla [The United Kingdom: the latest experiment in devolution (p. 49-51)] - 1921: Northern Irish Assembly - 1997: Blair government - 1997: referendums in Scotland and Wales - 1998: Northern Irish referendum - 1999: Devolution Devolved countries can hand power but also take it away. The problem with devolution is asymmetric powers. - All matters which are not reserved are automatically devolved to the Scottish Parliament, including education, agriculture, health, local government, social work, transport etc. - Westminster retains control on defence, national security, foreign policy, social security etc. - The Welsh Assembly has fewer legislative power and covers 20 subjects. - The lack of an Assembly for England (Non-English MPs vote on policy which can only be applied in England while English MPs cannot vote on similar policies which are applied to Scotland or Wales) - The Northern Irish Assembly and its viability [Confederations: Switzerland] - The Swiss are subject to 3 distinct legal jurisdictions: the Commune; the Cantone; and the Federal State - There are 26 cantons which are all equal in status. - French-, Italian-, German- and Romansch-speaking communities - Federal bodies: Assembly; Council and; Court - The Federal Assembly comprises: The Council of State; The National State - The Federal Council is the federal government, comprises 7 members. 2 THE POLICY MAKING PROCESS IN A DEMOCRACY - This lecture will introduce some basic definitions in politics before looking at the principal occupation of politicians: the policy-making process around which political systems operate. Politics is a collective activity, wherein there is an initial diversity of views. Politics is a process to reconcile those differences. Politics is about compromise, allocating resources and enforcing decisions Government is the community's accepted apparatus for making and enforcing decisions. Government can be elected, appointed, inherited or imposed. It does not include merely politicians but all decision-makers. Power is the central currency of politics. Political culture is the system of empirical beliefs, expressive symbols and values which defines the situation in which political action takes place. There are three dimensions of political culture. - **System dimension**: attitudes toward the nation/regime/authorities in power at any given time - **Process dimension**: attitudes toward the role individuals play in political arena - **Policy dimension**: the results of politics / the outputs of the political system (largely fixed and change slowly; the political process is fluid and can change quickly) The 3 branches of government: - **Executive**: the Prime Minister and the Cabinet / directs the nation's affairs / supervises policy implementation / mobilizes support / provides crisis leadership - **Legislative**: venue for debate / creator of legislation - **Judiciary**: upholds the rule of law [The Political Process] **Political process**: the system by which the political demands of people are communicated to the government and the way in which the government acts on those demands The political process can change because of changes in: constitution / economic factors / weak government / political culture (*Example*: Malta: under-represented sex in parliament) external inputs[^6^](#fn6){#fnref6.footnote-ref} / withinputs (the agenda of those in governments / outputs / outcomes / feedback. [Public Policy: the output of the political process ] Ultimately we expect leadership to provide public policy, whether a democracy or a dictatorship. A central difference is that a democracy allows for greater popular involvement in the formation of public policy. Public policy should be issued, in a democracy, in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. Public policy ultimately is a system of courses of action, regulatory measures, laws and funding priorities concerning a topic. [Political Support] - Support for the executive: election, whether we agree or don't with the ruling political class - Support for the regime: the political system - Support for the wider political community [The Judiciary: The Third Branch of State -- Patterns of Judicial Power in Europe] - The Common Law Tradition: U.K., Ireland - Civil Law: Napoleonic Law: Benelux, France, Portugal, Spain, Italy and Switzerland - Central and Eastern Europe Legal Tradition - Hybrids: The Netherlands, Malta and Cyprus The creation of the 2^nd^ Republic in Italy in 1994 reflects the power of the courts to influence politics. The criminal investigations led to the demise of major parties and leading politicians, as the 'Clean Hands' investigation scrutinized the Tangentopoli. [The Rise of Constitutional Courts] Constitutional courts were established across Europe: after WWII (Austria 1945, West Germany 1951, France 1959) / after the demise of Fascism (Spain 1981 and Portugal 1982) / after the fall of Communism in Eastern and Central Europe (Poland 1985 (subsequently heavily reformed) the Czech Republic 1993). - Appointment to the court - The courts as law-makers through enforcement and interpretation [The German Constitutional Court] - established by the Basic Law / based in Karlsruhe / **functions**: judicial review; can declare public acts unconstitutional / not part of the regular judicial system / can make rulings on any branches of government as its remit covers the whole constitution The importance of the court has been seen in the recent concern over the Greek bail-out and the ruling from the constitutional court. 3 THE RUNNING OF THE STATE, THE EXECUTIVE **Executive**: directs affairs / supervises policy implementation / mobilizes support / provides crisis leadership 3 principal forms of executive: presidential / semi-presidential / parliamentary The difference centers on [the relationship] between the head of state and head of government. The EU has 6 monarchies and 21 republics. Their role (when distinct from the Head of Government) is primarily procedural, symbolic and diplomatic. They may: act as an alternative locus of power / provide important leadership in time of crisis. When combining the role of Head of Government they continue to represent the symbolic embodiment of the state. [Presidential Systems of Government (Cyprus)] **President of Cyprus**: head of state and government / presides over council of ministers / separate House of Representatives which legislates / executive and legislative politics separate but linked [Semi-Presidential Systems (France)] The president and legislative are elected separately. The executive power is shared between the president and a parliamentary government. The president has the power to choose the PM. The PM is responsible to the National Assembly and can be forced to resign through a motion of censure i.e. the president does not have so free a hand in selecting a PM. Like parliamentary systems, the cabinet includes ministers dealing with the economy, justice, education, defense etc. The cabinet is presided over by the president. The president promulgates laws: - has a very limited form of veto - can refer laws for review to the Constitutional Council - may dissolve the French National Assembly - refer treaties or certain types of laws to popular referendum - the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces - can order the use of nuclear weapons - names certain members of the Constitutional Council France is the purest example of semi-presidential government in the EU. Other countries resemble this method of government (Portugal, Slovenia, Romania and Lithuania); however, still largely considered parliamentary. The system in France owes much to de Gaulle and the political unrest following the war in Algeria (systems and roles can change over time). Cohabitation may be a thing of the past after changes in the President's duration in office [The Parliamentary Executive] **PM**: first amongst equals / has power over the running of the executive / the internal control of the executive Cabinet government operates under the system of: collective cabinet / individual ministerial responsibility The PM and Cabinet operate under several constraints which impact their individual and combined power. - expectations and popular perception of the role of the government - attitudes towards political inclusion and the acceptance of partisan politics - the power of appointing people to the cabinet - the politics of getting into power in coalition systems and the art of staying in power [Minority and Multi-Party Government] - **The uniqueness of single-part government**: the power of the PM and Cabinet - **The predominance of coalition governments**: difficulty in selecting coalition partners / allocating portfolios / the need to maintain coalition harmony - Outsized majority coalitions - Minority governments and vulnerability [Majoritarian and Consensual Governments] **Majoritarian**: PM is strong / backed by strong, absolute majority / electoral systems favor a bipolarized, two-party system as in UK, France, Spain and Greece. **Consensual**: PM depends on several parties for support / parties which participate in cabinet and depend on consensus for stability. [The Presidentialisation of the PM] Western democracies have seen the rise of American style politics. Central has been the presidentialisation of the role of the PM: executive / party / electoral face. [The Bureaucracies Running the Executive] **Bureaucracy**: at the heart of government / the single largest employer in an economy Bureaucrats: implement government decisions / act as the engine of the state / the frontline of implementation / determine how government policy is viewed. They can fail to implement policy fully or refuse to implement government decisions at all. Bureaucrats can constitute an importance avenue for feedback as they deal with the primary customer in each area of public policy. However, bureaucracy can refer to different things in different countries. Not all bureaucrats are equal and some play a more prominent role on policy making, giving them a direct role in the output of government. Methods of recruitment will often impact the political dynamics within the bureaucracy. - Accountability: internal (ministerial direction, formal regulation competition, professional standards) / external - Ensuring cost effective government 4 THE RUNNING OF THE STATE, THE LEGISLATIVE **Legislatives**: symbols of popular representatives / give the system legitimacy / link the people to the system / debate public issues / create laws In our political system, the House of Representatives is not a nexus of power nor debate but a public platform upon which government and opposition make declarations (standard in a two-party system). In political systems built on consensus politics or formed of multiple of parties, the legislative can be very powerful. The situation is more complex in a presidential system like the US or Cyprus. Legislatives are often determined by: - Size and number of houses - Size must balance the needs of a workable forum for discussion with the need to stay representative. - In non-democracies legislatives can be exceptionally large. In Europe, the largest Parliament is that of the U.K. (650) / smallest is that of Cyprus (56 of a possible 80). With a cap on size, representation decreases. A German member of the Bundestag represents 135,000, a Maltese MP 6,000 and a Greenlander less than 2,000. Europe has 13 bicameral systems. The central issue of bicameral systems is the relative power of each house and its composition. Upper houses can be to safeguard regional interests (Germany, Austria) or vested, historical interests (the U.K., former Maltese governments). Upper houses can be directly elected (Czech Republic, Poland, the vast majority of the Italian and Spanish Senate), allocated through an electoral college or provincial councils (France and Holland) or are regional representatives (Germany). [The House of Lords] - Originally sharing equal power with the Commons until 1911 - Reform of the Lords part of 1997 Labor manifesto - Composition over 1300 peers, Law lords and Lords Spiritual - Number cut to 700-800, primarily Life Peers, 90 elected hereditary peers and Lords Spiritual - The Supreme Court: - Parliaments are self-regulating. Basic units and working procedures center round: [Parliament's principal functions] **Representation**: the political system in a democracy derives legitimacy by ensuring democratically elected representatives steer political developments Legislating and the difference between majoritarian systems (Malta, the U.K., France) and consensus-based political systems (primarily Scandinavian systems) Legislatives play a central role in making and breaking government, especially in parliamentary systems. In political systems where no single party wins elections, forming a government out of the parties in parliament can be a lengthy process as seen in Belgium in 2007. Once in power, parliament controls government through scrutiny as well as the ability to undermine support for government business 5 REPRESENTATION, ELECTIONS AND VOTING Political participation can be: legitimate (marches, petitions) / violent (aggressive obstruction, assault) / benign (refuses to comply with official directives) / low cost participation / high-intensity participation **Elections**: the most widely manifested form of participation, whether for presidents, governments, local councils, within parties themselves / key for: - Selecting representatives - Confirming Governments in office - Giving legitimacy to political system - Popular participation - Recruitment of future leaders - Main source of political education Electoral Systems are of two types: plurality/majority systems (UK and France) / proportional systems (3): - List PR (The Netherlands) - Mixed (Germany) - STV (Malta and Ireland) **Plurality/majority systems**: oldest, most simple of systems / candidate with largest number of vote wins seat / can be differentiated into two types: - FPTP (First Past the Post): can lead to a two-party system / ensures the candidate with the largest number of votes wins - Majority System **Second Ballet Majority Run-Off**: majority system found in legislative elections in France / ensures a run-off between the most popular candidates Plurality/majority systems often ensure single government, strong adversarial politics and absorption of small parties into the mainstream and the consolidation of central control over individual demands. **Proportional systems**: most widely used across Europe / ensure a legislative which is nearer to the actual voting pattern of citizens than the plurality system / created to protected vested interests **Party lists**: an electoral system of proportional representation in which people vote for a party rather than a candidate and seats are filled from lists of candidates according to each party\'s share of the vote / open to influence before an election and some remain so after, there being important differences between open, closed and hybrid lists / e.g. The Netherlands is considered the perfect example / thresholds are key determinants in how many seats a group can win in an election **Mixed member proportional system**: combines majoritarian with proportional systems / voters vote twice, once for a party and once for a candidate / parties win seats in proportion to the votes they receive / the seats are first filled by the candidates voted for on an individual basis with any extra seats being filled by the party list If a party wins more seats directly through individual candidate votes then they should have won in terms of the general support shown to the party then they keep all their seats but then all other parties must be compensated. **STV**: the system utilized in Malta and Ireland / voters list their preference for candidates with the candidate given number one being their most popular candidate / once a candidate reaches the quota, additional votes for that candidate are passed on to the candidate listed as second preference Benefits of proportional representation system: - Considered fairer, ensuring a truly representative government with greater popular support - Allows smaller parties a chance, increasing the representativeness of parliament - Voter turnout should be higher as votes are not wasted - It fosters greater consensual politics and more centrist policies - Can, however, lead to weak executives. Split leadership in crisis, rise of extremism politics - Changing electoral systems and playing with electoral borders is a popular past-time of governments to help them stay in power - However, electoral systems are also about satisfying the popular perception of what is fair - Electoral systems should not be too complicated to defy popular perception of where their vote went Referendums and Direct Democracy - Referendums can be mandatory, facultative, binding and non-binding. - Some referendums require a simple majority while others require a minimum turn-out - 'In Switzerland they had brotherly love, five hundred years of democracy and peace, and what did they produce? The cuckoo clock!' (Orson Welles) Switzerland: - The Swiss normally call facultative and obligatory referendums - Citizens also have the right to push for a referendum - As in all states, a central polemic is establishing the referendum question before actually holding the referendum Referendums and their lack of support: Politicians often distrust referendums for several reasons: - Voting often takes place on wider issues and not just the question under debate (The Hunting Referendum in Malta and the importance of party leaders in swaying voters as opposed to any substantial debate) - Issues become over-simplified - The vote becomes one of personalities and not issues - The repeated use of referendums can lead to electoral fatigue - Questions may obscure the actual issue 6 REPRESENTATION AND POLITICAL PARTIES Europe has a duty and a vested interest in protecting political pluralism. Political parties represent that pluralism but they also seek to gain popularity so as to have a chance to form government. To maintain support or increase their voter base political parties may shift their beliefs as the ultimate aim remains securing office. Political Parties: - Play an important role in any political system - Represent the range of beliefs of the population - Form part of the ruling elite - Help find and recruit future leaders - Function as a filter, passing popular sentiment upward towards the ruling class - Galvanize support for their party's policies - Develop around cleavages Societies are divided by national cleavages or divisions within society. Competing identities can become so serious that groups develop organizations/parties around these differences to fight for their respective corners. The most dominant cleavages in the development of European politics are the divides between - The center and the periphery (key for the development of regional parties) - The divide between Church and State (central in the development of Christian Democracy) - The divide between urban and rural regions (as seen with Agricultural Parties across Europe) - The class divide (the classic divide, as seen with Socialists and anti-communist parties) The Transformation of Political Parties Cadre parties: 19^th^ century / center and right wing parties controlled by an elite caucus / mainly established parliamentarians Mass parties: early 20^th^ century socialists / originally outside power / utilized mass membership which incorporated feedback from its members but undermined the autonomy of its leadership Catch-all parties: mid-20^th^ century social and Christian democrats / ideology downplayed / more pragmatic, professional / less dependent on membership fees Carte parties: majority of 21^st^ century mainstream parties / emphasis is upon control of the party by the parliamentary wing and the leadership often actively ignores activists / tendency to collude with other cartels to exclude newcomers into the political system -- some dispute the transformation from catch-all to cartel parties Anti-system parties: believed to emerge in reaction to cartel politics which excludes them, such as the Greens, far right etc. The European Political System Communists: less prevalent than socialism / decline after fall of Berlin Wall / Cyprus remains the only party system with a significant communist party / constituted after the Russian Revolution / traditionally seen as anti-system parties / advocates command economics, control of markets and eradication of class Social democrats: a reaction to the industrial revolution and the emergence of the working class / post-WWII oversaw nationalization of industries / socially liberal / tend to accept the free market but advocate a more equitable sharing of wealth / strong support for social welfare policies Liberalists: emphasize freedom and individualism / oldest party group / promote a limited state and the protection of the individual from state interference / maintain influence in Belgium, Netherlands, Scandinavia Christian democrats: emerged in the Reformation, with the rise of the state and the demise of the Church / linked to and often supported by the Catholic Church / the dignity of the individual often key / Christian religious ideals shape policy but less so after 1945 / importance placed on social capitalism though CD now favor reducing the welfare state / pro-family policies dominate Conservatives: right wing political parties with strong capitalist credentials / nationally-oriented, making generalizations difficult / support the status quo and against radical change / pragmatic with strong support for law and order policies / support for protecting private property and enterprise Other cleavages Support for far-right politics: often supportive of exclusionary segregation / while termed the preservation of national traditions, far right ideology stems from a belief, historically, that superior groups have the right to be protected from inferior groups / often encompass ideas based on authoritarianism, racism and xenophobia New politics as well as green politics: the most successful of new politics / the Greens have won significant support in many European countries / rooted in ideas of sustainable society / environmentalism, social liberalism and grassroots democracy New Populism (Taggart): hostile to representative politics, anti-elitist / identification with an idealized 'heartland' and often anti-EU and/or against globalization / lack of core values / often emerge in a period of crisis for the nation / use of short-term appeal using charismatic leaders Political Parties in the CEEC: political parties in the former Soviet Bloc countries remain relatively young / five types of parties emerged: - New parties in opposition to the old regime (solidarity in Poland, Popular Front in Latvia) - New Parties but more ideologically based (Democratic Forum in Hungary) - Communist Party successors (Hungarian Socialist Party) - Old satellite parties (Polish Peasant Party) - Pre-Communist Parties (Latvian Social Democrats) The context of political change was key -- national struggles in the Baltics while the Vizegrad Four saw a broad-based struggle for representation. Regime parties persist, especially in the southern CEEC states but not in the Baltics. Liberal parties have flourished across the region. Parties representing minorities continue, Russians in the Baltics, Hungarians in Slovakia. Distinction between far-right and nationalist/conservative parties is problematic Party systems across Europe A party system is the group of parties which can be found in a particular state and which pay a significant role in Parliament and domestic politics. If a party system does not represent the dominant range of interest amongst people, a reconfiguration of the system will take place. Parties are seen as filters and sources of information, hence the importance of the party system. However, should an element change within a party system or a new player appears within the system then all other parties are likely to be impacted as they try to maintain or increase their support as seen in Malta with the increasing popularity of Green issues Political systems can be differentiated in terms of: - Number of parties: Here the emphasis is upon differentiating between parties which merely occupy seats and those which actually improve the political system - The relative size of parties: Size matters in that popular participation in parties impact revenue, level of activity, resource allocation - Cleavages - Ideological differences: Here the issue impacts countries based on coalition politics in that parties should not be too different What type of party system? - In terms of national political systems we can differentiate between two party systems such as those in Malta and the UK while most European countries are examples of multi-party systems - Multi-party systems can be differentiated into: moderate systems and polarized multi-party system 7 PARTICIPATION AND THE ROLE OF INTEREST GROUPS Political participation: parties link us to government directly / interest groups utilize both direct and indirect means to get their message across / while few people will join a party, the vast majority of us will be part of an IG at some stage or other of our lives / IGs are about influencing decision makers but not becoming decision makers / i.e. pressure groups Groups can be defined in terms of: - The interests they represent -- dominant actors are the economic interest groups, with trade unions ranged against business groups - Whether they are permanent or temporary - Protective and promotional groups - Whether they are insider or outsider groups - Civil society has become a buzz word for any groups, especially those considered non-market - NGOs us also a popular categorization IG activity can be impacted by various factors but a key determinant is the type of interest representation system found in each country. Pluralist systems will allow a free market in interest representation, often giving advantage to business interests. Corporatist systems give special places to certain groups around the decision making table but groups not included will often be disadvantaged. Pluralism: unrestricted and decentralized system with groups competing for influence / no clear functional role for groups which then develop competitive behavior and lobbying strategies / popular in majoritarian systems Pluralism: 'Free competition between a plurality of organized interests and supportive relations between groups and government' (Newton and van Deth) Corporatist/Neocorporatism At its peak in the rapid economic growth of the 1950s and 1960s, neocorporatism has had to adapt to the need to link economic reform with the labor market. Its principal aim is to ensure consensus in terms of allocating 'gains'. Often dependent on expert orientated economies with highly unionized workers which fall under clearly organize federations. It is considered to be in crisis as an approach. Other factors include: - The density and spread of the organization involved - The rules governing IG behavior - Political culture - The socio-economic interests of the groups concerned (governments need to be re-elected eo any group which can influence the outcome of elections or the functioning of the economy are key) - Interest groups can try and achieve their agenda in several ways, including: - Direct contact with politicians and civil servants (in corporatist systems this is facilitated by direct meetings between those directly involved in decision making and the political elite) In corporatist and non-corporatist systems government maintain strong links with key IG while also often consulting with them for feedback and information in the drafting of proposals. Widespread consultations helps prevent problems from surfacing during the implementation stage. IG will also use indirect means to influence the Government, either by trying to raise awareness ir even public support through media campaigns. Interest groups also directly support political parties with the aim that once they form art of government they will be predisposed to listen to that party. Ultimately, to be successful a group must try and: - Recruit all those directly impacted by a proposal so as to represent the full spread - Being significant economic resources into the campaign - Provide the state with something which it, itself is not prepared to provide (information, galvanizing support for a proposal) - Seriously put at risk government popularity Interest Groups at a European Level Lobbying of the EU institutions began primarily in the 1970s. The Single European Act (1986) meant that the EC would be involved in more areas of 'domestic policy' with the result that lobbying increased. Enlargement merely increases the players involved and the complexity of EU lobbying. All the EU institutions are key targets for lobbyists but the importance of any one target depends on the country concerned and the policy area being lobbied... there is no single method which applies to everyone. Inequalities in participation: - Not all citizens or residents may feel represented in a political system - Political elites are overwhelmingly male, educated and white (in Europe) - Willingness to voice an opinion can often depend on sex, age, education, status and economic well-being - A lack of participation can lead to isolation and maybe violence 8 THE GLUE OF DEMOCRACY, THE ROLE OF INFORMATION [Political communication] Just as politics is about bargaining, politics is about educating and informing individuals about collective action and become reconciled to the national policy. Political communication is a two-way street with government passing information down and listening (hopefully) to the feedback passed upwards. The media play the principal role but political groups can play a more direct role: - Through government financed information campaigns - Individual departments may launch information drives, seminars and issue leaflets on new initiatives or procedures - Paid adverts - The organization of events [The Importance of Mass Media] The mass media have played a pivotal role in the politics of democracies in the 20^th^ century -- it is never a neutral actor whether due to commercial or political interests. That role is believed to have been challenged by three phenomena: - Commercialization - Fragmentation - Globalisation [Press Freedom] Most European countries have limits in term of press ownership to ensure that media is beyond the control of one politician or party. The European Union is also involved in policing monopolistic acquisitions. In terms of press freedom, all European states are considered to be free and open. The only two countries which habitually appear under Freedom House's category of 'partly free' remain Turkey and Italy. [Media Models] Polarized Pluralist Model: state and parties involved in most aspects of life and media, widely differing ideologies with little sense of objective common good, politically active minority read slanted, comment heavy newspapers, the majority turns to television -- Malta and the Mediterranean Democratic Corporatist Model: state intervention in the media market to ensure wide representation. Professional norms are strong, mass consumption of serious news -- Lowland countries Liberal Model: little state intervention, emphasis on acting as citizen-consumer watchdog as opposed to advocacy -- Ireland and the U.K. [Does the Media dictate News?] - Political parties have had to grapple with the shifts in communication and are often accused of spin to maintain media interest. - While media play a pivotal role in politics, many still believe that it is the parties and citizens which call the shots, with the media merely providing information, not dictating information. - Again, Malta is an exception because both parties have their own television media. - Agenda setting theory however maintains that the media are not passive actors in the telling of news and will either create or help maintain interest in a story. - The importance is in that the media agenda becomes the public agenda with the importance given being the measure of the issue's seriousness. - An interesting case is the ruse of China and media coverage. [Political Marketing] Political marketing has become a main stay of European politics. Because so little distinguishes the 'center' of political discussion, parties strive to be heard in other ways: - The increased personalization of campaigns and the importance of the political leader's appeal - Focused electoral campaigns which become open-ended (parties are, effectively, constantly campaigning for the next election) This postmodern electoral campaign is marked by: - Centrally coordinated but decentralized operation - Permanent campaigning - Dependence on outside assistance (consultants, pollsters) - Opinion polls and focus groups formulate policies - Targeted mail, ads, ''narrow casting' via various television channels - Routine politics become subsumed by the overall campaign, nothing is off limits - Cost spirals [Media Manipulation] Media outlets can try and influence how we interpret the news through several mechanisms: - Status conferral: priority or prominence is given to an individual and an opinion creating a tendency to then associate that person subconsciously - Gatekeeping - Framing: creates an emphasis on a more salient aspect of the actor's communication - Spin is often associated with an intention ploy of distracting or manipulating the public and the media but the media can also use these methods of communication. This can be done through: - Distraction through national sentiment (a relatively easy call to arms based often on jingoism) - Straw-man fallacy (the idea of taking a valid argument and linking it to less valid arguments and then dismissing the whole group of arguments through association). - Distraction by phenomena (this can often be seasonal as well, issuing news in August - Distraction through semantic (word play can soften any message) - Marginalization (only the mainstream is allowed to express valid opinion) - Demonization (often similar to a witch hunt, rational arguments disappear) [Public Opinion] - In listening to the general public, governments must first make important decisions as to the validity of opinion. - Public opinion relates to the aggregate views of the politically relevant population on political questions of the day. - However, public opinion can be: ill informed, not very detailed nor specific, trade-offs maybe necessary and who to listen to may not always be clear. 9 THE UNION AS A FORCE OF CHANGE IN DOMESTIC POLICIES, EUROPEANIZATION - For much of its history, European Studies focused primarily on the forces which caused integration and the structures created in Brussels. - Increased focus on analyzing the consequences of integration as a domestic level: Europeanization - Europeanization: 'domestic changed caused by integration' [Europeanization] - Europeanization or EU-ization? - In the 1990s the prevailing idea was that because the EU was standard, the result would be standard, leading to each member state eventually transforming into exactly the same type of political system: we would all come to be identical - Europeanization is distinct from integration: integration is a process with an aim, Europeanization is what happens as a consequence of that process. [Europeanization: three principal questions] To understand Europeanization we must understand: 1. What stimulates change? 2. What changes? 3. Why is change differentiated? [Why change happens] - The principal stimulus for change is the EU's policy output and the degree of fit between what the EU wants and the domestic set-up. - Policy fit and institutional fit: in addition to having to comply with EU policy a country must also participate in EU politics which necessitates further changes - The application of fit however best applies to what is termed positive integration. [Areas where change can be seen] - Politics (political and normative structures) -- this includes changes to national political institutions, the public administration, legal structures, the role of actors and how business is undertaken - Policies (type and scope of policies) - Polity (political parties and interest groups) - Changes in societal-cleavage structures, the expectation of society of politics [Malta, the EU and Europeanization] - Malta signs an Association Agreement with EU in 1970 - December 1980 the legal base of the AA comes to an end - In 1983 the EP condemns the MLP government for isolating the opposition - In 1987 the newly elected PN government promises closer relations with the EEC 'on right terms' - Malta applies in 1990 against the backdrop of Turkey's application, the fall of the Berlin Wall and concerns over small states joining [A Rocky Road] - The Maltese political parties became polarized on the issue of membership - The Commission's 1993 Opinion was favorably disposed towards Malta's application but noted concern over administrative capacity and neutrality (amongst others) - In 1996, Malta's application was frozen after the MLP won the election. - In 1998, the application was defrosted by a new government, - Malta managed to secure 76 special arrangements, second only to Poland and joins in 2004. [Europeanization in Malta -- politics] - Changes to core government structures, both horizontal and vertical - The creation of the EU secretariat within the OPM (European Affairs) - The PPCD for Cohesion Funds - Individual EU Affairs Directorates - Scrutiny committee within Parliament - MEUSAC - Processes for establishing national positions on Commission proposals [Maltese Europeanization -- Policy ] - EU Membership has seen the introduction and consolidation of policies in Malta which may never have been introduced without membership - Greater long term policy formation and articulation - Greater regulatory emphasis - Broadening of policy considerations - Loss of agenda setting power -- a negative? ::: {.section.footnotes} ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. ::: {#fn1} E.g. the U.K. and New Zealand[↩](#fnref1){.footnote-back} ::: 2. ::: {#fn2} E.g. Norway and the Netherlands[↩](#fnref2){.footnote-back} ::: 3. ::: {#fn3} E.g. Serbia, Slovakia, Lithuania and Poland[↩](#fnref3){.footnote-back} ::: 4. ::: {#fn4} E.g. the U.K., Spain, France, Italy and Poland - great power is given to their regions[↩](#fnref4){.footnote-back} ::: 5. ::: {#fn5} E.g. the Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands[↩](#fnref5){.footnote-back} ::: 6. ::: {#fn6} intermediate groups as filters for demands / the importance of status and moderation as a guarantor of being listened to by government / political parties and interest groups and their own agenda[↩](#fnref6){.footnote-back} ::: :::