Amy Verdun

The Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) is central to Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in Europe. Initiated by Germany in 1995 and adopted in 1997, it regulates the fiscal policies of European Union Member States. Following numerous violations of its deficit reference value, the Pact's Excessive Deficit Procedure was suspended in 2003. The decision to suspend was brought before the European Court of Justice in 2004 and the SGP then underwent painstaking reform in 2005. After a period of economic prosperity and falling budgetary deficits, the global economic crisis put the system under renewed stress. Ruling Europe presents a comprehensive analysis of the political history of the SGP as the cornerstone of EMU. It examines the SGP through different theoretical lenses, offering a fascinating study of European integration and institutional design. One cannot understand the Euro without first understanding the SGP.

The Stability and Growth Pact (SGP) is central to Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in Europe. Initiated by Germany in 1995 and adopted in 1997, it regulates the fiscal policies of European Union Member States. Following numerous violations of its deficit reference value, the Pact's Excessive Deficit Procedure was suspended in 2003. The decision to suspend was brought before the European Court of Justice in 2004 and the SGP then underwent painstaking reform in 2005. After a period of economic prosperity and falling budgetary deficits, the global economic crisis put the system under renewed stress. Ruling Europe presents a comprehensive analysis of the political history of the SGP as the cornerstone of EMU. It examines the SGP through different theoretical lenses, offering a fascinating study of European integration and institutional design. One cannot understand the Euro without first understanding the SGP.

Fifty years after the signing of the Treaties of Rome, the European Union (EU) stands at a crossroads. It has all but completed its single market, has enlarged to twenty-seven member states, has introduced a single currency, is making progress on a common foreign and defence policy, has flirted with the adoption of a constitution and more. The European Community of six member states that at first merely collaborated on coal and steel, atomic energy and that created a customs union in the 1950s and 1960s, has progressed beyond belief so as to achieve these remarkable successes. The origins of the EU can be traced back to belligerent parties that decided it was best to leave their militaristic past behind and concentrate on creating something more positive and constructive. France and Germany had gone to war three times in a hundred years and felt the need to leave the past behind. It was clear that it was not only the decisions of the governments of France and Germany that made this new pacifism in Western Europe possible. Other countries played an important role as well.

This book provides a balanced introduction to diverse political economy perspectives on different aspects of European integration, demonstrating both the importance and the potential of research in this area. The volume includes three types of chapters: broad literature reviews, narrower applications of existing arguments, and new syntheses of competing claims. The authors also present a critical appraisal of how scholars in the EU and US use theory to understand European integration, and examine issues such as citizens' attitudes, perceptions and preferences of actors, the role of non-state actors, principle-agent questions, and the role and the autonomy of European institutions. This empirically informed and methodologically rigorous volume will be of great interest to students and researchers in the fields of comparative political economy, EU studies, international political economy and international organizations.

This book provides a balanced introduction to diverse political economy perspectives on different aspects of European integration, demonstrating both the importance and the potential of research in this area. The volume includes three types of chapters: broad literature reviews, narrower applications of existing arguments, and new syntheses of competing claims. The authors also present a critical appraisal of how scholars in the EU and US use theory to understand European integration, and examine issues such as citizens' attitudes, perceptions and preferences of actors, the role of non-state actors, principle-agent questions, and the role and the autonomy of European institutions. This empirically informed and methodologically rigorous volume will be of great interest to students and researchers in the fields of comparative political economy, EU studies, international political economy and international organizations.