Martin Heipertz

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.

Has Angela Merkel’s political style harmed Germany and Europe? As Chancellor, she navigated complex circumstances, making decisions – or avoiding them – that were neither inevitable nor always democratic, sometimes bypassing Parliament. Her "muddling through" governance eroded democratic norms rather than promoting freedom. This book uses the early stage of the euro crisis as a case study, dissecting Merkel’s incremental crisis-management, her tactical strengths, and her reliance on media-driven decision-making. It sheds light on how Maastricht Treaty principles were overridden by bailouts and ECB interventions. Drawing from a decade of firsthand experience, the narrative blends scholarly insights on leadership and incrementalism with a vivid insider’s perspective, offering a unique window into this pivotal moment in European integration.

Master's Thesis from the year 2001 in the subject Economics - Monetary theory and policy, grade: 1,0, College of Europe, language: English, abstract: This paper addresses the interdependence of monetary and fiscal policy in a monetary union and the ensuing consequences for the economic constitution of the eurozone. Monetary-fiscal interactions are approached from economic theory and game-theoretical perspectives, which provides the basis for a discussion of the political economy of the present institutional framework. It draws extensively on the existing literature covering the linkages between monetary and fiscal policy as well as game-theoretical approaches to the interaction of the two major branches of macroeconomic management. The recently proliferating work on the political economy of Economic and Monetary Union is condensed into its main arguments and critically reviewed. This includes contributions to the understanding of the politics of economic policymaking as well as normative statements about the design of institutions in a monetary union. Most of the sources are papers that focus on specific issues or start from different assumptions, which implies that their conclusions are often diverging or not even compatible. While the thesis tries to provide a balanced representation of the scientific discussion in this area, it does at times stand for a clear-cut choice on controversial normative issues. The paper consists of a theoretical and an applied part. After briefly reviewing the relevant literature in this field, the analytical section develops the necessity of fiscal coordination in a monetary union, based on the interdependence of monetary and fiscal policy as well as the strategic interaction of the institutional players involved. This insight is then applied to the present framework of macroeconomic policy in the eurozone - characterised by the fact that monetary policy is supranationally concentrated, whereas fiscal policy remains decentralised an