European Union Public Policy: from agenda setting to policy formulation and policy decision making, and through to policy implementation Aims and Objectives Despite definitive debates about whether the European Union (EU) can be equated with the characteristics of a fully fledged state, it is certainly beyond dispute that the EU has acquired for itself at least the policy making attributes of a modern state across an increasingly wide range of policy sectors. As a result it has also gained a considerable degree of power in order to set policy agendas, and formulate, implement and enforce policy decisions. After a brief introduction to the EU institutions and the EU public policy process this course will take students on a journey that conceptualises the EU public policy process into four sections – agenda setting, policy formulation, policy decision-making and policy implementation. In examining these four parts of the policy process different models of analysis will be employed at different levels within the EU and at different stages of the policy process. The final section of the course will examine some EU public policy areas, utilising them as case studies within the conceptual frameworks identified in the first part of the course. Structure of the Course The course will be taught through a series of weekly lectures and workshops. There will be 12 lectures and 2 workshops Lecture programme: PLEASE NOTE: 80% attendance at lectures (i.e. at least 10) is a requirement to pass this course (see Course Assessment on page 2) 04.11.09. 1. The development of the European Union and the development of E.U. public policy 04.11.09. 2. The basis of, and principles underpinning, E.U. public policy: harmonisation, mutual recognition and convergence? 06.11.09 3. Agenda-setting 1: role and purpose, E.U. political process, and the nature of agendas 06.11.09 4. Agenda-setting 2: fragmentation and the absence of effective policy co-ordination 11.11.09 5. Policy formulation 1: the policy communities and policy networks model 11.11.09 6. Policy formulation 2: policy-making uncertainty, expertise and epistemic communities, multiple policy-making ‘venues’ 13.11.09 7. Policy decision-making: institutional analysis 18.11.09 8. Policy implementation: implementation as a complex and multifaceted process, inter-organisational behaviour and implementation analysis, characterising implementation in the E.U. + Workshop 1 (see page 2) 20.11.09 9. A case study of the E.U. policy process: Education policy 20.11.09 10. A further case study of the E.U. policy process: Environmental policy 25.11.09 11. Regions and the E.U. public policy process + Workshop 2 (see page 2) 27.11.09 12. The ‘Europeanisation’ of public policy Workshop programme: PLEASE NOTE: a) 100% attendance at the 2 workshops is a requirement to pass this course (see Course Assessment below) b) Students will be expected to have read for each workshop and participate. Indicative readings are given below for each workshop Workshop1: This will consist of student participation and discussion groups, and will take place after the lecture scheduled for 18.11.09. 18.11.09 Question: Is harmonisation, mutual recognition or convergence the best principle upon which European Union Public Policy should be based? Provide reasons and evidence for your preference. Readings: Threlfall, M. (2003) ‘European social integration: harmonization, convergence and the single social area’, Journal of European Social Policy, 13, pp.121-140. Borros, S. and Greve, B. (2004) The Open Method of Co-ordination in the European Union, special issue of Journal of European Public Policy, 11:2 (various articles of interest) Sinn, H-W and Ochel, W (2003) ‘Social Union, convergence and migration’, Journal of Common Market Studies, 41, pp.869-96. Roberts, I. and Springer, B. Social Policy in the European Union: Between Harmonisation and National Autonomy, Boulder, Lynne Reiner, 2001. Workshop 2: This will consist of student participation and discussion groups, and will take place after the lecture scheduled for 25.11.09. 25.11.09. Question:. Has the development of European Union public policy assisted E.U. integration and added to E.U. integration theory? Readings: Rosamond, B. Theories Of European Integration, Basingstoke, Palgrave, 2000. Hix, S. The Political System of the European Union, Basingstoke, Macmillan, 2005. Course Assessment: a) Attendance: 80% attendance at lectures (at least 10) and 100% attendance at the 2 workshops is a requirement to pass this course. b) Essay (maximum 2000 words/6 sides of A4 paper): Deadline: Thursday 3 December 2009. To be submitted by email or through the Masaryk University Information System Students will be required to submit an essay in answer to one of the questions shown below. The essay must be of a maximum of 2,000 words/6 sides of A4 paper, be typewritten, fully properly referenced, and include a full bibliography. (i) Are the processes of agenda-setting and policy implementation at the two ends of the European Union public policy cycle compatible? (ii) Is European Union public policy making being ‘Europeanised’ or ‘regionalised’? (iii) Choose an E.U. Public Policy area and identify positive and negative issues associated with that policy area within the E.U. policy process. Providing evidence, evaluate whether harmonisation, mutual recognition or convergence is the best principle upon which the E.U. should base its policy in your chosen area Texts Students are referred to a range of journal, book and internet texts. Some of the books and journals are held in the Faculty of Social Studies library. Additional texts will be given within the lectures, and included in the power point presentations for lectures that will be placed on the University Information System prior to each lecture. Books Featherstone, K. and Radaelli, C. (eds.) The Politics of Europeanization, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2003. (especially the Introduction and the chapter by D. Wincott). Gallie, D. (ed.) Resisting marginalisation: Unemployment experience and social policy in the EU, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2004. Geyer, R. Exploring European Social Policy, Cambridge, Polity Press, 2000 Hantrais, L. Social Policy in the EU, Basingstoke, Macmillan, 2000 (second edition) or 2007 (third edition). Hix, S. The Political System of the European Union, Basingstoke, Macmillan, 2005. Jordan, A. and Liefferink, D. (eds.) Environmental Policy in Europe: The Europeanization of National Environmental Policy, London, Routledge, 2004. Kleinman, M. A European Welfare State: European Union Social Policy in context, Basingstoke, Palgrave, 2002. McCormick, J. Understanding the European Union (Third edition), Basingstoke, Palgrave , 2005 Nugent, N. The Government and Politics of the European Union, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 2005. Richardson, J. European Union. Power and policy-making (Third edition), Oxford, Routledge, 2006. (alternatively, Second edition, 2001). Roberts, I. and Springer, B. Social Policy in the European Union: Between Harmonisation and National Autonomy, Boulder, Lynne Reiner, 2001. Rosamond, B. Theories Of European Integration, Basingstoke, Palgrave, 2000. Salais, R. and Villeneuve, R. (eds.) Europe and the politics of capabilities, New York, Cambridge University Press, 2004 Schimmelfennig, F. and Sedelmeier, U.. (eds.) The Europeanisation of Central and Eastern Europe. Ithaca NY, Cornell University Press, 2005. Journal articles Borros, S. and Greve, B. (2004) The Open Method of Co-ordination in the European Union, special issue of Journal of European Public Policy, 11:2 (various articles of interest) Farrell, H. and Heritier, A. (2005) ‘A Rationalist-Institutionalist Explanation of Endogenous Regional Integration’, Journal of European Public Policy, 12/2: pp.273-90. Guillen, A. and Palier, B. (2004) ‘Does Europe matter? Accession to EU and social policy developments in recent and new member states’, Journal of European Social Policy, 14:3, pp.203-209, and other articles in this special issue on EU Enlargement, Europeanisation and Social Policy. Jepsen, M. and Pascual, A.S. (2005) ‘The European Social Model: an exercise in deconstruction’, Journal of European Social Policy, 15(3), pp.231-245. Mosher, J. and Trubek, D. (2003) ‘Alternative approaches to governance in the EU: EU Social Policy and the European Employment Strategy’, Journal of Common Market Studies, 4:1, pp.63-88. Neilson, J. (1998) ‘Equal opportunities for women in the European Union: success or failure?’, Journal of European Social Policy, 8, pp.64-79. Sinn, H-W and Ochel, W (2003) ‘Social Union, convergence and migration’, Journal of Common Market Studies, 41, pp.869-96. Threlfall, M. (2003) ‘European social integration: harmonization, convergence and the single social area’, Journal of European Social Policy, 13, pp.121-140. Van Der Heijden, Hein-Anton. "Multi-level Environmentalism and the European Union: The Case of Trans-European Transport Networks." International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 30 (2006): 23-37. Van der Mei (2003) ‘Freedom of movement for the unemployed and co-ordination of unemployment benefit schemes’, European Journal of Social Security, 5:3, pp.214-229. Vobruba, G. (2003) ‘The enlargement crisis of the European Union: limits of the dialectics of integration and expansion’, Journal of European Social Policy, 13 (1), pp.35-48, and responses by M. Bach and M. Rhodes. Wolf, Winifried. "Transport Policy in the European Union." Debatte 14 (2006): 167-83. Journals (These Journals, and the articles within them above, are also held in the FSS library) Environmental Politics European Union Politics European Political Science Journal of Common Market Studies Journal of European Social Policy (the ‘European Briefing’ section of this journal is very useful for up-to-date EU developments) Journal of European Public Policy Internet http://www.cec.org.uk http://www.ecsa.org http://europa.eu.int http://ibeurope.eu.int http://www.ieep.org.uk http://www.policylibrary.com Professor John Wilton 09.09.09