Pub Date : 2023-04-13DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2193492
A. Pedrazzani, F. Zucchini
Abstract Not all governments survive until the next scheduled election. Some are replaced during their term in office by executives with a different party composition and/or portfolio distribution. Others are able to be ‘reborn’ as the successor government, undergoing only minimal changes. Such variation has to date received scant attention in studies on government durability. By classifying non-electoral replacements according to the degree of ministerial turnover, this article shows that new cabinets are often similar to their predecessors. It hypothesises that the likelihood of this pattern occurring is greater: when members of the current cabinet face bargaining problems in forming a very different cabinet, as in the case of surplus (unnecessary) parties in oversized coalitions; when the policy distance between the parliamentary median party and the current opposition widens; and when the executive’s economic performance discourages opposition parties from forming new coalitions with some incumbent parties. The risk of experiencing different types of replacement is estimated using data on Western European cabinets (1946–2021). Consistent with the hypotheses, the results indicate that governments are able to return to power almost untouched after their termination if they are oversized, if the opposition is far from the legislative median voter, and if inflation grows during a government’s tenure.
{"title":"Dying, surviving death, and reincarnating: differences in government replacements and their explanation","authors":"A. Pedrazzani, F. Zucchini","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2193492","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2193492","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Not all governments survive until the next scheduled election. Some are replaced during their term in office by executives with a different party composition and/or portfolio distribution. Others are able to be ‘reborn’ as the successor government, undergoing only minimal changes. Such variation has to date received scant attention in studies on government durability. By classifying non-electoral replacements according to the degree of ministerial turnover, this article shows that new cabinets are often similar to their predecessors. It hypothesises that the likelihood of this pattern occurring is greater: when members of the current cabinet face bargaining problems in forming a very different cabinet, as in the case of surplus (unnecessary) parties in oversized coalitions; when the policy distance between the parliamentary median party and the current opposition widens; and when the executive’s economic performance discourages opposition parties from forming new coalitions with some incumbent parties. The risk of experiencing different types of replacement is estimated using data on Western European cabinets (1946–2021). Consistent with the hypotheses, the results indicate that governments are able to return to power almost untouched after their termination if they are oversized, if the opposition is far from the legislative median voter, and if inflation grows during a government’s tenure.","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-04-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48747881","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-04-12DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2194788
{"title":"Islam, opinion climates, and immigrant party loyalties in Western Europe","authors":"","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2194788","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2194788","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-04-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43870578","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-04-03DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2191101
Ana Carolina Soares
Abstract Differentiation has become a core feature not only in the European integration process but also in the implementation of European policies. Among the means to address differentiated implementation are European Administrative Networks (EANs). Through the exchange of information, best practices and advice, EANs are expected to contribute to more uniform implementation. However, the ways and extent to which they do so remain largely unexplored. This article addresses this gap through the empirical analysis of the European Network of Heads of Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA Network), drawing on a unique survey dataset and social network analysis. On the one hand, the findings uncover the EPA Network as a voluntary and informal network with a fragmented and clustered structure around key members. At the same time, several participants have recognised the network as a valuable asset to improving national implementation and developing innovative policy initiatives. Therefore, while there is significant diversity within and across the network, the network’s perceived contributions and added value point to the considerable importance of these instruments in EU policy implementation.
{"title":"Differentiated or integrated? The influence of European Administrative Networks on differentiated implementation of EU environmental policy","authors":"Ana Carolina Soares","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2191101","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2191101","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Differentiation has become a core feature not only in the European integration process but also in the implementation of European policies. Among the means to address differentiated implementation are European Administrative Networks (EANs). Through the exchange of information, best practices and advice, EANs are expected to contribute to more uniform implementation. However, the ways and extent to which they do so remain largely unexplored. This article addresses this gap through the empirical analysis of the European Network of Heads of Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA Network), drawing on a unique survey dataset and social network analysis. On the one hand, the findings uncover the EPA Network as a voluntary and informal network with a fragmented and clustered structure around key members. At the same time, several participants have recognised the network as a valuable asset to improving national implementation and developing innovative policy initiatives. Therefore, while there is significant diversity within and across the network, the network’s perceived contributions and added value point to the considerable importance of these instruments in EU policy implementation.","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49602087","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-03-22DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2185852
Philip Lutz
{"title":"Allowing mobility and preventing migration? The combination of entry and stay in immigration policies","authors":"Philip Lutz","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2185852","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2185852","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49206070","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-03-17DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2186027
G. Gustavsson, J. Taghizadeh
Abstract During the Covid-19 pandemic, Sweden soon found itself alone and heavily criticised for its internationally deviant strategy. Why did this approach nevertheless receive widespread public support in Sweden? This article develops and tests a novel rally around the flag (RRTF) theory, which places national identity centre stage. In contrast to previous work, the article differentiates between national pride, national chauvinism, uncritical patriotism, national attachment, and ethnic nationhood conception – expecting only the first three of these to be related to supporting the Swedish Covid approach. Survey data from a politically representative sample of Swedes support the expectations. It is concluded that the popular support for the ‘Swedish experiment’ is to be understood as an RRTF – although in this case the flag was ‘unwaved’. This suggests that even national identities that draw their pride from institutional rather than cultural superiority lend themselves to RRTF processes.
{"title":"Rallying around the unwaved flag: national identity and Sweden’s controversial Covid strategy","authors":"G. Gustavsson, J. Taghizadeh","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2186027","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2186027","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract During the Covid-19 pandemic, Sweden soon found itself alone and heavily criticised for its internationally deviant strategy. Why did this approach nevertheless receive widespread public support in Sweden? This article develops and tests a novel rally around the flag (RRTF) theory, which places national identity centre stage. In contrast to previous work, the article differentiates between national pride, national chauvinism, uncritical patriotism, national attachment, and ethnic nationhood conception – expecting only the first three of these to be related to supporting the Swedish Covid approach. Survey data from a politically representative sample of Swedes support the expectations. It is concluded that the popular support for the ‘Swedish experiment’ is to be understood as an RRTF – although in this case the flag was ‘unwaved’. This suggests that even national identities that draw their pride from institutional rather than cultural superiority lend themselves to RRTF processes.","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":"46 1","pages":"1063 - 1088"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-03-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46487765","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-03-15DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2184108
Inbar Mizarhi-Borohovich, Abraham L. Newman, Ido Sivan-Sevilla
Abstract Recent data protection laws in the EU institutionalise NGO engagement with regulators and enable new mechanisms for bottom-up policy implementation. The article studies thirteen European NGOs and maps their contribution to policy implementation based on a novel typology for understanding their scope (national vs. transnational) and goals (direct vs. strategic) of actions. The article asks: (1) how do NGOs vary in their contribution to data privacy implementation in Europe? and (2) what are the implications of those variations for differentiated policy implementation? Through analyses of NGOs’ informational activities and GDPR complaints, the article finds that NGOs converge towards privileging a transnational strategic civic-enforcement model, prioritising pan-European privacy cases to alter policy implementation, over individual citizen advocacy and empowerment at the national level. Civic engagement has served to mitigate cross-border policy implementation disparities, while preserving considerable regulatory discretion nationally. Integrating NGOs into the analysis of differential privacy policy implementation helps in highlighting the evolving nature of EU civil liberties.
{"title":"The civic transformation of data privacy implementation in Europe","authors":"Inbar Mizarhi-Borohovich, Abraham L. Newman, Ido Sivan-Sevilla","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2184108","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2184108","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Recent data protection laws in the EU institutionalise NGO engagement with regulators and enable new mechanisms for bottom-up policy implementation. The article studies thirteen European NGOs and maps their contribution to policy implementation based on a novel typology for understanding their scope (national vs. transnational) and goals (direct vs. strategic) of actions. The article asks: (1) how do NGOs vary in their contribution to data privacy implementation in Europe? and (2) what are the implications of those variations for differentiated policy implementation? Through analyses of NGOs’ informational activities and GDPR complaints, the article finds that NGOs converge towards privileging a transnational strategic civic-enforcement model, prioritising pan-European privacy cases to alter policy implementation, over individual citizen advocacy and empowerment at the national level. Civic engagement has served to mitigate cross-border policy implementation disparities, while preserving considerable regulatory discretion nationally. Integrating NGOs into the analysis of differential privacy policy implementation helps in highlighting the evolving nature of EU civil liberties.","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44079010","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-03-15DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2183655
Adam Kirpsza
{"title":"Not so independent? The effect of Commissioners’ attributes on EU member states’ bargaining success","authors":"Adam Kirpsza","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2183655","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2183655","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45998795","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-03-06DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2181504
Brigitte Pircher, Caroline de la Porte, D. Szelewa
Abstract The European Union (EU) launched the European Pillar of Social Rights to improve social rights for EU citizens. However, little is known about the domestic dynamics of implementing these new rights. This article examines the implementation of the Work-Life Balance Directive in three member states with different policy traditions: Denmark, Germany and Poland. Based on an actor-centred approach, the article demonstrates that two main factors were crucial in motivating national actors to shape the implementation of these rights. First, the economic costs, including new permanent costs emerging from the provisions and the administrative costs of implementing an EU directive, shaped actors’ positions in all three countries. Second, the values of gender equality – whether promoting gender-equal leave or traditional family values – constituted an underlying reason for actors to customise the EU rules differently. Both factors, used as a defence or driver for change, increase differentiated policy implementation.
{"title":"Actors, costs and values: the implementation of the Work-Life Balance Directive","authors":"Brigitte Pircher, Caroline de la Porte, D. Szelewa","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2181504","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2181504","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The European Union (EU) launched the European Pillar of Social Rights to improve social rights for EU citizens. However, little is known about the domestic dynamics of implementing these new rights. This article examines the implementation of the Work-Life Balance Directive in three member states with different policy traditions: Denmark, Germany and Poland. Based on an actor-centred approach, the article demonstrates that two main factors were crucial in motivating national actors to shape the implementation of these rights. First, the economic costs, including new permanent costs emerging from the provisions and the administrative costs of implementing an EU directive, shaped actors’ positions in all three countries. Second, the values of gender equality – whether promoting gender-equal leave or traditional family values – constituted an underlying reason for actors to customise the EU rules differently. Both factors, used as a defence or driver for change, increase differentiated policy implementation.","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41820572","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-03-03DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2170852
Luzia Helfer, N. Giger, Christian Breunig
{"title":"Fairness of inequality and support for redistribution: directly comparing citizens and legislators","authors":"Luzia Helfer, N. Giger, Christian Breunig","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2170852","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2170852","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48216365","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-02-23DOI: 10.1080/01402382.2023.2171220
T. V. D. van der Meer, E. Steenvoorden, Ebe Ouattara
Abstract The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic boosted political trust in many countries. This article tests the relevance of fear of infection as the micro-level mechanism behind this rally round the flag. This study employs three-wave panel data in the Netherlands, collected days before the first lockdown (early March 2020), during that lockdown (April/May 2020), and after that lockdown (October 2020). Growth curve models isolate the rally effect and its determinants. The article reaches three main conclusions. First, fear of infection is a constituting element of the rally effect: the rise in political trust is more pronounced among people who fear infection. Second, the rise occurs in response to the direct, external threat (health concerns), not in response to the secondary threats (social isolation, economic stagnation). Third, adherents of the radical right are particularly sensitive to the external threat, but only in the short run.
{"title":"Fear and the COVID-19 rally round the flag: a panel study on political trust","authors":"T. V. D. van der Meer, E. Steenvoorden, Ebe Ouattara","doi":"10.1080/01402382.2023.2171220","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/01402382.2023.2171220","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic boosted political trust in many countries. This article tests the relevance of fear of infection as the micro-level mechanism behind this rally round the flag. This study employs three-wave panel data in the Netherlands, collected days before the first lockdown (early March 2020), during that lockdown (April/May 2020), and after that lockdown (October 2020). Growth curve models isolate the rally effect and its determinants. The article reaches three main conclusions. First, fear of infection is a constituting element of the rally effect: the rise in political trust is more pronounced among people who fear infection. Second, the rise occurs in response to the direct, external threat (health concerns), not in response to the secondary threats (social isolation, economic stagnation). Third, adherents of the radical right are particularly sensitive to the external threat, but only in the short run.","PeriodicalId":48213,"journal":{"name":"West European Politics","volume":"46 1","pages":"1089 - 1105"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2023-02-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46843492","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}