Europe, Regions and European Regionalism

The tide of 'Europe of the Regions' rhetoric that dominated much political discussion and thinking in the 1980s and 1990s has gradually ebbed. Governance in Europe today may be characterized as 'multi-level', but the nation state remains the dominant level for many purposes. Are Europe's regions, and European regionalism, therefore of little – and diminishing – consequence? This book addresses this question by examining the experiences of regions and regionalism across western, central and eastern Europe. A team of leading country specialists presents analyses of both the larger states of Europe and many of their smaller counterparts, updated to include the impact of the EU enlargements of 2004 and 2007. The conclusions of this book are that there is a growing diversity of European regions, and a wide variety of regionalizing imperatives. Regionalism may not have overthrown the nation state, but Europe's regions, and European regionalism, have a persisting importance to the politics of the continent.

Introduction: Europe, Regions and European Regionalism; R.W.Jones & R.Scully The Belgian Regions and the European Union: Unintended partners in unravelling the Belgian state?; W.Swenden The French Regions and the European Union: Policy Change and Institutional Stability; R.Pasquier 'Fit for Europe'? The German Länder, German federalism and the EU; C.Moore 'Loyal Cooperation': Italian Regions and the Creation and Implementation of European Law; G.Falcon & D.de Pretis Divide to Multiply: Irish Regionalism and the European Union; K.Hayward Scotland's European Strategy; N.Burrows European Integration and the Spanish Territorial State; F.Morata The Swedish Regions and the European Union; A.Lidström Estonian Regions and the European Union: between Transformation and Europeanisation; T.Kungla Regionalism in a Unitary State: The case of Hungary; G.Horváth The Regions of Poland; G.Gorzelak with A.Tucholska Accommodating European Union Membership: The Regional Level in Bulgaria; M.Brusis Conclusion: Europe's Persisting Regions; R.Scully & R.Wyn Jones Bibliography