EMU and Political Science - What have we learned?

Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2009. Before its birth many observers were concerned about its viability. This volume examines a number of noteworthy concerns that were heard a decade ago and it assesses what has become of them. The contributors to this volume examine various topics. Has EMU been a failure or success? Does EMU require more political integration? What type of deeper integration in the financial market has occurred because of EMU? Does the public like EMU? Does EMU cause a decline of the welfare state, reduce the role of labour unions and are adjustments now made mainly through the labour market? Do countries in EMU become more similar over time? Is EMU sustainable in the long-run? Will EMU survive the global financial crisis? The contributors to this book are leading Political Scientists in the field, and draw on a wealth of research and experience.

Introduction. 1. EMU's Teenage Challenge: What have we learned and can we predict from Political Science? - Henrik Enderlein 2. EMU and political union: What, if anything, have we learned from the euro's first decade? - Dermot Hodson 3. On Consensus, Constraint and Choice: Economic and Monetary Integration and Europe's Welfare States - H. Tolga Bolukbasi 4. EMU's Diverging Micro Foundation: A Study of Governments' Preferences and the Sustainability of EMU - Tal Sadeh 5. Economic Interests and Public Support for the Euro - Susan A. Banducci, Jeffrey A. Karp, Peter H. Loedel 6. EMU: the Last Stand for the Policy Convergence Hypothesis? - David H. Bearce 7. Wage inflation and labour unions in EMU - Alison Johnston and Bob Hancké 8. Political Science and the "Cinderellas" of Economic and Monetary Union: Payment Services and Clearing and Settlement - Lucia Quaglia