Regional Policy In Europe

Addressing regional economic policy in Europe, this volume covers the theory of regional economic development and policy; regional policy at the national level; past and present regional disparities in the European Union; impact of the integration on regions; regional policy in the European Union from 1975 to 1999; the Structural Funds 2000- 2006 and openness to Eastern European countries. First published in 1980 and authored in conjunction with Klaassen, with a second edition in 1987, this edition is updated and enlarged to include recent developments of EU regional strategies and policies. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

How can one convince potent nation-states to put their sovereignty at risk in common European policies? EU cohesion policy, now one-third of the EU budget, provides such a puzzle. Until 1988 the European Commission shared out money to national governments with few strings attached. Since the reform of 1988, national governments are required to negotiate with the Commission and regional authorities on how to use the money. Has this European-wide policy eroded national sovereignty in favour of a stronger role for the Commission and more power for Europe's regions? The first part of the book probes into the policy dynamics at the European level. In the second part, eight country studies evaluate the impact of uniform EU policy on territorial relations by comparing policy making before and after the reform. The concluding section explains persistent variation in EU cohesion decision making and implementation.

This publication contains a number of papers presented by leading academics, policy-makers and practitioners from existing and new EU member countries at a conference in Barcelona in October 2002. These papers discuss key issues regarding the effectiveness of attempts to reduce regional disparities with the EU and the implications of current enlargement including: the trade-offs between promoting national growth and reducing relative disparities; the role of growth poles; the investment climate and labour market flexibility; the role of the EU and regional policy overall.

The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.tandfebooks.com/doi/view/10.4324/9781315401867, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 3.0 license. This book brings together academics, members of European institutions, and regional and national level policymakers in order to assess the performance and direction of EU Cohesion policy against the background of the most significant reforms to the policy in a generation. Responding to past criticisms of the effectiveness of the policy, the policy changes introduced in 2013 have aligned European Structural and Investment Funds with the Europe 2020 strategy and introduced measures to improve strategic coherence, performance and integrated development. EU Cohesion Policy: Reassessing performance and direction argues that policy can only be successfully developed and implemented if there is input from both academics and practitioners. The chapters in the book address four important issues: the effectiveness and impact of Cohesion policy at European, national and regional levels; the contribution of Cohesion policy to the Europe 2020 strategy of smart, sustainable and inclusive growth; the importance of quality of government and administrative capacity for the effective management of the Funds; and the inter-relationships between institutions, territory and place-based policies. The volume will be an invaluable resource to students, academics and policymakers across economics, regional studies, European studies and international relations.

Regional Policy and Planning in Europe explores the ways regional policy and planning systems across Europe have been influenced by: * economic and monetary union * the impending enlargement of the European Union * the devolution of administrative power from central government to regional authorities * the increased importance of environmental and urban issues. Presenting a comprehensive overview of the economic basis of integration, this book examines the evolution of various systems of government, planning and forms of devolution.

Based on the author's extensive research in the field, this book analyzes regional policy for the whole of Europe. Comparing East and West, it offers a new model of regional policy and gives an overview of the direction that it may take in Europe as a whole. Topics covered include: the evaluation of regional policy; its main aims; its "infrastructure" in Western Europe; its form in Eastern Europe; and the development of regional policy from 1917 to the 1990s. The book is intended for professionals and academics working in the areas of regional studies, economics and policy studies.

The regional and urban development policy of the European Union, or more precisely, EU Cohesion Policy, is undergoing change. This development is driven by the enormous transformations in European regions and by shifts in thinking and analysis. The iss

This book brings together a rich selection of up-to-date practical experience of EU regional policy from across Europe. It provides different perspectives on the design and operation of regional development strategies under the Structural Funds, from people closely involved in studying, managing or advising on the process at EU, national and regional levels. It therefore offers a more comprehensive and detailed understanding of the structural policies than has been available hitherto. This will prove particularly useful to researchers, practitioners and students interested in European regional policies and processes.