Germany in Europe: The Europeanization of German politics

Transcription

1 Timm Beichelt Germany in Europe: The Europeanization of German politics MA Seminar, Winter Semester 2008/09 Session: Interest Groups

2 Seminar schedule Accession test Intermediary institutions I: Interest Groups Introduction, planning Intermediary institutions II: political parties No session 8.1. Political institutions I: Government Culture I: Germany s long road to the West Theory I: The European Policy Cycle Theory II: Dimensions of Europeanization Culture II: The Germans view on the nation Culture III: The Germans view on Europe Political institutions II: Parliamentiarism and Bundestag Political institutions III: Federalism and Bundesrat Excursion to Berlin (Foreign Ministry, Bundestag) 5.2. Europeanization and Democracy Presentation of term paper projects

3 Student presentations Accession test Intermediary institutions I: group interaction Introduction, planning Intermediary institutions II: Timm Beichelt No session 8.1. Political institutions I: Timm Beichelt Culture I: Germany s long road to the West Theory I: The European Policy Cycle Theory II: Dimensions of Europeanization Political institutions II: group discussion Political institutions III: Nathan Droesch Excursion to Berlin (Foreign Ministry, Bundestag) Culture II: group discussion 5.2. Europeanization and Democracy: Frances Hill Culture III: Tiago Brandt Presentation of term paper projects

4 Thought Paper topics Culture II: The Germans view on the nation Thought Paper Topic IV: The film Der Baader-Meinhof-Komplex what does it tell us about contemporary conceptions of the German nation? Culture III: The Germans view on Europe Thought Paper Topic V: Critically examine the official positions of German political parties concerning Europe what do they tell us about the German parties views on the EU and European integration? Intermediary institutions II: political parties Thought Paper Topic VI: Party opposition to the Lisbon Treaty comes from the Radical Left as well as the Radical Right. Discuss the coincidence that critique of European integration is articulated only on the extreme edges of the German party system Political institutions I: government Thought Paper Topic VII: In the political system of the EU, the Council acts as a major legislative body. As a result, many laws are in fact both designed and decided by the executive. Discuss the normative implications of this development Political institutions II: Parliamentarism and Bundestag Thought Paper Topic VIII: National parliaments are said to have lost much institutional weight during the course Europeanization. Discuss the hypothesis with a special focus on the character of decision-making in European politics.

5 Structure of the Session I. Introduction: what is interest representation? II. Group work: lobby EU institutions into allowing German car industry subsidies III. Discussion

6 Interest representation Approaches: pluralism, neocorporatism, lobbyism Character of interest representation (functional versus territorial) Location of interest representation in policy cycle (Almond/Powell 1978) Logic of membership versus logic of influence (Streeck/Schmitter 1999)

7 Types of interest groups EU interest groups (about 1.400) Enterprises/company representations (about 350) Brussels offices of national interest groups (about 170) Offices of regions / territorial representations (about 170) Lobby agencies (law firms and commercial public affairs consultancies, about 270) Source: Greenwood (2003: 9)

8 Policy Cycle and location of EU lobbying

9 Whom to lobby? Institutions during EU level decision-making Dominant Processes EU level institutions involved Nation level institutions involved Interest articulation agenda setting, lobbying Interest Groups Commission Interest Groups National Governments Interest aggregation bargaining, problem solving, coordination - Interest Groups - Council (working groups) Interest Groups National Governments Decision taking debating, finalizing - Interest Groups - Council -EP Interest Groups National Governments

10 Discussion Between the groups, what are differences concerning: Institutions on EU level which are lobbied Logic of membership versus logic of influence: which group refers to which logic in the given example, and why?