Change and resistance to change: The political management of europeanisation in France
Title:
Change and resistance to change: The political management of europeanisation in France
Author:
Drake, Helen Milner, Susan
Appeared in:
Modern & contemporary France
Paging:
Volume 7 (1999) nr. 2 pages 165-178
Year:
1999-05
Contents:
European integration poses dilemmas of governance for EU member-state governments. Specifically, how are national leaders to manage the interface between 'Europe' as cause of change, catalyst for reform, and scapegoat for dissent? Some answers can be found in France, where Lionel Jospin's government has embarked on a radical process of reconstructing French European policy and discourse with a view to incorporating 'Europe' into a broader political project of national renewal and reform. The government's goal is to relativise the significance of 'Europe' in the socio-economic and political life of the country, in order to deflate its potential as a scapegoat for disaffected individuals and groups within civil society and the political elites. Conclusions drawn from the French experience since June 1997 provide a starting point for comparative research into the relationship, in the EU member states, between citizens, state, and the Europeanisation of domestic politics.
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