Europeanisation as a Discourse: Domestic Policy Legitimisation through the Articulation of a ‘Need for Adaptation’
| Author | Morten Kallestrup |
| Published date | 01 April 2002 |
| DOI | 10.1177/095207670201700207 |
| Date | 01 April 2002 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Europeanisation
as
a
Discourse:
Domestic
Policy
Legitimisation
through
the
Articulation
of
a
'Need
for
Adaptation'
Morten
Kallestrup
Aalborg
University
Abstract
This
article
explores
how
and
why
domestic
policies
and
political
systems
of
European
nation-states
are
being
changed
due
to
the
articulation
of
a
'need'
for
adaptation
to
the
policies
of
the
European
Union
(EU).
Domestic
policy
changes
are
legitimised
with
reference
to
the
conception
of
the
inevitability
of
European
integration.
Under
certain
circumstances
Europeanisation
processes
occur
even
in
areas
where
we
find
neither
'de
jure'
nor
'de
facto'
needs
for
harmonisation
with
EC/EU
policy.
Non-EU-
induced
'adaptation
to
the
EU'
is
thus
claimed
to
be
an
underestimated
dynamic
of
Europeanisation.
The
article
analyses
processes
of
construction
and
communication
of
policy
change
proposals
leading
to
Europeanisation
and
domestic
institutional
change.
It
presents
a
case
study
analysis
of
the
processes
leading
to
the
1993
tax
reform
in
Denmark,
as
well
as
the
processes
leading
to
the
1997
reform
of
Danish
competition
legislation.
In
both
cases
major
changes
to
policies
and
institutions
were
initiated
and
to
a
large
extent
legitimised
with
reference
to
a
'need'
for
adaptation
to
the
Internal
Market.
The
necessity
for
actual
harmonisation
was
and
is
still
questionable.
Introduction
It
is
evident
that
the
ongoing
process
of
European
integration
changes
the
domestic
policies
of
European
nation-states,
whether
directly
through
EU
regulation;
or
indirectly
through
the
creation
of
regulatory
competition.
But
are
domestic
policies
influenced
by
European
paradigms
even
if
there
is
no
EU
adaptation
requirement?
Does
the
very
existence
of
the
EU
frame
domestic
policy
choices?
Or
do
the
governments
of
member
states
manage
domestic
political
interests
by
using
the
EU
as
a
source
of
legitimisation
for
policy
change?
This
article
deals
with
the
assumption
that
domestic
level
Public
Policy
and
Administration
Volume
17
No.
2
Summer
2002
110
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