It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over: Interest-Group Influence in Policy Implementation
| Published date | 01 May 2024 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/14789299231162015 |
| Author | Douwe Truijens,Marcel Hanegraaff |
| Date | 01 May 2024 |
https://doi.org/10.1177/14789299231162015
Political Studies Review
2024, Vol. 22(2) 387 –401
© The Author(s) 2023
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DOI: 10.1177/14789299231162015
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It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over:
Interest-Group Influence in
Policy Implementation
Douwe Truijens1 and Marcel Hanegraaff2
Abstract
Current research on interest-group influence in the European Union tends to focus on just
one stage of the policy cycle, being agenda setting, the legislative process or (some aspects) of
the implementation stage. We argue that this bifurcation of the research agenda is a serious
shortcoming, as lobby dynamics may vary throughout different consecutive policymaking
stages. As a consequence, lobby gains or losses in the legislative stage can be overturned in the
implementation. This research note therefore explores how the influence of interest organisations
travels across different stages of the policy cycle, most importantly between the legislative stage
and the implementation stage. First, we observe that as policymaking is a continuous rather than a
static process, also lobbying tends to stretch beyond the legislative stage. Second, we argue that the
specific characteristics of the implementation vis-à-vis the legislative stage may structurally favour
business and resourceful organisations over smaller groups and nongovernmental organisationss.
Third, we illustrate the plausibility of our argument by means of an in-depth case study: the
European Union Industrial Emissions Directive. We conclude with a call for a more integral
approach to researching lobby powers throughout the policy cycle and provide a preliminary
agenda for future research.
Keywords
interest groups, influence, implementation, policy cycle, evidence-based policymaking, lobbying
Accepted: 8 February 2023
Introduction
What does lobbying look like in the different stages of a policymaking process? And does
interest-groups’ ability to influence policy differ across these different stages? Current
research on interest-group influence in the European Union (EU) tends to focus on just one
stage of the policy cycle (but see Coen et al., 2021), being agenda setting (Klüver, 2013),
the legislative process (Dür et al., 2015) or (some aspects) of the implementation – most
1TNO, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
2Universiteit van Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Corresponding author:
Douwe Truijens, TNO, Radarweg 60, Amsterdam 1043 NT, The Netherlands.
Email: douwe.truijens@tno.nl
1162015PSW0010.1177/14789299231162015Political Studies ReviewTruijens and Hanegraa
research-article2023
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