Policy consultation and political styles: Renewable energy consultations in the UK and Denmark

Abstract

There is a discussion among political scientists about the extent to which there are differences in policy styles between western European states, including in particular whether they share common means of consulting and deciding policy through policy networks. This article studies the differences in policy consultation approaches between Denmark and the United Kingdom in the case of renewable energy. It further examines whether consultation patterns differ in the policy formation and policy implementation phases. It is found that while in both Danish and British cases there is decision making through policy communities, there are still some clear differences in the ways in which consultation takes place and decisions are made at the levels of both policy formation and policy implementation.