Reforming the Institutions of Eurozone Governance

Anna-Lena Högenauer,Moritz Rehm

doi:10.17645/pag.v9i2.4263

Abstract

The Eurozone has faced repeated crises and has experienced profound transformations in the past years. This thematic issue seeks to address the questions arising from the changing governance structure of the Eurozone. First, how have the negotiations, pressures of the crises and reforms impacted the relationships between key actors like EU institutions and Member States? Second, where did national positions come from and what role did domestic politics play in the negotiations? And finally, to what extent has the evolution of Eurozone governance left room for adequate control mechanisms and democratic debate? The articles in this issue highlight the developing role of Member States, domestic politics and democratic and legal control mechanisms.

Highlights

Eurozone governance was in the beginning of this century dominated by an asymmetric institutional structure mostly relying on a strong monetary pillar and fiscal constraints stipulated in the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP; Howarth & Verdun, 2020)
The contagion effect of the international financial crisis painfully highlighted the inadequacy of this governance structure and available response mechanisms, as Eurozone Member States struggled to protect their economies and contain the growth of public debt
The European Central Bank (ECB) introduced non-standard measures to cushion the adverse impact on banks

Summary

Introduction

Eurozone governance was in the beginning of this century dominated by an asymmetric institutional structure mostly relying on a strong monetary pillar and fiscal constraints stipulated in the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP; Howarth & Verdun, 2020). The contagion effect of the international financial crisis painfully highlighted the inadequacy of this governance structure and available response mechanisms, as Eurozone Member States struggled to protect their economies and contain the growth of public debt.

Results

Conclusion