Scope of Negative Integration: A Comparative Analysis of Post, Public Transport and Port Services

Abstract

AbstractThere is extensive literature that explains how liberalization policy deepens and widens. In the literature of European integration such reform is commonly considered to be the result of a bias towards liberalization in the treaties, thereby giving the European Commission and the European Court of Justice wide‐ranging leverage to enforce such reform. However, such approaches have been criticized for being de‐politicized – for failing to understand the conflicts inherent in controversial policies. It is therefore of interest to explore the scope conditions of this constitutional bias assumption in areas where liberalization policy is disputed. This article analyzes the EU decision‐making processes across the postal, public transport and port service sectors, highlighting three key conditions, in addition to the treaties' legal foundation. These are: the organization of public services; mobilization by large interests, such as trade unions; and how willing the European Commission is to give in to concessional demands.