Abstract
ABSTRACT This research investigates the policy narratives that were deployed by the Commission to justify the reform of Cohesion policy in relation to the long-standing process of EMU reform. Our aim is to find out how narratives about EU solidarity allowed the creation of both redistributive patterns among the Member States, and Cohesion policy’s macroeconomic conditionality. We identified two narratives: one of EU solidarity, based on the ‘harmonious development’ of the territories, and one of EMU stability, consisting in cross-national solidarity in exchange for structural reforms. We argue that, in the context of EMU reform, the narrative of stability found a favourable interest constellation, becoming the ideational driver of the Cohesion policy reform. In order to prove this argument, we conducted an ideational process tracing on the 1988 and 1994 Cohesion policy reforms, as well as a frame analysis on a corpus of 74 speeches from relevant EU Commission policy actors.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
