Holly Snaith’s research while affiliated with University of Copenhagen and other places

Cambridge Core - International Relations and International Organisations - Transnational Solidarity - edited by Helle Krunke

Ordoliberalism has undergone a dramatic resurgence as a characterization of the contemporary EU and its economic dimensions. Commentators have pointed to the ‘ordoliberalization’ of EU economic policy with Germany at its core, albeit with the latter taking the role of a ‘reluctant hegemon’. Perhaps as a result of this pervasive influence, some have claimed that the EU is itself ordoliberal, resting on a particular understanding of the relationship between ordoliberalism and an ‘economic constitution’. For this claim to be substantiated, the characterization of ordoliberalism needs to persist across time and the EU's law and policy-making spaces. In this article, we examine this proposition, and argue that the influence of ordoliberalism can help a richer understanding of the contemporary EU beyond the confines of the economic constitution and into its evolving legal system(s).

Events from 2008 onwards have bought the old consensus on the sound money and finance paradigm (the ‘Great Moderation’) into bold relief. One manifestation of this crisis of belief is the increased focus on global imbalances, institutionally reflected in the creation of the Mutual Assessment Process (MAP) at the G20 level and subsequently the Macroeconomic Imbalances Procedure (MIP) at the European Union (EU) level. Comparing both newcomers to international macroeconomic policy coordination, this article analyses four features that shape (and we show, institutionalise) the process of paradigm contestation: presence, position, promotion and plausibility. We argue that although initially the G20’s MAP scored higher in terms of presence, position and promotion, it is the EU’s MIP, which heralds a more substantial shift in macroeconomic management. Collectively, both indicate the increased prominence of global imbalances as the subject of inter- or supranational management, and a broadening of the notion of necessary or legitimate economic governance.

This article analyses Britain’s quest to negotiate its future membership of the European Union (EU) through the lens of Liberal intergovernmentalism. The article demonstrates that despite the significant economic consequences of a potential Brexit, party political factors have hitherto proven more significant in defining the terrain of the debate than lobby group influence where a cross section of United Kingdom (UK) lobby groups are either actively or passively in favour of remaining within the EU ahead of the referendum.

With a referendum set to take place on 23 June 2016 in a large and important European Union (EU) member state on whether it should remain within the Union or leave altogether, this year will prove crucial for all Europeanists. Brexit is a real possibility that both the Union and other member states must be prepared to plan for and eventually absorb the potential impact of. Whilst the process of ‘will they, won’t they’ will continue until the referendum, and even beyond, this level of uncertainty creates challenges for the existing actors with a stake in the process. This introductory contribution will set the scene for the ensuing debate, which flows from the various perspectives that each of the authors have with regard to the ultimate question of a Brexit. The three editors introduce the legal, political and economic themes that run through the articles, whilst simultaneously attempting to map out the trajectory for if, when and how a Brexit may actually occur, given the differing perspectives in the debate.

Germany has a long history of institutionalized ordoliberalism. While these ideas may be implemented almost unreflexively within Germany, its status of ‘reluctant hegemon’ within the European Union has led to purposive uploading of many of these ideas to other Member States. In this article, we first define what these ordoliberal actions consist of, before tracing their evolution within Germany and the EU. Our intention is to detail how acting within ordoliberal tenets has led to some rather messy and unpredictable results for Germany and other EU Member States alike – a state particularly emphasized by the crisis. In so doing, we (re)invoke Robert Merton's treatment of unintended consequences. In particular, we are concerned with Germany's increased role in enforcing fiscal order in the EU, counter to our interviewees’ (drawn from the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) express intentions to retain Germany's political distance.

This article draws on research commissioned by the Higher Education Academy (HEA) and conducted during 2013. It interrogates the ways in which the employability agenda has been fed through to the level of individual politics departments. The project was particularly concerned with establishing whether, and how, colleagues in politics and international relations (IR) had taken ownership of student employability at the level of the curriculum. In the article, the key findings of the research are summarised. There is also discussion of the (sometimes troubling) professional implications of infusing concern for graduate outcomes within a pedagogic framework that emphasises critical engagement with the underpinning political structures of the labour market.