Regions in Europe

Abstract:

In the 1960s, the revival of regionalist movements and pressures from within states to strengthen democracy led gradually to forms of institutional regionalisation in a number of European countries. Today the situation is very different and it is questionable whether regions in Europe exert any great influence on the politics, economy and society of Europe.

'Regions in Europe' explores the state of regional politics in an increasingly integrated Europe. The contributors argue that the trends of the 1960s have vanished and that the predicted rise of increased political power at the regional level has been slow to materialise and fraught with paradox. In searching for reasons as to why this has happened the study explores regions in relation to European integration, globalisation, the nation state, local government, and comparative and national perspectives. It concludes that there have been many factors affecting the development of regions in Europe. Combining theory and case studies from many of the main players in Europe, including Germany, France, UK, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium, this study concludes that European regions remain weak political actors in European governance.