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Unveiling patterns of contestation over Better Regulation reforms in the European Union

Unveiling patterns of contestation over Better Regulation reforms in the European Union
Unveiling patterns of contestation over Better Regulation reforms in the European Union
Regulatory reforms labelled ‘Better Regulation’ are a prominent item on the political agendas of most advanced democracies and the European Union. Governments adopt Better Regulation measures to strengthen their democratic legitimacy and increase their regulatory and economic effectiveness. Notwithstanding their rhetorical appeal, their design and implementation are susceptible to high levels of political contestation. We therefore ask: are there systematic differences in stakeholders’ demands for what Better Regulation should achieve? What explains these differences? We argue that conflict over Better Regulation is rooted in what stakeholders prefer as a regulatory system of governance. Stakeholders demand reforms that lead to one of the following three scenarios: deregulation, technocratic or participatory policy-making. We examine stakeholders’ demands expressed in the EU. We find that national authorities responsible for coordinating Better Regulation and cross-sectoral business organizations support deregulatory and technocratic reforms. Business and public interest organizations are equally supportive of strengthening participatory policy-making.
0033-3298
Bunea, Adriana
35890bfe-2932-48ee-aef8-4a393a42eed1
Ibenskas, Raimondas
160594d0-2151-4be5-8d77-90418186dbc1
Bunea, Adriana
35890bfe-2932-48ee-aef8-4a393a42eed1
Ibenskas, Raimondas
160594d0-2151-4be5-8d77-90418186dbc1

Bunea, Adriana and Ibenskas, Raimondas (2017) Unveiling patterns of contestation over Better Regulation reforms in the European Union. Public Administration. (doi:10.1111/padm.12335).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Regulatory reforms labelled ‘Better Regulation’ are a prominent item on the political agendas of most advanced democracies and the European Union. Governments adopt Better Regulation measures to strengthen their democratic legitimacy and increase their regulatory and economic effectiveness. Notwithstanding their rhetorical appeal, their design and implementation are susceptible to high levels of political contestation. We therefore ask: are there systematic differences in stakeholders’ demands for what Better Regulation should achieve? What explains these differences? We argue that conflict over Better Regulation is rooted in what stakeholders prefer as a regulatory system of governance. Stakeholders demand reforms that lead to one of the following three scenarios: deregulation, technocratic or participatory policy-making. We examine stakeholders’ demands expressed in the EU. We find that national authorities responsible for coordinating Better Regulation and cross-sectoral business organizations support deregulatory and technocratic reforms. Business and public interest organizations are equally supportive of strengthening participatory policy-making.

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Better Regulation_v13.04.2017_NO FOOTNOTES_FINAL_for pure - Accepted Manuscript
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Accepted/In Press date: 10 April 2017
e-pub ahead of print date: 22 June 2017
Organisations: Politics & International Relations

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 408554
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/408554
ISSN: 0033-3298
PURE UUID: 56c46ac9-ff0d-4262-8cfa-2cc0e71cacc5
ORCID for Raimondas Ibenskas: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-4128-9464

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 23 May 2017 04:02
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 05:15

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Contributors

Author: Adriana Bunea
Author: Raimondas Ibenskas ORCID iD

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