Exploring multi-level governance in EU youth employment policy:the case of the United Kingdom (England) and France

[摘要] Across the European Union (EU) persistently high levels of unemployment amongst young citizens risk the creation of a 'lost generation' of individuals. In response, the European Commission has launched a number of measures aimed at fostering strong levels of youth employment,including the Youth Employment Package (YEP) and the Young Employment Initiative (YEI). Their ultimate delivery however, depends heavily on the aspirations and capacity of the member states, both at the national-level, and crucially, at the local level. This thesis investigates the extent to which the concept of multi-level governance (MLG) can help us to understand policy-making and implementation in the field of EU youth employment policy. It focusses specifically on the distinct national and subnational experiences of two highly unitary EU member states, the UK (England) and France. Unitary states, often overlooked within the MLG scholarship in favour of decentralised and federal states, offer a valuable opportunity to identify the specific internal and external factors that serve to enable, support, hinder or block instances of multi-level governance- which may be missed in more conducive settings. Indeed, at first glance, this thesis finds that national state-executives dominate the policy-making and implementation processes around EU youth employment policy. Critically, however, a deeper investigation discovers that they are unable to monopolise these processes. Instead, the picture painted in this thesis is one of contestation, rivalry, and conflicting interests between the supranational, national and subnational tiers. The thesis consequently reveals important implications for the MLG literature.

[发布机构] University:University of Birmingham;Department:Department of Political Science and International Studies

[关键词] J Political Science;JF Political institutions (General)