MACMILLAN European Responses to Globalization and Financial Market Integration: Perceptions of Economic and Monetary Union in Britain, France and Germany (International Political Economy Series)

About the Author AMY VERDUN is Assistant Professor of European Politics at the University of Victoria, Canada. She worked at the European Commission, at the Directorate-General of Economic and Financial Affairs at a time in which the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) was being negotiated in an intergovernmental conference. She has published widely in the area of European integration, including articles in the Journal of European Public Policy, Journal of Public Policy and Journal of European Integration. Product Description This book investigates the perceptions of political actors towards the creation of Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in Europe. The research is largely based on personal interviews conducted with key informants in central banks, finance ministries, employers' organizations and trade unions in Britain, France and Germany. It examines why actors perceived EMU to serve or frustrate their interests. It concludes that actors favoured EMU for a variety of reasons. The book contributes to the literature of European integration and incorporates economic, political and historical facts. Review 'This important study breaks new ground in assessing the dynamics of economic and monetary integration in Europe. Amy Verdun's systematic analysis of the interests of key actors - including government officials, employers, and bankers - provides the basis for a new conceptual interpretation of Europe's responses to the global challenges of our time.' - Roger Morgan, London School of Economics'Amy Verdun's book is the first that I am aware of to assess the views of both national monetary officials and social partners with respect to the prospect of monetary union. At the heart of the book are interviews with officials in the central banks and finance ministries, as well as representatives of employers' federations and trade unions, in Britain, France and Germany. Verdun draws from the interviews a rich set of comparisons, both across countries and within them. Scholars and students of international political economy and the European Union will find the book to be a welcome and useful contribution.' - Wayne Sandholz, Department of Political Science, University of California Irvine