Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'European Union – Denmark'

Thesis (M.A. in Security Studies (Europe and Eurasia))--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2009.
Thesis Advisor(s): Yost, David S. ; Shore, Zachary. "March 2009." Description based on title screen as viewed on April 24, 2009. Author(s) subject terms: anti-radicalization, assimilation, Denmark, European Union, integration, Islam, multiculturalism, Muslims, Spain, terrorism, tolerance. Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-77). Also available in print.

The aim of this thesis is to add to the growing literature on Euroscepticism by providing an in-depth comparative study of groups in civil society that actively campaign against European integration in Denmark, Estonia, Ireland and the United Kingdom. This study labels these groups as ‘Eurosceptic Protest Movements' (EPMs). Five explanatory factors drawn from the literature on Euroscepticism and social movements are used to ask the research question of why EPMs are formed. These are namely, Euroscepticism in the party system, the number of referendums in each case study, the availability of resources, the openness of the policy making process, and the perceived pro-EU bias of the media. Empirically it proceeds on a case by case basis, providing an in-depth account of each state's relationship with the EU from party system, public opinion, referendums to case specific factors to allow for an appreciation of the environment in which EPMs are formed. Data is gathered primarily from interviews with the founders and both current and former members of EPMs, with additional information coming from EPM documents, referendum manifestos and posters. Contextual information is provided by interviews with academics, journalists and pro-European activists, and secondary literature in EU studies and social movements. The thesis comes to two key conclusions. Firstly, in relation to the literature on social movements, EPMs conform strongly to the political opportunity structure paradigm in that body of work. More specifically is the importance of referendums to EPM formation, an element of the political opportunity structure that has not been researched in relation to social movements. Secondly, with regard to Euroscepticism the thesis concluded that EPMs emerge because of a lack of available space for contestation on the EU issue and the inability of political parties to act as an interlocutor between the electorate and the EU.

The European Region has a dominant position in the world tourism market, and the EU is the most visited destination in the world. However, with increasing competition from outlying countries, the EU's relative share is decreasing. This Master thesis deals with the assessment of tourism in the EU member states, with particular attention paid to an analysis of the tourism market in Denmark. The thesis aims to provide an overview of the importance of tourism for the EU, describe current trends and outline prospects for future development in this economic sector.

Parental leave policies have been shown to play a significant role in enhancing gender equality. The European Union has recognised this and has issued a Directive to its Member States, in order to instigate parental leave policy reform. However, not all Member States have sought to implement this. This thesis addresses this problem and seeks to answer the following research question: Why have progressive parental leave policies failed to transfer across the European Union? In doing so, this study also aims to explore the limits of Europeanisation. The research question has been addressed through a qualitative comparative case study of four European Union Member States: Sweden, Denmark, Hungary and Greece. These states have been chosen on the basis of Most Different System Design. The thesis deploys a theoretical framework based upon concepts of Europeanisation and policy mobility and draws particularly on the work of Stone’s four core concepts of policy mobility: Diffusion, Transfer, Convergence, Translation (Stone, 2012). The key factors that have been identified in this study as restricting the potential of a policy to transfer are: institutional surroundings, shared beliefs and norms, internal political dynamics and a lack of force/action from the European Union. These differences have acted to constrain the transferability of progressive parental leave policy across the European Union and therefore the process of Europeanisation in this area.

The aim of this thesis is to suggest the ways of promoting energy efficiency in Turkey in the light of best practices at the level of European Union and most energy efficient Member States, Denmark and Gremany. This thesis provides a critical evaluation of Turkish energy efficiency policies in transmission, distribution and consumption stages of energy by pointing out their weaknesses. The evaluations highlight the fact that Turkey has substantial energy saving potential in electricity distribution grids and end-use sectors. The EU, Danish and German experiences demonstrate that the greatest energy efficiency improvement could be achieved in industry sector. By taking these experiences and the problems of Turkey into consideration, this thesis recommends possible measures. It is concluded that, when the energy efficiency potential is evaluated, primarily attention could be paid to industry sector.

Europe is trying to switch away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy. Bioenergy is well positioned to play a large role in this. However, bioenergy as a share of total energy used differs substantially between European countries. What causes these differences and what the barriers are to bioenergy implementation is researched in this thesis for seven EU countries: Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the UK. The systemic barriers to bioenergy implementation are categorised in the five categories, infrastructure, market problems, interactions, institutions, and capabilities. A literature review gives the first insight into the barriers, which is then followed by ananalysis of current policy in the seven countries. Afterwards, industry specialists are interviewed from five of the seven countries. The interviews mainly took place by email. However, one was over the phone. A semi-structured approach was used in the interviews. Lastly, voting behaviour of MEPs and the influence of the oil industry are analysed. This was done by using the Forbes most valuable companies list and ranking the biggest European oil and gas companies. These were then compared to the voting behaviour by members of the EU parliament of the countries where the companies are domiciled. The results show no systemic barriers for Denmark and Sweden. In every country a different set of problems was in the way of bioenergy. Negative public opinion may start playing an increasing role in the implementation of bioenergy in western European countries, such as the Netherlands and Germany. Currently, the UK and Belgium have policy barriers to bioenergy implementation, while France’s bioenergy sector struggles with infrastructure, market and capability problems. Germany also suffers from market problems. The oil industry does not seem to influence the behaviour of politicians significantly concerning bioenergy. Politicians from countries with large oil industry did not vote morenegatively on bioenergy directives in the EU parliament than those from countries without a large oil industry. Moreover, the public opinion towards bioenergy can have large effects on the implementation, as was observed in the Netherlands. Where this negative public opinion on bioenergy comes from is not clear. No final conclusion can be drawn on what causes the difference in bioenergy adoption in the seven countries. More research is needed into what influences the public opinion in these countries concerning bioenergy.
Europa försöker göra en omställning från fossila bränslen till förnybar energi. Bioenergi är väl positionerat för att spela en viktig roll i detta. Bioenergi är en mindre intermittent energikälla än vind och solenergi och kan därmed komplettera dessa. Bioenergi som andel av den totala energianvändningen skiljer sig emellertid väsentligt mellan europeiska länder. Vad som orsakar dessa skillnader och vilka hinder som finns för implementering av bioenergi undersöks i denna rapport för sju EU-länder: Belgien, Danmark, Frankrike, Tyskland, Nederländerna, Sverige och Storbritannien. Hindren på systemnivå för implementering av bioenergi kategoriseras i de fem kategorierna, infrastruktur, marknadsproblem, interaktioner, institutioner och kapacitet. En litteraturöversikt ger den första insikten om hinder, som sedan följs av en utläggning gällande den nuvarande lagstiftningen i de sju länderna. Efter det intervjuas branschspecialister från fem av de sju länderna. Slutligen analyseras röstbeteende i Europaparlamentet och oljeindustrins inflytande. Resultaten visar att oljebranschen inte verkar påverka politikernas beteende i betydande utsträckning beträffande bioenergi. Politiker från länder med stor oljeindustri röstade inte mer negativt gällande bioenergidirektiv i EU-parlamentet än de från länder utan stor oljebransch. Däremot kan den allmänna opinionen mot bioenergi få stora effekter på genomförandet, vilket observerades i Nederländerna. Ingen slutsats kan dras gällande varför utbredningen av bioenergi skiljer sig åt mellan de sju länderna. I varje land fanns det en rad olika hinder i vägen för implementering av bioenergi. Sverige och Danmark har inga systemproblem för implementering av bioenergi. Om den allmänna opinionen är negativt inställd till bioenergi kan det börja spela en större roll för utbredningen av bioenergi i västeuropeiska länder, som Nederländerna och Tyskland.

This paper gives a general review on renewable electricity production in the European Union based on the example of Sweden, Denmark and Germany. It gives the answer to the question which forms of renewable electricity production are competitive in Europe and why. Furthermore it describes how and why renewables are used in different member states of the EU. This review is based on existing literature on the subject, statistical data of national and international organisations and departments as well as recent articles in journals and newspapers. As a result it becomes clear that there are different boundaries to the use of renewable electricity production in the EU due to specific demands for an economic use. But even though these demands are met, the success of renewable electricity production depends on several factors like the historic development and the supply of fossil resources, political support or external events such as the oil crisis. It also becomes clear that the use of renewables can cause environmental problems (hydropower) or problems in the field of security of supply (grid stability). One can draw the conclusion that countries with a continuous support system in the past are performing well in the objective to increase the share of power produced by renewables and serve as good example for countries lagging behind in this goal.

The aim of this paper is to explain how the European Union’s common strategy for theCommon Foreign- and Security Policy (CFSP) will change with the implementation of the Treaty of Lisbon. A comparative case study and qualitative method is used. On the basis of Smith’s theory of institutionalization we will analyze two member states: France and Denmark. Our aim is to see which standpoints these countries have taken concerning the CFSP. We have chosen, in order to analyse the inner and outer factors, to use the liberal intergovernmental “two level game” theory as a theoretical approach. The purpose of the CFSP is to gradually increase the sovereign states’ foreign policy cooperation. The aim of the CFSP is to become an international visible and active player that represents the people of the European Union. At the moment the CFSP is an intergovernmental part of the EU, however there are presentiments that this will change and that CFSP will achieve supranationality. In conclusion, the results of the case study shows that Denmark is aiming for the CFSP cooperation to remain on an intergovernmental platform. France is aiming toward supranationality and a stronger cooperation within the CFSP. In time, with the full implementation of the CFSP, the EU will be able to compete on a global platform.

Defence date: 29 September 2008
Examining Board: Prof. Giovanni Federico (European University Institute, Supervisor); Prof. Kiran K. Patel (European University Institute); Prof. Richard Griffiths (Rijksuniversiteit te Leiden); Prof. Johnny Laursen (Aarhus Universitet)
No abstract available

Defence date: 7 June 2004
Examining Board: Prof. Alan S. Milward (supervisor) ; Prof. Pascaline Winand ; Prof. Hans Otto Frøland ; Prof. Johnny Laursen
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digitised archive of EUI PhD theses completed between 2013 and 2017

Defence date: 8 January 2015
Examining Board: Professor Pepper Culpepper, European University Institute (Supervisor); Professor E. Scott Adler, University of Colorado, Boulder (External Supervisor); Professor Stefano Bartolini, European University Institute; Professor Peter John, University College London.
Who sets lawmakers' priorities? The aim of the thesis is to provide a convincing theoretical argument able to identify what are the policy problems that demand lawmakers' attention, but also to test this empirically for France, Denmark, Spain and the United Kingdom between 1980 and 2008. This research shows how accounting for the way in which lawmakers deal with competing policy problems integrate two major accounts of the way in which governments set their priorities: party mandate approaches and public policy approaches. The thesis does so by suggesting that given their double role of representatives and administrators, lawmakers have to deliver policies consistent both with electoral and non-electoral mandates. In this framework, parties’ promises, administrative commitments, and the priorities of the public originate policy problems that compete for lawmakers' attention to enter the policy agenda. Compared to classic party mandate approaches, this research does not conceive parties as being the key actors of the game or the major agenda-setters. Compared to public policy approaches, the study does not dismiss the role of parties. The theory argues that a problem-solving approach is key to account for lawmakers' priorities and for the way in which lawmakers select policy problems that need to be addressed in the policy agenda. In this framework, different policy problems demand lawmakers' attention and problems-solving scholars have illustrated that the types of issues that need to be addressed are different in "nature". Existing accounts of the composition of policy agendas distinguish between problems ranging from "compulsory" to "discretionary" concerns (Walker 1977; Adler and Wilkerson 2012) where the former derive from "periodically recurring demands " and the latter from "chosen problems" (Walker 1977:425). Building on these contributions, the theoretical model of the dissertation discusses the "nature" of different policy problems by identifying some 'ideal types' that originate from the double functions that lawmakers shall perform in contemporary democracies as "representatives" of voters' interests and as "responsible" administrators (Mair 2009). In this sense, the dissertation contends that different policy problems emerge from the electoral promises of the governing parties, from commitments related to the responsibility of being in office, and from the 'external world', and that the balance between them determines the composition of the policy agenda. 13 There are four propositions of this study to existing knowledge in the field of policy agendas. The first is that the content of the policy agenda is stable across countries with different institutional settings. Lawmakers' priorities are no less stable in institutional systems that are more 'open' to accommodating policy problems brought by the electoral promises of the parties. At the same time stability persists even when elections approach, questioning the long-lasting assumption that lawmakers may manipulate policies to their will in order to assure re-election. The second is that policy problems brought by the electoral promises of the governing parties impact lawmakers’ priorities, but this is only half of an old story. The results show that the policy problems originating from the electoral promises of the opposition influence the content of the policy agenda confirming that the agenda-setting power of parties is not limited to those who are in office. The third proposition is a theoretical effort and empirical contribution to conceptualise and measure "policy commitments". Studies of public policy have stressed the importance of inherited commitments in everyday law making (Rose 1994; Adler and Wilkerson 2012) since some decisions take longer than a legislature to be realised. Classic analyses have emphasised the importance of budgetary constraints on policy agendas, but the thesis suggests that there is also another striking case of policy commitments for European polities: EU integration, since decisions on EU affairs and delegation of powers taken from previous governments are hard (if not impossible) to reverse by their successors. In this sense, EU decisions are inherited by all governments, and they add complexity to the problem-solving capacity of Member States because they produce extra policy problems that require lawmakers' attention. For lawmakers respecting legally binding EU decisions, this is a way to avoid "reckless and illegal decision making" (Mair 2009). The results highlight that when reflecting on the divisions of competences between the Union and its Member States (MSs), policy commitments derived from the EU directives are concentrated on a narrow set of policy areas. The results show that in most fields where commitments are higher, the agenda-setting power of parties’ electoral promises is weakened. Finally, this research suggests that policy problems originating from the agenda of the public (as approximated by media coverage) are another explanatory factor of policy priorities, but in a very narrow set of policy areas. Media effects appear to be limited to policy areas with the special characteristics of newsworthiness and sensationalism (Soroka 2002) that contribute to boost their policy appeal. In addition, the findings highlight that the agenda-setting power of the media is mediated by the interaction with the electoral promises of the opposition, probably as a result of a blame avoidance game to discredit incumbents. 14 Chapter 1 introduces the concepts of policy agenda and policy problem before summarising existing accounts of the content of policy agendas. Two theoretical traditions are identified. The first one is the "partisan account" highlighting the importance of partisan preferences for lawmakers' priorities. The second is made up of the "public policy accounts" proposing incrementalist and agenda-setting approaches to representatives' priorities. Chapter 2 sets up the theoretical framework that will be tested in this research. Drawing upon theories of "representative and responsible" government (Mair 2009) the research provides an encompassing model of how different policy problems compete for attention in order to enter the agendas of lawmakers. The thesis highlights that different agenda-setters have to be considered as creating policy problems: the electoral promises of the governing parties, the demands addressed to lawmakers by the EU agenda, and the issues that are important for the public as reported by the media. Starting from existing typologies of problems that must be addressed in the policy agenda (Walker 1977; Adler and Wilkerson 2012), the research roughly distinguishes between discretionary and compulsory policy problems, discussing how the three agenda-setters considered in this study fit into those ideal types, as well as the incentives for lawmakers to prioritise one over the other. Chapter 3 presents the data, models and methods that are used to test the theoretical framework. The dissertation relies on data from the Comparative Agendas Project modelled in the form of time series cross sectional models. Chapter 4 introduces the empirical investigation of the content of the policy agenda. It focuses on stability and change in lawmakers' priorities, to understand the extent to which priorities change (or remain the same) across elections. Chapter 5 moves a step further and will assess the connection between policy problems brought by parties' electoral promises and the content of the policy agenda. Chapter 6 will account for one of the most debated sources of policy problems among public policy scholars: policy commitments. This chapter will test the agenda-setting power of policy commitments deriving from the content of the EU directives on lawmakers' priorities and proposing an "EU acquiescence index" to shed light on the 'overlaps' between EU and domestic policy agendas. Finally, Chapter 7 aims at analysing the connection between lawmakers' priorities and media coverage (in terms of print and, where appropriate, audio media) and each of the two relevant types of policy problems competing for lawmakers' attention identified in the previous chapters. In sum the thesis offers a theory of the composition of policy agendas grounded in a problem-solving understanding of politics, and an empirical assessment of its validity. In this sense the study is about how policy problems originating from the dual role of lawmakers in 15 contemporary democracies (representation and administration) affect everyday policy making. More precisely the thesis considers the impact of different agenda venues (parties, EU commitments, and the media) on the way in which lawmakers deliver policies.

Examining Board: Professor Dr. Adrienne Héritier, European University Institute (Supervisor) ; Professor Dr. Tanja Börzel, Freie Universität Berlin ; Professor Dr. Peter Nedergaard, University of Copenhagen ; Professor Dr. Pascal Vennesson, European University Institute
Defence date: 20 December 2011
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digital archive of EUI PhD theses
What are the key determinants behind how member states develop positions for the negotiations in the Council of the European Union? This is the major question that this thesis seeks to answer. In order to develop negotiation positions for the Council, all member states have established an EU coordination system which can be defined as a structure containing interlinked units whose function is to align national EU-related activities so that a national negotiation position can be presented in negotiations in the EU decision making system. A number of studies have investigated EU coordination systems and their determinants. By and large, existing studies find that EU coordination systems vary to a large extent because they are a function of pre-existing institutions and values characterising the political systems of each member state. However, these studies are not calibrated to single out exactly which national institutions matter most and many of them neglect national agency. In order to address this shortfall and advance our knowledge about EU coordination, a number of predictions are generated using the veto player approach. The predictions are assessed against empirical evidence from Germany and Denmark, which varies considerably in terms of the constellation of veto players. The two coordination systems are outlined, using process tracing, from three perspectives. First, a diachronic perspective is taken to analyse how coordination systems were established and have changed over time. This analysis shows that veto players play a prominent role in shaping coordination systems, as they utilise their veto powers to increase their influence when determining national negotiation positions. Second, a synchronic perspective is used to examine how coordination systems are organised at a specific point in time. The veto player approach performs well in explaining cross-country variation in the role of subnational units and national parliaments. Third, an applied perspective is used to analyse how EU coordination systems work de facto when establishing national negotiation positions for the draft Services Directive. This analysis indicates that veto players are important but there is not a straightforward correlation between their number and the effectiveness of the coordination systems.

Defence date: 12 June 2010
Examining Board: Jens Blom-Hansen (Aarhus Univ), Pepper Culpepper (EUI), Bo Rothstein (Univ. Gothenborg), Sven Steinmo (EUI) (Supervisor)
First made available online on 8 April 2019
This dissertation deals with the following question: In the past decades some of the countries most dedicated to the universal public welfare state have privatised many of their welfare service provisions. Why is this so? The dissertation takes a close look at privatisation policies in health care in Denmark, Sweden and England in order to figure out how and why the private health care sector has expanded rapidly in recent years. Health care services in Denmark, Sweden and England provide good examples of welfare state service privatisation because these three countries have spent decades building up universal public health care systems that offer free and equal access to all citizens - and these programmes are very popular. In this dissertation I find that the most common explanations for welfare state reform fail to explain these changes: Privatisation policies are not the result of partisan politics, instead they are supported by Social Democratic / Labour parties and in some cases the unions as well. Privatisation is not the result of pressures for fiscal retrenchment; in fact, public health care funding has increased in all three countries over the past decade. Neither is privatisation the straight forward result of new right wing ideas. Certainly, new ideas play a role in this change, but it is difficult to sustain the argument that ideas alone have been the cause of privatisation in these three health care systems. Finally, it has been debated whether privatisation is the result of pressure from EU legislation. This explanation does not hold either for the basic reason of timing. The policies leading to privatisation in Denmark, England and Sweden were all implemented before the European debate over health care services started. Instead, I suggest that privatisation in health care in Denmark, Sweden and England can best be understood as the product of policy makers puzzling over important policy problems (Heclo, 1972). I call this an adaptive process. In this analysis I show that privatisation is the result of several interconnected attempts to adapt health care systems to a changing context. By taking a long historical view of the changes in health care systems, it becomes evident that the changes towards privatisation do not occur overnight or as a result of a ‘punctuated equilibrium’. Rather, the increasing privatisation in health care is the accumulated effect of several small step policy changes, which, over time, result in rising levels of privatisation. Some scholars have suggested that neo-liberal policies, such as privatisation of service provision, will ultimately lead to the end of the welfare state. In this study, I come to a different conclusion. Rather than undermine the welfare state, privatisation in health care may help the welfare state survive. Privatisation can be seen as a way of adapting welfare state services to a changing political context.