ABSTRACT
The impact of the European Union on industrial policy and policy making in France, Germany, the UK and Italy has been the focus of this book. Using the conceptual tool of the autonomy of the state, it has aimed to ascertain precisely to what degree the major West European states find their policy preferences constrained by the European Union. This conclusion will attempt to draw out from the preceding chapters an overall account of this impact. After outlining the various actions of the Community in the industrial sphere and illustrating the way in which this has made an impact on national policy, the factors that account for the very differentiated and often rather limited impact that EU action has had will be identified. It will then be suggested that other pressures on national models of industrial management have sometimes been more responsible for the developments that have taken place than Community initiatives. In conclusion, these findings will be drawn together and their implications for the study of the impact of EU action examined.
