ABSTRACT
As Hans de Belder observed, Scotland was by no means alone in having to come to terms with European integration or globalisation. Other territories, especially those with legislative powers, faced much the same dilemma – how best should they respond? In practice, the outcome varied from country to country. Some territories, such as Quebec, had historically enjoyed a degree of competence over international affairs, in part thanks to their constitutional status. Likewise, in Belgium or Germany, where there was a federal system of government, the regions and the communities eventually managed to secure greater influence over international matters. For other countries the situation was less clear cut. The Spanish autonomous communities enjoyed a degree of autonomy but this appears to have been rather less ‘constitutionally embedded’ compared to their counterparts in Germany and Belgium. As their attempts to secure a measure of influence over foreign affairs has not been without its problems, it could be supposed that potentially the constitutional arrangement in a particular country could matter a great deal. But that was not the whole picture as a successful outcome also rested on collaboration and goodwill between the two tiers of government (i.e. the state and sub-state tiers).
