Internationalisation and Economic Institutions:: Comparing the European Experience

This book examines when, how and why internationalization affects national economic institutions. It confronts questions at the heart of debates in political economy and comparative politics: What does internationalization of markets mean? Who are its carriers in domestic arenas? Through which mechanisms does it affect decisions about national institutional reform? What are institutional outcomes in the face of internationalization?

The book responds to its questions by looking at key economic institutions in five strategic sectors: securities trading, telecommunications, electricity, airlines, and postal services. It compares across four countries that represent different 'varieties of capitalism', namely Britain, France, Germany and Italy, over the period between 1965 and 2005. Thus it combines cross-national, historical and cross-sectoral comparisons.

Mark Thatcher is Reader in Public Administration and Public Policy, Department of Government, London School of Economics and a member of the Centre for the Analysis of Risk and Regulation (CARR), LSE. His research lies in the field of comparative public policy and regulation in Europe. His interests lie in the way that institutions are designed and created, and then the effects of those institutions on the relationships between politics and markets. He has worked on the regulation of telecommunications and other utilities in Britain, France, Germany and Italy, and at the EU level. His is currently studying the regulatory reform in Western Europe and the effects of independent regulatory agencies.