Institutions and the implementation of EU public policy in Greece: the case of public procurement.

Greece is often perceived as one of the laggards of European integration, often seen as lacking the required policy credibility and institutional capacity for implementing specific EU-derived policy processes. This paper provides a detailed discussion of the way in which the Greek central government utilises the tools of government to steer the implementation of EU public policy, using the 1981-2006 directives on public procurement as its case study. Drawing on the theoretical literature on the implementation of public policy and on new primary research, it seeks to demonstrate that the pattern of implementation is dynamic, i.e. it changes over time. In that sense,it challenges the view of Greece as part of a ‘world of neglect’ in terms of compliance with EU legislation.