Sectors at Different Speeds : Analyzing Transposition Deficits in the European Union

This paper reports on a quantitative study of 1117 cases of transposition of directives in 5 member states and 8 policy sectors between 1978 and 2002. We find significant cross-sectoral performance differences, which complicate generalization from studies of only one sector. These differences can be partly explained by systematic cross-sectoral differences in transposition deadlines given, the share of Council versus Commission directives, and the legal implementation measures used