The ways of decision making within the EU have significantly changed in the last decades: the rule of unanimity has been more and more substituted by majority voting in order to speed up decision-making processes in a Union of 27 heterogeneous member states. A third possibility is now offered by...

The following paper deals on the problems of time inconsistency in connection with the stability and growth pact. The authors conclude that the current practice of application of the stability and growth pact is not appropriate for reducing the problems of time inconsistency. The stability pact...

Der europäische Stabilitäts- und Wachstumspakt zählt zu den zentralen Pfeilern der Europäischen Währungsunion. Die Erfahrungen der letzten Jahre zeigen jedoch, dass seine disziplinierende Wirkung zur Begrenzung übermäßiger Defizite in Zweifel zu ziehen ist. Auf der Basis des von Ronald...

By applying the concepts of institutional and constitutional economics, this paper addresses the question to what extent a reform of the stability pact will be efficient and appropriate. The starting point of the analysis is the assumption that the stability pact will yield disciplining effects...

This paper deals with the question of what impact membership of the European Monetary Union (EMU) has had on small European states. We will also analyze whether or to what extent a large number of small member states affect the EMU itself when they vastly outnumber the large countries. We...

By applying the concepts of institutional and constitutional economics, this paper addresses the question to what extent a reform of the stability pact will be efficient and appropriate. The starting point of the analysis is the assumption that the stability pact will yield disciplining effects...