Ireland and the European Union / Brigid Laffan and Jane O'Mahony.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Recent times have witnessed a dramatic turn around in Ireland's fortunes. From being a poor and peripheral state, it has emerged as a prosperous, dynamic and self-assured player among the nations of Europe. For many, the Irish experience provides a model of the potential rewards of European integration. But, just how far are changes in Irish society the result of EU membership? What difference has the EU made to Ireland and, for that matter, Ireland to the EU?

This major new study of Irish-European relations provides a rich account of Ireland's membership of the EU and the impact of the EU on the institutions, policy and economy of Ireland It will be read with benefit by all who want to further understand what Europe means for Ireland and those wanting to learn from Ireland's experience in a comparative context.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• List of Boxes, Figures and Tables (p. x)
• Acknowledgements (p. xii)
• Preface (p. xiii)
• List of Abbreviations (p. xv)
• Glossary of Irish Terms (p. xviii)
• Introduction (p. 1)
• 1 Becoming a Member State (p. 6)
• Introduction (p. 6)
• Establishing and consolidating independence (p. 8)
• Choosing Europe (p. 12)
• Applying for membership (p. 19)
• Preparing for membership (p. 22)
• Negotiating membership (p. 23)
• Legitimizing membership (p. 26)
• Conclusions (p. 28)
• 2 Ireland's EU Experience (p. 30)
• 1973-86: learning to live within the European system (p. 35)
• 1987-97: the emergence of the Celtic Tiger (p. 42)
• 1998 and beyond: a new Ireland living in the new EU (p. 48)
• A different relationship (p. 54)
• 3 Managing Europe (p. 56)
• Executive adaptation to EU membership - framing the analysis (p. 57)
• Managing EU issues in Ireland: origins and development (p. 60)
• Dissecting the system (p. 62)
• The Holy Trinity: Departments of Foreign Affairs, the Taoiseach and Finance (p. 64)
• The inner core and outer circle (p. 67)
• Horizontal structures (p. 68)
• The permanent representation (p. 71)
• Processes (p. 72)
• Information pathways (p. 73)
• Executive-parliamentary relations (p. 76)
• The balance sheet (p. 79)
• 4 Parties and Parliament (p. 81)
• Irish political parties and the EU (p. 83)
• European Parliament elections in Ireland: second-order? (p. 93)
• Voting on Europe (p. 104)
• 5 Referendums and Public Opinion (p. 105)
• EU referendums in Ireland (p. 107)
• Irish attitudes to European integration (p. 122)
• The National Forum on Europe (p. 130)
• 6 Multi-level Governance and Territorial Politics (p. 132)
• Multi-level governance (p. 132)
• Territorial organization in Ireland (p. 134)
• Brussels money (p. 138)
• Agenda 2000 (p. 144)
• European regulation (p. 147)
• Over there in Brussels (p. 147)
• Conclusions (p. 148)
• 7 The EU and Irish Public Policy (p. 151)
• Ireland and European economic governance (p. 154)
• Irish agriculture and the CAP (p. 160)
• Protecting Ireland's environment? (p. 164)
• Out on a limb? Ireland and EU Justice and Home Affairs policy (p. 170)
• 8 Irish Foreign Policy in the EU (p. 175)
• From isolation to interdependence? (p. 178)
• New horizons - Ireland and European political cooperation (p. 180)
• After 1989 - Ireland's new security choices (p. 184)
• Towards a common European defence? Ireland's ongoing security dilemma (p. 189)
• Irish foreign policy into the future (p. 195)
• 9 British-Irish Relations: The European Dimension (p. 197)
• Introduction (p. 197)
• Membership of the European Union (p. 198)
• Managing the conflict (p. 201)
• EU involvement in Northern Ireland (p. 202)
• The Good Friday Agreement (p. 213)
• Conclusions (p. 216)
• 10 Ireland as a Model? (p. 219)
• Model I: what not to do (p. 222)
• Model II: economic catch-up (p. 224)
• Model III: conflict resolution and development cooperation (p. 236)
• Challenges (p. 237)
• Conclusions (p. 241)
• 11 Ireland: A Small State in a Large Union (p. 243)
• Ireland: a small state in the Union (p. 244)
• Just how Europeanized? (p. 253)
• What this 'Union' has meant to Ireland (p. 256)
• What the Irish experience tells us about the EU (p. 263)
• Further Reading (p. 265)
• Bibliography (p. 267)
• Index (p. 290)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

BRIGID LAFFAN is Principal of the College of Human Sciences and Jean Monnet Professor in European Politics at University College Dublin, Republic of Ireland.

JANE O'MAHONY is Lecturer in European Politics at the University of Kent, UK.
BRIGID LAFFAN is Principal of the College of Human Sciences and Jean Monnet Professor in European Politics at University College Dublin, Republic of Ireland.

JANE O'MAHONY is Lecturer in European Politics at the University of Kent, UK.