During the Barroso Commissions (2004–2014) economic goals were deemed of much greater importance than social goals and social policy was largely seen as an obstacle to economic growth, innovation and balanced budgets. As a consequence, in that period, there were few new EU initiatives in the field of social policy while pressure to downscale or... Lire plus

Depuis de nombreuses années, dans la plupart des pays européens, le secteur public est soumis à des pressions pour réduire les dépenses et accroître l'efficacité des services. Les pressions à long terme sur le secteur public, et en particulier les récentes mesures d'austérité consécutives à la crise, ont conduit à des réformes et à des coupes dans... Lire plus

Since the early 2000s, the ‘new social risks’ approach has shifted the focus in welfare analysis from so-called old social risks to the so-called new social risks related to recent changes in the labour market and family structures. This approach captures a number of important changes in contemporary societies. However, it fails to capture fully... Lire plus

In this paper the extent to which the EU is actively disseminating a social model is considered, through the lens of EU enlargement and accession. To what extent or in what ways has enlargement served as a vehicle for the spreading of EU social standards? The paper examines the social effects of the transposition and implementation of the acquis... Lire plus