Decline or preservation of executive capacity? Political and economic integration revisited

This article takes issue with the rational/intergovernmental approach to the study of European Union and integration by examining the impact of informal (global) integration on state capacity and executive autonomy in Belgium. Although intergovernmental arrangements occasionally serve to enhance policy capacity and executive capabilities, non-governmental dynamics, which surpass the deliberate pace of Member State bargaining, erode national decision-making authority. In Belgium, for example, regional integration sharpened economic disparities between the language communities and gave rise to a new generation of political leaders who took advantage of European institutions to promote decentralization of state functions and to restrict central government executive autonomy.