Private Sector Involvement in the Euro the Power of Ideas
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Private Sector Involvement in the Euro The power of ideas Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) First published 2003 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2003. © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Collignon, Stefan, 1951– Private sector involvement in the euro: the power of ideas / Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Economic and Monetary Union. 2. Euro. 3. Monetary unions– European Union countries. 4. Monetary policy–European Union countries. 5. Non-governmental organizations. I. Schwarzer, Daniela. II. Title. HG925 .C6563 2002 332.4Ј94–dc21 2002068225 ISBN 0-203-22217-2 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-27660-4 (Adobe eReader Format) ISBN 0-415-30175-0 (Print Edition) © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) Private Sector Involvement in the Euro Private Sector Involvement in the Euro traces the activities of two non-governmental organizations: the Association for the Monetary Union of Europe (AMUE) and its parent organization, the Committee for the Monetary Union of Europe. These groups have helped to pave the way to the euro both by working on its realization and for its general acceptance. This book investigates the role the private sector played in the creation of the euro and discusses key issues such as whether there was an alternative to the single currency and if Europe’s citizens had a voice in the construction of the EMU. This fresh look at how the EMU came about challenges a number of well- established integration theories. It shows that European integration is not only the work of governments and supranational institutions but the result of more subtle processes involving the emerging European civil society. The model on the power of ideas suggested in this book is applied to the work and impact of the two NGOs but has explanatory power for the process of European integration which goes well beyond the limits of this empirical study. This book will interest students, researchers, and policy makers with an inter- est in Europe and its monetary union. Stefan Collignon is Professor of European Political Economy at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He was previously Director of Research and Communication at the Association for the Monetary Union of Europe. Daniela Schwarzer is a Journalist at the Financial Times Deutschland and a part-time lecturer at the Freie Universität Berlin. © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) Routledge advances in European politics 1 Russian Messianism Third Rome, revolution, communism and after Peter J.S. Duncan 2 European Integration and the Postmodern Condition Governance, democracy, identity Peter van Ham 3 Nationalism in Italian Politics The stories of the Northern League, 1980–2000 Damian Tambini 4 Uncertain Europe Building a new European security order Edited by Graham Timmins and Martin Smith 5 Widening the European Union The politics of institutional change and reform Edited by Bernard Steunenberg 6 Institutional Challenges in the European Union Edited by Madeleine Hosli, Adrian van Deemen and Mika Widgrén 7 Europe Unbound Enlarging and reshaping the boundaries of the European Union Edited by Jan Zielonka 8 Ethnic Cleansing in the Balkans Nationalism and the destruction of tradition Cathie Carmichael 9 Democracy and Enlargement in Post-Communist Europe The democratisation of the general public in fifteen Central and Eastern European countries, 1991–1998 Christian W. Haerpfer 10 Private Sector Involvement in the Euro The power of ideas Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) Money has not been generated by law. In its origin it is a social, and not a state-institution. Sanction by the authority of the state is a notion alien to it. On the other hand, however, by state recognition and state regulation, this social institution of money has been perfected and adjusted to the manifold and varying needs of an evolving commerce, just as customary rights have been perfected and adjusted by statute law. Karl Menger1 La force des idées simples exprimées tout uniment et répétées de la même façon invariable. Cela désarme au moins la méfiance, qui est la source principale des malentendus. Jean Monnet2 1 Karl Menger, On the origin of money. Economic Journal 2, June 1892. 2 Jean Monnet. Mémoires. Paris: Fayard, 1976. © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) Contents Illustrations Acknowledgements Abbreviations 1 Introduction: public consensus and EMU Grasping actors beyond the state Lobbies and civil society in the EU Private-sector agency An epistemic community for EMU Research on EMU: state of the art Liberal intergovernmentalism Neo-functionalism Models of preference formation Constructivism Consensus and the construction of social reality Explaining the integration process:epistemological foundations Desires and preferences Institutions as social facts Explaining the integration process: preference formation and consensus How epistemic communities create consensus The plan of the book 2Foundations The origins of the Giscard–Schmidt Committee (CMUE) A window of opportunity Learning from Jean Monnet A joint Grand Strategy An equilibrium model for European integration © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) The balance of power strategy Institutions for monetary stability The Committee’s ideas and activities Promoting the Ecu Historic flashback:France, Germany, and the demise of Bretton Woods The weaknesses ofbloc floating The Association for the Monetary Union of Europe (AMUE) The need for dialogue with the private sector Gathering support Structures and objectives 3 A common or a single currency? Hopes and doubts about the Ecu Business and the Ecu Educating the private sector First scepticism towards the Ecu The need for a political approach Delors’ ambivalence New stability in the EMS Economic reasons for monetary integration Balladur’s and Genscher’s memorandum The Delors Report An independent European Central Bank Rejecting a parallel currency The private sector and the Delors Report One market, one money A strategy for the Ecu Early business views on EMU Obstacles to using the Ecu A British counter-proposal The study The AMUE’s message A question of credibility The Strateg y’s reception Geostrategic accelerations Interrogations Giscard’s doubts The UK’s hard Ecu proposal Political sensitivities © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) 4The crises and the Phoenix The Maastricht Treaty Pre-structuring the negotiations Setting a date in the Treaty Who will ratify? The Danish referendum The French referendum Linking with the CNPF Ratification in Italy Pushing practical preparations The external consequences of the single currency Central and Eastern Europe The European Monetary System in crisis A short history of the EMS The Danish credibility shock The German unification shock The dollar shock The demise of the hard EMS EMU’s loss of credibility Reinforced political commitment The problem with the United Kingdom Ups and downs for the AMUE Reporting to the European Parliament Preparing the changeover Two reports frame the issue An expert group on the transition scenario The Commission’s strategic re-launch The Green Book’s scenarios Pinning down the transition scenario in Madrid Launching communication on the single currency The Phoenix flies – into a new storm 5 Campaigning for EMU The populist temptation European populism Structural transformations and populist ideology The single market and new populism Economic and political criticism of EMU The AMUE’s communication strategy German dissensus over EMU The nature of scepticism in the German public © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) The Social Democrats’ problem with monetary union Training members of the European Parliament Social-democratic arguments for the euro The Kohl government and the CDU Convergence and dissent in Europe Eccezionalismo Italiano Italian adjustment The leap The Stability and Growth Pact Three per cent is 3.0 French–German dissent Mediating across the borders The Sustainability report Broad public campaigns Helping companies change over to the euro The need for further integration Epilogue Annexe 1 Introduction Annexe 2The crises and the Phoenix Annexe 3 Campaigning for EMU Annexe 4 List of interviewees Annexe 5 List of expert groups Annexe 6 List of former AMUE board members Notes Bibliography © 2003 Stefan Collignon and Daniela Schwarzer (www.StefanCollignon.de) Illustrations Figures 2.1 Membership in the AMUE 4.1 Short-term interest rate differentials to Germany 4.2 ERM exchange