The London School of Economics and Political Science Actors, Practices and Networks of Corruption: The Case of Romania’s Accession to European Union Funding Roxana Bratu A thesis submitted to the Department of Sociology of the London School of Economics for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, London, September 2012 1 Declaration I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others (in which case the extent of any work carried out jointly by me and any other person is clearly identified in it). The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without my prior written consent. I warrant that this authorisation does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. I declare that my thesis consists of 97,751 words. Statement of use of third party for editorial help I can confirm that my thesis was copy edited for conventions of language, spelling and grammar by Dr. Skye Hughes. 2 Abstract This thesis offers new insights into the challenges and opportunities brought by European Union (EU) integration policies by taking as a case study the process of accessing EU funding in Romania and its impact on the performance and reproduction of contemporary entrepreneurial identities. It is based on 16 months of ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Romania between June 2007 and September 2008. The thesis argues that EU funding - as an economic process shaped by EU anti- corruption practices, policies and assumptions – configures new political and economic subjects through intertwined vocabularies of corruption and crime, a mix of formal and informal entrepreneurial practices and the commodification of finance. This dynamic process concomitantly enables Romania’s top-down integration into the EU through the adoption of transnational regulations, institutions and anxieties and Romania’s bottom-up integration into the EU through the assimilation of the EU funding regulations into the vernacular practices of doing business. 3 Acknowledgments Many people have given their support throughout the years. I would like to thank my supervisor Professor Dick Hobbs. At the LSE: Claire Alexander, Nigel Dodd and Paddy Rawlinson offered helpful comments on my upgrade pack. Frances Heidensohn and Paul Rock offered emotional support and constructive feedback during the Tuesday Criminology Seminar. Cecilia Dinardi, Richard Sennett, Fran Tonkiss and all the other members of the NYLON group had insightful observations to make on my chapters. Valentina Amorese, Marianne Colbranne, Philip Gounev, Tom McClean, Soydan Soylu, Pedja Sovili and Alisa Stevens really made a difference in my PhD journey. At UCL: Alena Ledeneva was the best possible mentor I could have asked for. In Romania: Dan Banciu, Aurora Liiceanu, Doina Saucan have always been warm and sharp-witted discussion partners. Ligia Birdici acted as my best friend when I was my own worst enemy. My parents always behaved according to their job description. They annoyed, cared, pushed and loved me beyond any decent limits. It seems that they have no intention to change and for that, I am most grateful. This PhD thesis is dedicated to my mom. Finally, I am grateful to the funding bodies who considered this research worthwhile pursuing. I was fortunate to be fully funded as a student by the LSE Sociology Department which gave me first a four year scholarship and then two more research studentships. The Ratiu Family Foundation awarded me a grant in my first year and Goodenough College has given me three bursaries over the years. 4 Table of contents Abstract .................................................................................................................................. 3 Acknowledgments.................................................................................................................. 4 Table of contents .................................................................................................................... 5 List of tables ........................................................................................................................... 7 List of figures ......................................................................................................................... 8 Acronyms ............................................................................................................................... 9 Chapter 1:Introduction ......................................................................................................... 10 1.1. Research questions and aims of the study ................................................................. 14 1.2. Outline of the thesis .................................................................................................. 16 Chapter 2: Bottom-up methodological insights into the process of accessing EU funding . 21 2.1. Researching EU funding in Romania........................................................................ 21 2.2. The biography of a business project ......................................................................... 31 2.3. Ethics as a process .................................................................................................... 46 2.4. Reflexive ethnography .............................................................................................. 57 2.5. Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 63 Chapter 3: Theoretical avenues for exploring the process of accessing EU funding ........... 64 3.1. Coordinating economic and social life: markets, hierarchies and networks ............. 64 3.2. Governing through economics: The role of transnational governance in coordinating social and economic life ................................................................................................... 74 3.3. Entrepreneurship as work ......................................................................................... 83 3.4. Work as entrepreneurship ......................................................................................... 88 3.5. From ‘disorganised capitalism’ to ‘unlicensed capitalism’ ...................................... 93 3.6. Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 99 Chapter 4: European Union funding as a top-down integration tool: transnational and national constructions of development and control ........................................................... 101 4.1. European Union cohesion tools .............................................................................. 101 4.2. ‘The same people’: Socialism and post-socialism .................................................. 108 4.3. Political changes ..................................................................................................... 126 4.4. Corruption ............................................................................................................... 128 4.5. Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 139 Chapter 5: The process of accessing EU funding: EU ideal types, Romanian inventors and innovators ........................................................................................................................... 141 5.1. Structural funding for rural development ................................................................ 141 5.2. A dynamic model of EU funding process: Actors and registers of behaviour ........ 152 5.3. Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 166 Chapter 6: Commodification of EU funding: Consultants ................................................. 168 6.1. The profession of consultancy ................................................................................ 169 6.2. What is a consultant: definition and job description ............................................... 175 6.3. Biographies, training, motivations and career in consultancy ................................ 181 6.4. Social aspects of consultancy .................................................................................. 193 6.5. Brokerage and former patron-client relationships .................................................. 209 6.6. Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 212 Chapter 7: Governing EU funding through corruption control: Bureaucrats..................... 213 7.1. Transnational control in the area of EU funding ..................................................... 213 7.2. National and local practices of control ................................................................... 234 7.3. Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 241 Chapter 8: The informal economy of EU funding: Entrepreneurs ..................................... 242 8.1. Entrepreneurship in Romania ................................................................................. 242 8.2. Bani garla : ‘Free money’ .......................................................................................