Kent Academic Repository Full text document (pdf) Citation for published version Silipigni, Andrea Antonino (2018) Neoliberal Restructuring in the Eurozone Crisis: 'New Constitutionalism' and Italy's Post-Crisis Legal Transformations, 2014-2016. Master of Law by Research (LLMRes) thesis, University of Kent,. DOI Link to record in KAR https://kar.kent.ac.uk/72085/ Document Version Publisher pdf Copyright & reuse Content in the Kent Academic Repository is made available for research purposes. Unless otherwise stated all content is protected by copyright and in the absence of an open licence (eg Creative Commons), permissions for further reuse of content should be sought from the publisher, author or other copyright holder. Versions of research The version in the Kent Academic Repository may differ from the final published version. Users are advised to check http://kar.kent.ac.uk for the status of the paper. Users should always cite the published version of record. Enquiries For any further enquiries regarding the licence status of this document, please contact: [email protected] If you believe this document infringes copyright then please contact the KAR admin team with the take-down information provided at http://kar.kent.ac.uk/contact.html Andrea Antonino Silipigni Kent Law School, University of Kent Neoliberal Restructuring in the Eurozone Crisis: ‘New Constitutionalism’ and Italy’s Post-Crisis Legal Transformations, 2014-2016 LLM-R Thesis April 2018 1 Abstract If we examine things from a different point of view, we could be able to see something that otherwise it would not be possible. This is the purpose of this thesis. It seeks to ‘see’ the reform process put in place – in the aftermath of the 2007 financial and economic crisis – within the European Union and in Italy from a different point of view. Specifically, applying Stephen Gill’s ‘new constitutionalism of disciplinary neoliberalism’ theoretical framework, the reform of the labour market, as well as the institutional reform – proposed and partially implemented by Renzi Cabinet, between 2014-2016 – in Italy do not seem to be a mere ‘domestic’ or ‘internal’ issue. By contrast, this thesis argues that such regulations envisage a neoliberal restructuring of the Italian politico-legal system, which would confirm Gill’s claim that new constitutionalist measures aim to shift nation states from social democratic towards neoliberal orders. 2 Table of Contents TABLE OF ABBREVIATIONS ....................................................................................................... 5 TABLE OF STATUTES .................................................................................................................... 6 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 7 1. BETWEEN NEOLIBERALISM, NEW CONSTITUTIONALISM, AND THE EUROPEAN UNION .............................................................................................................................................. 19 1.1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 19 1.2. NEOLIBERALISM: FROM ITS ORIGINS TO THE 2007 CRISIS OF THE NEOLIBERAL FORM OF CAPITALISM .................................................................................................................................... 20 1.3. THE LEGAL DIMENSION OF NEOLIBERALISM ............................................................................ 27 1.3.1. New Constitutionalism of Disciplinary Neoliberalism .................................................... 29 1.4. NEW CONSTITUTIONALISM AND THE EUROPEAN UNION: NEOLIBERAL GOVERNANCE FROM THE 1992 MAASTRICHT AGREEMENTS TO THE 2007 CRISIS OF THE NEOLIBERAL FORM OF CAPITALISM ........................................................................................................................................................ 35 1.5. THE CONSEQUENCES OF POST-2007 NEW CONSTITUTIONALISM IN THE EUROPEAN UNION ..... 40 1.6. NEW CONSTITUTIONALISM'S CHALLENGE. THE RELEVANCE OF EUROSCEPTIC PARTIES DURING THE 2007 EUROZONE FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS ............................................................... 45 1. 7. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................... 48 2. NEW CONSTITUTIONALISM AND THE ITALIAN LABOUR MARKET REFORM. A NEOLIBERAL LABOUR MARKET RESTRUCTURING ........................................................ 50 2. 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 50 2. 2. ITALY IN THE MIDST OF THE 2007 EUROZONE FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS ................. 51 2.3. THE LAW THAT BROUGHT THE CONSTITUTION OF THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC INTO THE FACTORIES ........................................................................................................................................................ 54 2. 4. MAKING A FAVOURABLE BUSINESS CLIMATE IN ITALY – PART I. THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE ITALIAN LABOUR MARKET REFORM ........................................................................................ 57 2. 5. THE JOBS ACT. THE COMPLETION OF THE NEOLIBERAL RESTRUCTURING OF THE LABOUR MARKET IN ITALY ........................................................................................................................... 61 2. 6. ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL OUTCOMES IN ITALY AFTER THE LABOUR MARKET REFORM ........... 63 2. 7. POPULAR CONTESTATION AGAINST A NEOLIBERAL RESTRUCTURING OF THE LABOUR MARKET ........................................................................................................................................................ 66 2. 8. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................... 68 3 3. NEW CONSTITUTIONALISM AND THE ITALIAN CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM. A NEOLIBERAL RE-ORGANISING LOGIC ................................................................................ 69 3. 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 69 3. 2. THE 1947 CONSTITUTION OF THE ITALIAN REPUBLIC. A SET OF DEMOCRATIC AND SOCIALIST FOUNDING PRINCIPLES .................................................................................................................... 70 3. 3. MAKING OF A FAVOURABLE BUSINESS CLIMATE IN ITALY – PART II. THE EUROPEAN UNION AND THE ITALIAN INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK ............................................................................. 73 3. 4. THE CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM. A NEOLIBERAL RE-ORGANISING LOGIC OF THE ITALIAN INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK ......................................................................................................... 78 3. 5. POPULAR CONTESTATION AGAINST A NEW CONSTITUTIONALIST REFORM ............................. 83 3. 6. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................... 85 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................................. 86 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................................ 95! 4 Table of Abbreviations AGS Annual Growth Survey AMR Alert Mechanism Report CGIL Confederazione Generale Italiana del Lavoro CSR Country-Specific Report DG ECFIN Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs EC European Commission ECB European Central Bank EMU Economic and Monetary Union ESM European Stability Mechanism EP European Parliament EU European Union GDP Gross Domestic Product IDR In-Depth Review IMF International Monetary Fund ISTAT Istituto Nazionale di Statistica OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development OPEC Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries MIP Macroeconomic Imbalance Procedure MoU Memorandum of Understandings NRP National Reform Programme PD Partito Democratico RMI Review of progress on policy measures relevant for the correction of Macroeconomic Imbalances SGP Stability and Growth Pact TSCG Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union 5 Table of Statutes Council Directive 2011/85/EU of 23 November 2011 on requirements for budgetary frameworks of the Member States OJ L 306 Regulation (EU) no. 1173/2011 of 23 November 2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the effective enforcement of budgetary surveillance in the euro area OJ L 306 Regulation (EU) no. 1174/2011 of 23 November 2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council on enforcement measures to correct excessive macroeconomic imbalances in the euro area OJ L 306 Regulation (EU) no. 1175/2011 of 23 November 2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) no. 1466/97 on the strengthening of the surveillance of budgetary positions and the surveillance and coordination of economic policies OJ L 306 Regulation (EU) no. 1176/2011 of 23 November 2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the prevention and correction of macroeconomic imbalances OJ L 306 Council Regulation (EU) no. 1177/2011 of 23 November 2011 amending Regulation (EC) no. 1467/97 on speeding up and clarifying the implementation of the excessive deficit procedure OJ L 306 Regulation (EU)