Growth versus security : old and new EU members' quest for a new economic and social model

This book brings together a wide range of policy experts from both old and new European Union member states, as well as from the US, and presents their insights, observations and research on the future of economic and social models in Europe. This book is an essential companion for all interested in this key issue. EU members strive for an economic and social policy model which incorporates a set of common values while maintaining economic competitiveness. This book explores how new members look to the US model, and how older members use other's experiences to reshape their own economies. European Union member states have always sought to share a common vision of an economic and social model that would be a blueprint for all states to follow, and one that would make Europe both prosperous and different from other parts of the world. For many European countries this blueprint has tradtionally been the European Social Model. This is a system based on a high level of social protection, social dialogue and public services to cover activities vital for social cohesion. Economic and political developments since the 1990s have made the blueprint less clear and attractive. The crisis in the Western European welfare state and the economic reforms stemming from this crisis have led to changes in the economic and social models of the EU member states, giving rise to a debate on the viabilty of the European Social Model. This issue has become increasingly complex and dynamic following successive eastern enlargements of the Union. This book examines whether the recent economic, social and political developments in the European Union and its member states require the Union to revise its belief that Europe can effectively compete with the United States and the emerging economies. This volume brings together a wide range of policy experts from both old and new European Union member states, as well as from the United States, and presents their insights, observations and research on this key issue. This book is an essential companion for all interested in the debate surrounding the future of economic and social models in Europe Front Matter....Pages i-xv Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Lessons from Sweden’s Welfare State: An American-Swedish Perspective....Pages 3-32 Flexicurity in Denmark: A Model for Labour Market Reforms in the EU?....Pages 33-53 Slovakia: A Story of Reforms....Pages 54-88 The Czech Socio-Economic Model and Its Evolution from the Start of Transition to 2007....Pages 89-115 Institutional Transplants in the Transformation of Poland’s Economy and Polity....Pages 116-135 The European Union and the New Member States’ Dilemmas: The Case of Poland....Pages 136-156 Front Matter....Pages 157-157 New Challenges for the European Model and How to Cope with It....Pages 159-177 Beyond Models and Regulations: Eastward Expansion versus Retrenchment in the ‘New’ EU?....Pages 178-199 Economic Freedom, Confidence and Growth....Pages 200-207 Front Matter....Pages 209-209 Public Finances and Structural Reforms in the US and the EU: Lessons for the New Member States....Pages 211-238 Competition and Solidarity in Higher Education — A Reform Proposal Aiming at Improving Quality and Enhancing Security: The Case of Hungary....Pages 239-251 Growth versus Security: Choice and the Generational Difference in Preferences....Pages 252-259 In Search of a Perfect Regulatory System....Pages 260-278 Conclusions....Pages 279-280 Back Matter....Pages 281-282