TY - JOUR
T1 - The paradox of compliance
T2 - Infringements and delays in transposing european union directives
AU - Thomson, Robert
AU - Torenvlied, René
AU - Arregui, Javier
PY - 2007/10/1
Y1 - 2007/10/1
N2 - What impact does the negotiation stage prior to the adoption of international agreements have on the subsequent implementation stage? We address this question by examining the linkages between decision making on European Union directives and any subsequent infringements and delays in national transposition. We formulate a preference-based explanation of failures to comply, which focuses on states' incentives to deviate and the amount of discretion granted to states. This is compared with state-based explanations that focus on country-specific characteristics. Infringements are more likely when states disagree with the content of directives and the directives provide them with little discretion. Granting discretion to member states, however, tends to lead to longer delays in transposition. We find no evidence of country-specific effects.
AB - What impact does the negotiation stage prior to the adoption of international agreements have on the subsequent implementation stage? We address this question by examining the linkages between decision making on European Union directives and any subsequent infringements and delays in national transposition. We formulate a preference-based explanation of failures to comply, which focuses on states' incentives to deviate and the amount of discretion granted to states. This is compared with state-based explanations that focus on country-specific characteristics. Infringements are more likely when states disagree with the content of directives and the directives provide them with little discretion. Granting discretion to member states, however, tends to lead to longer delays in transposition. We find no evidence of country-specific effects.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34548801864&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1017/S0007123407000373
DO - 10.1017/S0007123407000373
M3 - Review Article
AN - SCOPUS:34548801864
SN - 0007-1234
VL - 37
SP - 685
EP - 709
JO - British Journal of Political Science
JF - British Journal of Political Science
IS - 4
ER -