The pursuit of social solidarity and social justice has typically occurred within the boundaries of nation states. Yet in 2000, EU Member States committed themselves to make a decisive impact on the eradication of poverty and agreed to coordinate their activities within the framework of a novel governance process: the Open Method of Coordination (OMC). This book analyzes the emerging governance of social inclusion in the EU and the use of the OMC as a mechanism of Europeanization of domestic social policy. Armstrong's exploration of EU interventions to combat poverty and social exclusion addresses the changing constitutional, policy and governance context in which these interventions have occurred. It traces the impact of debates surrounding the Lisbon Treaty and the Lisbon Strategy in framing the possibilities and limits of EU action. Drawing on primary documentary material, on interviews with key actors and on a wide range of academic literature, this study offers a socio-legal account of the successes and failures of a decade of EU policy coordination. Utilizing the conceptual and theoretical tools associated with institutionalist analysis and experimental governance to develop the discussion of Europeanization, the book will be of value not only to scholars working on EU policymaking but also to those interested in changing patterns of public authority in the social sphere more generally.

The result of the UK referendum in June 2016 on membership of the European Union had immediate repercussions across the UK, the EU and internationally. As the dust begins to settle, attention is now naturally drawn to understanding why this momentous decision came about and how and when the UK will leave the EU. What are the options for the new legal settlements between the UK and the EU? What will happen to our current political landscape within the UK in the time up to and including its exit from the EU? What about legal and political life after Brexit? Within a series of short essays, Brexit Time explores and contextualises each stage of Brexit in turn: pre-referendum; the result; the process of withdrawal; rethinking EU relations; and post-Brexit. During a time of intense speculation and commentary, this book offers an indispensable guide to the key issues surrounding a historic event and its uncertain aftermath.

The result of the UK referendum in June 2016 on membership of the European Union had immediate repercussions across the UK, the EU and internationally. As the dust begins to settle, attention is now naturally drawn to understanding why this momentous decision came about and how and when the UK will leave the EU. What are the options for the new legal settlements between the UK and the EU? What will happen to our current political landscape within the UK in the time up to and including its exit from the EU? What about legal and political life after Brexit? Within a series of short essays, Brexit Time explores and contextualises each stage of Brexit in turn: pre-referendum; the result; the process of withdrawal; rethinking EU relations; and post-Brexit. During a time of intense speculation and commentary, this book offers an indispensable guide to the key issues surrounding a historic event and its uncertain aftermath.