Public Services and European Integration

Abstract

We first describe briefly the process by which the State withdraws in Europe, under pressure from both the process of European integration (the creation of the single market) and, of course, the process of globalization-liberalization, which began some two decades ago. in this part, we deals with issues of intervention in general terms, canvassing some economic arguments for reducing the State suggesting that the real reason may be ideological and sometimes forced by globalization. We also investigate the future of public services in Europe, in terms of their missions. Are public service missions seriously, and necessarily, impaired by European economic integration? What is the present situation? What is the position of the Commission - in word and in deed? This part looks at the EU regime on competition, trying to answer various questions like how it has been interpreted and how it affects the privatization issue. We show last, with examples drawn from the experience of different countries of universal services in the banking sector, that it is rather difficult to maintain a proactive approach to public services within this competition framework. Here, we discuss the State provision of banking as a case study of the tension between public provision and competition.