Introduction: A Reconfigured State: European Policy States in a Globalizing World

This chapter introduces the main themes of the book, which deals with states in the European Union. It examines how states have been reconfigured by five processes. First, the rise of globalization processes and international organizations mean states are increasingly influenced, constrained, measured, and rated by organizations, ideas, and norms over which they have no direct control. Second, the dilution of the classic Weberian state means that comparisons with the nominally ‘weak’ American state are pertinent to understanding new public–private relationships in policy. Third, the impact of policy crises—fiscal, security, and migration—have resulted in institutional reform and expansion of state policy instruments. Fourth, the changing scale—regional and urban—and rise of regulatory agencies is a major source of reconfiguration in European states. Fifth, the traditional monopoly on violence to protect citizens remains but is overstretched, and states have developed new ways to control and monitor populations