Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/144272 
Authors: 
Year of Publication: 
2004
Series/Report no.: 
NBB Working Paper No. 58
Publisher: 
National Bank of Belgium, Brussels
Abstract: 
This paper discusses macroeconomic and monetary policy-making at the European Commission, covering the period from the Rome Treaties to the Hague Summit. It is based on an analysis of public documents, archival research and interviews with former policy-makers. The paper starts with an overview of the economic philosophy of the Rome Treaties and senior macroeconomic policy-makers at the Commission, followed by an analysis of economic developments in the 1960s. Thereafter, the focus is on three crucial macroeconomic policy documents of the period: the European Reserve Fund project in 1958, the Commission's Action Programme for the Second Stage of the EEC of October 1962 and the Barre Memorandum of October 1969. The Commission's objectives tended to be both defensive, preserving the "acquis communautaire", especially avoiding recourse to the safeguard clauses, and pro-active, stimulating the process of European integration. From an analytical point of view, the Commission focussed on the compatibility of policies between the Member States. Gradually, a typical Commission analysis developed, based on a blending of German convergence ideas with the French medium-term approach. The paper further illustrates the ascent of the Commission as an actor in the monetary area, notwithstanding the relatively limited provisions of the EEC Treaty.
Subjects: 
macroeconomic and monetary policy-making
European Commission
Rome Treaty
European Reserve Fund
Action Programme for the Second Stage
Barre Memorandum
the Hague Summit
JEL: 
A11
B20
E60
F02
N14
P16
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size
371.8 kB





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.