Is Europe witnessing the death of the once mighty nation-state? If it is, then two of the most powerful factors in its post-war decline have been European integration and regionalism. Both challenge the nation state's monopoly of authority - one from above, the other from below. Although it is increasingly recognized that the two are connected. This book provides a definitive examination of the new patterns of politics and policy that link the three levels of European Union, nation state, and region. Looking at each member state in turn the authors emphasize the diversity of the European experience. European integration has differing impacts on different regions. In some it is seen as a threat, centralizing power and increasing their peripherality. To others it is an opportunity to by-pass national governments and assert their personality. The authors are sceptical of the 'Europe of the Regions' scenario, in which nation states fade away in favour of the other two levels. But they do show how the Maastricht commitment to subsidiarity together with the twin forces of European integration and regional assertion are profoundly changing the politics of Europe as it moves into the twenty-first century.

Barry Jones' profile page

Michael Keating's profile page

Barry Jones is at University College, Cardiff. Michael Keating is at University of Western Ontario.

'This collection gives an excellent overview of changing global realities, and the effects that these have on not only increasing supra-nationalism, but also sub-nationalism. The volume is well-organized and illuminating, and it gives valuable insights into the changing nature of the influence of the nation-state.' International Insights

'The book is an excellent introduction to an increasingly important subject, demonstrating most of the virtues of collaborative projects and few of the vices. Its value to a British readership is increased by lessons to be found in several chapters of the developing debate in Britain ... one is left with a very good book and a taste for further research.' Local Government Studies

this book presents a rich and fascinating series of contributions. Keating and Jones have compiled and edited a polished and readable volume that deserves to be on the reading list of every course dealing with European politics and policy. - John Bachtler. Regional and Federal Studies. 1998.

interesting case studies, mostly within member-sate perspectives, outlining some of these developments. The European Union and the Regions is an updated and revised version of an earlier work by Keating and Jones published in 1985 with the title Regions in the European Community. However, the current work is much more than a revamp of the original. - John Loughlin. West European Politics. July 1998.