5 グローバル化と福祉国家 : EU諸国のケース(テーマ別分科会8=福祉国家と福祉社会,II テーマ別分科会=報告論文と座長報告)

抄録

This article analyzes the influences of globalization on welfare states in the EU which have completed the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. There are four main questions concerning this theme: First, does globalization reduce the autonomy of macro-economic policies in these countries? Second, if so, will the reduction of autonomy of macro-economic policies induce "a race to the bottom"? Third, consequently, will "the race to the bottom" bring "convergence towards the Anglo-Saxon model"? Finally, will "the convergence towards the Anglo-Saxon model" result in "the end of the nation state"? Using the latest socio-economic data, the four hypotheses mentioned above are examined in this article. As a result, the author concludes that all the EU member countries have lost their autonomy over macro-economic policies since the start of the EMU, and the EMU has caused "the race to the bottom". However, there is no evidence which shows "the convergence towards the Anglo-Saxon model" and "the end of the nation state".