Am Gängelband der Verbände : zum Einfluss von Partikularinteressen auf die deutsche EU-Politik

Abstract

This article sheds light on the influence of interest groups in national negotiations on legislative activities by the European Commission. A comparison of four EU member states shows that there are strong asymmetries of influence between different types of interest groups in Germany. In contrast to corporatist or pluralist expectations, one detects no balance of power between contending interest groups. The analysis confirms for the German case the Olsonian hypothesis that specialized or privileged interest groups extend a stronger influence on the bargaining position of the leading ministry than general or societal interests. More specifically, specialized producer and consumer interests prevail over general consumer interests which play almost no role at all.