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How do welfare states change? Institutions and their impact on the politics of welfare state reform in Western Europe

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  • Bonoli, Giuliano
  • Palier, Bruno

Abstract

In the 1980s and 1990s West European welfare states were exposed to strong pressures to ‘renovate’, to retrench. However, the European social policy landscape today looks as varied as it did at any time during the 20th century. ‘New institutionalism’ seems particularly helpful to account for the divergent outcomes observed, and it explains the resistance of different structures to change through past commitments, the political weight of welfare constituencies and the inertia of institutional arrangements – in short, through ‘path dependency’. Welfare state institutions play a special role in framing the politics of social reform and can explain trajectories and forms of policy change. The institutional shape of the existing social policy landscape poses a significant constraint on the degree and the direction of change. This approach is applied to welfare state developments in the UK and France, comparing reforms of unemployment compensation, old-age pensions and health care. Both countries have developed welfare states, although with extremely different institutional features. Two institutional effects in particular emerge: schemes that mainly redistribute horizontally and protect the middle classes well are likely to be more resistant against cuts. Their support base is larger and more influential compared with schemes that are targeted on the poor or are so parsimonious as to be insignificant for most of the electorate. The contrast between the overall resistance of French social insurance against cuts and the withering away of its British counterpart is telling. In addition, the involvement of the social partners, and particularly of the labour movement in managing the schemes, seems to provide an obstacle for government sponsored retrenchment exercises.

Suggested Citation

  • Bonoli, Giuliano & Palier, Bruno, 2000. "How do welfare states change? Institutions and their impact on the politics of welfare state reform in Western Europe," European Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(3), pages 333-352, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:cup:eurrev:v:8:y:2000:i:03:p:333-352_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Michaël Zemmour, 2012. "Tax competition and the move from insurance to assistance," Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne 12090r, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne, revised Mar 2013.
    2. Frisina Doetter, Lorraine & Götze, Ralf, 2011. "The changing role of the state in the Italian healthcare system," TranState Working Papers 150, University of Bremen, Collaborative Research Center 597: Transformations of the State.
    3. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/5403 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Sidita KUSHI & Ian P. McMANUS, 2018. "Gendered costs of austerity: The effects of welfare regime and government policies on employment across the OECD, 2000–13," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 157(4), pages 557-587, December.
    5. Stiller, Sabina, 2007. "Surveying the welfare state: challenges, policy development and causes of resilience," Working papers of the ZeS 01/2007, University of Bremen, Centre for Social Policy Research (ZeS).
    6. Schludi, Martin, 2001. "The politics of pensions in European social insurance countries," MPIfG Discussion Paper 01/11, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies.
    7. Olivier Jacques & Alain Noel, 2022. "Austerity Reduces Public Health Investment," CIRANO Working Papers 2022s-02, CIRANO.
    8. Jacques, Olivier & Noël, Alain, 2022. "The politics of public health investments," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 309(C).
    9. Van Vliet, Olaf & Kaeding, Michael, 2007. "Globalisation, European Integration and Social Protection – Patterns of Change or Continuity?," MPRA Paper 20808, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/5403 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Ágota Scharle & Balázs Váradi & Flóra Samu, 2015. "Policy Convergence Across Welfare Regimes: The Case of Disability Policies. WWWforEurope Working Paper No. 76," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 50914.

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