Description
Book SynopsisThis study documents the weaknesses of public oversight and participation in policymaking in Hungary and Poland. It discusses five alternative routes to accountability including European Union oversight, constitutional institutions such as presidents and courts, devolution to lower-level governments, the use of neo-corporatist bodies, and open-ended participation rights.
Trade Review' … a beautifully clear, meticulous work of scholarship …' Political Science Quarterly
'… its descriptive, analytical and prescriptive aims are skilfully achieved. It supplies a trove of detailed factual information and data on the wide range of institutions studied, which will be useful for those without the language skills to access the relevant documentation in the original … of interest to a wide range of readers … provides useful case studies for graduate-level students of public policy in Eastern Europe, and it is a valuable source book for Central European specialists. It also represents an important contribution for policy communities in Central Europe and in those states seeking to devise strategies to support political development in the region.' The Slavonic and East European Review
Table of Contents1. Policymaking accountability and democratic consolidation; 2. Alternative routes to policymaking accountability; 3. The legacy of the past; 4. External accountability and the European Union; 5. Oversight; 6. Decentralized political accountability; 7. Public participation in policymaking: government procedures; 8. Civil society groups: overview; 9. Environmental advocacy organizations in Hungary; 10. Student and youth organizations in Poland; 11. Democratic consolidation and policymaking accountability.
