Territorial autonomy in Spain has reached a crossroads. After over thirty years of development, the consensus regarding its appropriateness has started to crumble. The transformation project embodied by the reform of Statute of Catalonia (2006) has failed to achieve its most significant demands. Although the concept of Spain as a Federation is disputed -more within the country than beyond-, the evolution of the Spanish system needs to follow a markedly federalist path. In this perspective, reference models assume critical importance. This edition gathers the works of a broad group of European, American and Spanish experts who analyse the present-day challenges of their respective systems. The objective, thus, is to contribute ideas which might help to address the evolution of the Spanish system in the light of the experience of more established Federations. This second volume focuses its attention on the difficulties and challenges faced in two particular fields. On the one hand, the field of intergovernmental relations and, on the other, questions related to the integration and acknowledgement of diversity and of Fundamental Rights, with special reference to the cases of Canada and Spain. Finally, there is analysis of other specific aspects of the system of territorial autonomy in Spain.

Federalism is a very familiar form of government. It characterises the first modern constitution-that of the United States-and has been deployed by constitution-makers to manage large and internally diverse polities at various key stages in the history of the modern state. Despite its pervasiveness in practice, this book argues that federalism has been strangely neglected by constitutional theory. It has tended either to be subsumed within one default account of modern constitutionalism, or it has been treated as an exotic outlier - a sui generis model of the state, rather than a form of constitutional ordering for the state. This neglect is both unsatisfactory in conceptual terms and problematic for constitutional practitioners, obscuring as it does the core meaning, purpose and applicability of federalism as a specific model of constitutionalism with which to organise territorially pluralised and demotically complex states. In fact, the federal contract represents a highly distinctive order of rule which in turn requires a particular, 'territorialised' approach to many of the fundamental concepts with which constitutionalists and political actors operate: constituent power, the nature of sovereignty, subjecthood and citizenship, the relationship between institutions and constitutional authority, patterns of constitutional change and, ultimately, the legitimacy link between constitutionalism and democracy. In rethinking the idea and practice of federalism, this book adopts a root and branch recalibration of the federal contract. It does so by analysing federalism through the conceptual categories that characterise the nature of modern constitutionalism: foundations, authority, subjecthood, purpose, design and dynamics. This approach seeks to explain and in so doing revitalise federalism as a discrete, capacious and adaptable concept of rule that can be deployed imaginatively to facilitate the deep territorial variety that characterises so many states in the 21st century.

Federalism and Social Policy focuses on the crucial question: Is a strong and egalitarian welfare state compatible with federalism? In this carefully curated collection, Scott L. Greer, Heather Elliott, and the contributors explore the relationship between decentralization and the welfare state to determine whether or not decentralization has negative consequences for welfare. The contributors examine a variety of federal countries, including Spain, Canada, and the United Kingdom, asking four key questions related to decentralization: (1) Are there regional welfare states (such as Scotland, Minnesota, etc.)? (2) How much variation is there in the structures of federal welfare states? (3) Is federalism bad for welfare? (4) Does austerity recentralize or decentralize welfare states? By focusing on money and policy instead of law and constitutional politics, the volume shows that federalism shapes regional governments and policies even when decentralization exists.

Examining the growing issue of EU Member States' defiance in the face of EU law, this volume outlines the development and history of this crisis, and offers a theoretical and comparative analysis of the difficulties the EU is facing in their attempts to enforce Member State to comply with European integration, suggesting solutions for the future.

Europe has reached a crisis point, with the call for self-determination and more autonomy stronger than it ever has been. In this book, renowned international lawyers give a detailed account of the present state of international law regarding self-determination and autonomy. Autonomy and Self-Determinationoffers readers both an overview of the status quo of legal discussions on the topic and an identification of the most important elements of discussion that could direct future legal developments in this field. This is done through the examination of key issues in abstract and in relation to specific cases such as Catalonia, Italy and Scotland. The book extends past a simple assessment of issues of autonomy and self-determination according to a traditional legal viewpoint, and rather argues that utopian international law ideas are the breeding ground for norms and legal institutions of the future. This insightful book will be an invaluable read for international lawyers and political science scholars. It provides a clear, yet detailed, analysis of the issues Europe is facing regarding autonomy and self-determination in the face of historical context, also making it a useful tool for European history scholars. Contributors include:X. Arzoz, A. Beauséjour, P. Hilpold, H. Hofmeister, E. López-Jacoiste, R. Müllerson, S. Oeter, B. Olmos, B. Roth, M. Suksi, A. Tancredi, D. Turp

How should political power be divided within and among national peoples? Is the nineteenth-century theory of the sovereign and unitary State still fit for purpose in the twenty-first century? If not, can federalism provide a viable alternative model? This collection looks at federalism from the perspective of constitutional law. Taking the United Kingdom as a case study, Part One tracks the historical evolution of the 'Union' and explores the various expressions of federalism that emerged between the eighteenth and twentieth centuries. Part Two then assesses the experience of sovereignty-sharing with other nations in the context of international cooperation. Drawing on the expertise of the foremost commentators in their field, The United Kingdom and the Federal Idea provides a timely and reflective evaluation of how constitutional authority is being re-ordered within and beyond the United Kingdom.

The edited book brings together country experts on populism, ethno-territorial politics, and party competition. It consists of twelve empirical chapters, covering seven Western European states (Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK) as well as four Central European states (Croatia, Hungary, Serbia, and Poland). It is a collaboration by scholars from across Europe which contributes to the growing literature on populism by focusing on a relatively unexplored research agenda: the intersection of territoriality, ethno-politics, and populism. Presenting an original perspective contributing experts use case studies to highlight the territorial dimension of populism in different ways and identify that a deeper understanding of the interactions between populist actors and ethno-territorial ideologies is required. This book will be of interest to academics, researchers, and students of European politics, populism, and ethno-territorial politics.

In North America and Europe, cross-border governance arrangements have provided formal and informal frameworks to support cross-border cooperation. Analysing how these frameworks have emerged, the ways in which they have become institutionalized, and the processes by which they change is fundamental. Moreover, these frameworks are increasingly challenged by border securitization, thus limiting or jeopardizing decades of cross-border cooperative governance and coordinated public policies. Agents and Structures in Cross-Border Governance offers a series of case studies that explore these complex dynamics. To understand a range of cross-border governance frameworks, this collection addresses such topics as infrastructure development and management, resource sharing, regional politics, economics, security, human rights, the environment, culture, and community. The book explains how cross-border governance schemes have sought to mitigate some of the negative consequences of border security policies, allowing readers to discern how concrete national power struggles between federal/national and subnational governments unfold in border areas. In a world increasingly impacted by climate change and more recently the COVID-19 pandemic, Agents and Structures in Cross-Border Governance sheds light on the ongoing complexity of cross-border governance and offers lessons to help mitigate these challenges.

The strength of secessionism in liberal-democracies varies in time and space. Inspired by historical institutionalism, Nationalism, Secessionism, and Autonomy argues that such variation is explained by the extent to which autonomy evolves in time. If autonomy adjusts to the changing identity, interests, and circumstances of an internal national community, nationalism is much less likely to be strongly secessionist than if autonomy is a final, unchangeable settlement. Developing a controlled comparison of, on the one hand, Catalonia and Scotland, where autonomy has been mostly static during key periods of time, and, on the other hand, Flanders and South Tyrol, where it has been dynamic, and also considering the Basque Country, Québec, and Puerto Rico as additional cases, this book puts forward an elegant theory of secessionism in liberal-democracies: dynamic autonomy staves off secessionism while static autonomy stimulates it.