Cover; Title; Copyright; Dedication; Contents; List of illustrations; Preface from the series editors; Acknowledgements; 1 Introduction; 2 Theorising coalition agreements; 3 Methodological choices; 4 Case study one: Germany; 5 Case study two: Belgium; 6 case study three: the Netherlands; 7 Case study four: Italy; 8 Coalition agreements and cabinet decision-making in four countries; 9 Explaining variation across cases: preliminary findings; 10 Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index
Summary
Which kind of decisions are passed by Cabinet in coalition governments? What motivates ministerial action? How much leeway do coalition parties give their governmental representatives? This book focuses on a comparative study of ministerial behaviour in Germany, Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands. It discredits the assumption that ministers are 'policy dictators' in their spheres of competence, and demonstrates that ministers are consistently and extensively constrained when deciding on policies. The first book in a new series at the forefront of research on social and political elit
