The Statecraft of Consensus Democracies in a Turbulent World: A Comparative Study of Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland

Taking a multi-dimensional and multi-spatial approach, this book examines the consensus democracies of Austria, Belgium, Netherlands and Switzerland over the past 40 years. Magone examines how these democracies have been transformed by Europeanization thrusts and global turbulence yet are able to maintain political stability. It provides historical context including the different phases of transformation: the golden period (1945-1979); disorganised capitalism(1979-1993); and re-equilibration(1993-). It continues to address government, parliament, the judiciary, subnational government, the rise of populism and political parties, and foreign policy and concludes with a chapter on the European Union which has become a consensus democratic political system par excellence. Based on original research, this book will be of strong interest to students and scholars of comparative politics, West European politics, the politics of small states in Europe, European government, and those with a particular interest in the politics of Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.