THE INFLUENCE OF EU MEMBERSHIP ON METHODS AND PROCESSES OF BUDGETING IN BRITAIN AND FRANCE, 1970-1995

This article explores the impact European Union (EU) integration has h ad on methods and processes of budgeting in France and Britain from 19 70 to 1995. It assesses whether convergence of budgetary institutions occurs and, if so, whether it is promoted by an obligation of complian ce or by an hybridization effect. Compliance refers to changes in nati onal budgetary institutions made compulsory by membership in the EU. H ybridization emphasizes that national and EU budgetary processes are i ncreasingly interwoven and indivisible. Public budgeting is no longer purely national because part of the decision-making on national expend iture is made at the EU level and because the national budget is close ly linked to the EU budget in financial and policy terms. Based on an institutional analysis, combined with elite interviewing, the article suggests that hybridization is a significant factor contributing to a convergence of budgetary practices in Britain and France. Underlying t he argument is the fact that an increasingly important function of dep artmental actors involves negotiating with their EU counterparts at th e EU level, in addition to the conventional budgetary game at the dome stic level. Regarding compliance, there is an influence as testified b y significant formal institutional convergence. However, compliance se ems a less effective factor in influencing convergence that hybridizat ion because it conveys a ''negative'' approach to convergence, based o n enforcement and sanctions. The article suggests that the convergence of administrative systems is promoted by the growing similarity of ad ministrative practices more than by the harmonization of rules.