Regulation in Practice The de facto Independence of Regulatory Agencies [Paperback]

This book develops and applies an inventive theoretical approach to the comparative study of the neglected aspect of the real (or de facto ) independence of regulatory agencies.This book develops and applies an inventive theoretical approach to the comparative study of the neglected aspect of the real (or de facto ) independence of regulatory agencies. The book begins with an examination of the organisational and institutional factors shaping the de facto independence of regulatory agencies in Western Europe. There follows an analysis of the role of independent regulatory agencies in the policy-making process, using de facto independence as an explanatory variable. The final section is devoted to the relationship between regulatory agencies and the news media. In the conclusive discussion, the author also tackles a set of normative questions, which relates to the virtues and perils of independence.Martino Maggetti (PhD, University of Lausanne) is a lecturer at the Department of Political Science (University of Zurich) and senior researcher at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques et Internationales (University of Lausanne). He is part of the Internationalization, Mediatization, and the Accountability of Regulatory Agencies project, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, and teaches Comparative Regulatory Governance and Public Policy Methodology. His research interests focus on comparative politics, policy analysis and regulatory governance. His research articles have appeared in various edited books and international journals, including?Business & Society,?European Political Science Review,?Journal of European Public Policy, and?Regulation & Governance.