Fiscal redistribution and public support for European integration

Abstract

This article contributes to existing debates on public opinion towards European integration by examining when and why fiscal transfers and public support are systematically related. Drawing on economic and identity-related theories, we develop and test hypotheses about the links between EU fiscal transfers among countries and subnational jurisdictions, and citizens' support for European integration. Using a three-level analysis of residents in 143 regions in 16 EU member states, we find a positive effect of EU transfers among both countries and subnational jurisdictions on support for European integration among those with a European communal identity. We also find that this effect increases the more politically aware individuals are. The article sketches the broader implications of our findings for public opinion research on regional integration beyond the European Union.

EU Cohesion Policy can't buy me love? Exploring the regional determinants of EU image

“…In this case we found that the importance of these two factors was stronger than that of those that have an EU‐wide influence on EU image, however, they played a role for the negative EU image in some regions only, while being insignificant in others. This finding adds to those from previous studies associating positive attitudes towards the EU and its Cohesion Policy with higher education levels (Chalmers & Dellmuth, ; Dijkstra et al, ; Osterloh, ); however, our results indicate that low education matters for negative EU image only in some clusters of European regions. More research is needed on this to elucidate why there is such a regional differentiation of the importance of this factor.…”

“…Answering the research questions, we found that Cohesion Policy—the EU's central investment tool corresponding to one‐third of the EU's budget, managed largely at the regional level and hence “close to the citizens”, and supporting investment that should have a tangible impact on European cities and regions—does matter for EU image at the regional scale. Echoing the findings from previous studies stressing a positive influence of Cohesion Policy on the perceptions of the EU (Chalmers & Dellmuth, ; Osterloh, ), we found that greater amounts of ESIF per capita allocated to regions are inversely related to negative EU image among their citizens. Importantly, the size of the Cohesion Policy funding allocation mattered across our entire sample.…”

“…Duch and Taylor () argued that regional funding did not translate into increased support for European integration, with the poorer regions receiving more funding staying less “euro‐enthusiastic.” That said, other studies pointed to positive effects of Cohesion Policy spending funds on public support for the EU, however, these were mediated by the degree of awareness of the EU funding, which in turn was related to the level of education (Osterloh, ). Whereas others found no direct link between the size of European Regional Development Fund allocation and EU support, and that the effect of this funding was at best conditional upon pre‐existing views on the EU and education levels (Chalmers & Dellmuth, ). Against this background, there is a need for further investigation of the relations between Cohesion Policy and the perceptions of the EU.…”

The Effect that Structural and Investment Funds have on Voter Behaviour in European Parliamentary Elections

“…These micro-level findings should not come a surprise, however, since numerous works have demonstrated that general economic indicators and SIFs have an effect on public opinion towards the EU (see Anderson and Reichert, 1995;Armingeon and Ceka, 2014;Chalmers and Dellmuth, 2015;Dellmuth and Chalmers, 2018). Moreover, EU regional policy can affect parties' support for EU integration (Gross and Debus, 2018).…”

Citizens' perception of the Cohesion Policy and support for the European Union

“…The extant literature suggests that the mass attitude toward the European project is affected by the degree of cognitive mobilization and political awareness of individuals. Specifically, it is argued that support for the EU and/or identification with the European project is greater among people who are more conscious of European issues and who are more interested in politics at the European level (Chalmers & Delmuth, ; Clements, ; Gabel, ; Luhman, ). It has been shown that the perception of the EU also varies between individuals with different political values while, at the same time, it can be influenced by the opinion of leaders and parties' political ‘cues’ (Clements, ; Gabel, ; Marks & Hooghe, ).…”