International integration and the welfare state

doi:10.1017/CBO9780511493508.003

2 - International integration and the welfare state

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 September 2009

Torben M. Andersen

Edited by

Torben M. Andersen and

Per Molander

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Torben M. Andersen: Affiliation:
Professor of Economics University of Aarhus, Denmark; Research Fellow Centre for Economic Policy Research
Torben M. Andersen: Affiliation:
Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
Per Molander: Affiliation:
Studieförbundet Näringsliv och Samhälle

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Summary

Introduction

International integration is a frequently highlighted challenge facing welfare states, not least the extended models developed in Northern European countries. The process of tighter international integration is by some taken to imply that welfare states have to be rolled back, while others point to this as strengthening the need for welfare state activities. These issues are increasingly brought to the forefront in policy debates on the welfare state, but also in many cases shaping views on the pros and cons of international integration.

It is indisputable that international integration is proceeding at a rapid pace and that it changes economic structures, and therefore in turn both the scope and need for welfare state activities. In the increasing amount of literature on these issues it is possible to identify three different lines of reasoning. One view is that the welfare state will have to be rolled back since it will become increasingly difficult to finance welfare state arrangements through general taxation (see e.g. Sinn 1998; Tanzi 2000; Wildasin 2000a). A contesting view is that the welfare state has developed in response to various changes in society including different family structures and gender equalisation, but also risks induced by, among other things, international integration (see e.g. Rodrik 1997, 1998; Kautto et al. 2000). Countries may differ in how far they have proceeded in this development, but they will eventually all encounter these factors, which necessitate an expansion of welfare state activities.

Type: Chapter
Information: Alternatives for Welfare Policy
Coping with Internationalisation and Demographic Change
, pp. 23 - 48

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511493508.003 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2003

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