LAFFAN, Brigid <br/><br/>
The big budgetary bargains :  from negotiation to authority 

 - London :  Routledge,  2000 
<br/><br/> This article explores the evolution of the European Union (EU) as a 'negotiated order' from the perspective of the grand budgetary bargains of 1988, 1992 and 1999. The analysis of budgetary negotiations in the EU since the mid1980s highlights two important linkages, between the budgetary bargains and constitutional change, on the one hand, and between budgetary grand bargains and institutional change, on the other. A fundamental characteristic of EU negotiations is the connection between agreement on policy and agreement on 'rules of the game'. The article sets out to analyse four factors, from an institutionalist perspective, that highlight the evolution of the Union as a 'negotiated order'. These are: the significance of crucial junctures, lock-in, institutionalization and embeddedness in the acquis . All four factors were identified as significant in the evolution of EU budgetary negotiations since 1988.