VERDUN, Amy

The role of the Delors Committee in the creation of EMU : an epistemic community? - London : Routledge, June 1999

The agreement on economic and monetary union (EMU) in the European Union (EU) is a significant move in the integration process. In explanations as to why EMU was accepted and incorporated in the Maastricht Treaty, little attention has been given to the role of monetary experts in this process. This article examines their role in the creation of EMU by focusing on the Delors Committee that wrote the blueprint for EMU which was inserted in the Maastricht Treaty with few amendments. The article discusses whether it was necessary for the EMU momentum that these monetary experts held similar ideas about how European monetary integration had to proceed. Furthermore, it investigates whether the Delors Committee fits the definition of an 'epistemic community' (Haas 1992) and concludes that this is indeed the case. The article closes by suggesting that this conceptual tool could enlarge our understanding of the role of expert committees in the process of European public policy-making.