The political economy of reform and corruption in Europe

This thesis focuses on two related areas of the political economy of reform in Europe. First, I present preliminary evidence for the EMU, for the period preceding the Great Recession, showing that countries that experienced a higher windfall of credit implemented a lower number of reforms and experienced a higher increase in corruption. Second, I present a literature review on the political economy of reform of dual labour market systems in Europe, and an analysis of labour market reform activity in EMU countries in times of economic boom and crisis. I discuss the reasons for the puzzling persistence of duality, and provide a summary of the main drivers of duality-reducing reforms.