Paper Issues of transposition and interference Table of Contents

Compliance deficit in %
Figure 3: Transposition deficit in Belgium and the UK over the internal market scoreboards of May 2010 thru November 2014. Source: European Commission Internal Market Scoreboards

2. Goodness of Fit

During the negotiations at EU-level member states generally try to ensure as low adaptation costs as possible. The bargaining power of a member state and the degree of assertiveness and obstinacy it brings to the negotiation table are therefore key elements influencing the goodness of fit between the resulting EU directive and its domestic legislation. Scottish interests are included in the assertive, heavy-weight UK negotiation position. Scotland does not make use of the (extra-statutory) possibility
to delegate a representative to the UK-delegation very often. Most negotiations where Scotland is represented in the UK-delegation concern agriculture (EERC, 16.01.2014). To the extend Scottish interests are accurately defended by the UK-delegation, the misfit is expected to remain rather low. The Belgian delegation, however, does not only hold a considerably smaller bargaining power and a rather EU-centered unassertive negotiation style, it also defends a position that is a true compromise between federated and federal positions. This means on the one hand that Flanders’ position is less efficiently pushed than the Scottish one in EU negotiations, but on the other hand Flemish interests are unavoidably anchored in the Belgian position. Additionally, regional delegations accompany (in capacity of lead or assessor) the federal representative in all negotiations regarding subnational competence.
We can expect less transposition problems related to the goodness of fit in those policy areas that have already longtime been regulated by the European Union. Transposition of directives on such matters would fit into the adaptation process launched by previous EU legislation and would therefore not entail fundamental changes to the internal order. This external characteristic cannot explain transposition variance, though outstanding transpositions in the subnational entities may impede on transposition of 'update' directives on the same matter. If it is true that the transposition and compliance deficit are higher in Flanders, this can be expected to play a role there.
Where directive provisions and ‘transposition’ obligations rather concern meeting set target values - on for example air quality - Flanders can be considered more prone to encounter difficulties as a consequence of its geographical and metropolitan specificities. Flanders - with its large metropolitan hubs and little open space - faces a dense mix of industries, transport networks and densely populated areas, which might make target values harder to reach.
Generally we expect Flanders to face larger misfit than Scotland, though this factor clearly demands case-by-case analysis.

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