The European Commission as a Social Advocate? Dissensus Over RRF Conditionality and Redistributive Reforms in the Neoliberal Baltics
分析了欧盟委员会在波罗的海三国推动税收和社会改革时引发的分歧，揭示了条件性、政策偏好差异和社会参与者参与如何影响改革实施，对研究欧盟治理和民主合法性的学者有参考价值。
Abstract The article analyses governance of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) in three Baltic states as ‘extreme’ cases of RRF dissensus, where the Commission used RRF carrots and sticks to push tax‐financed social and tax reforms against national preferences. Bridging the literature on RRF governance and politicisation of Europe and drawing on document analysis, press and 26 interviews, the article argues that RRF dissensus is shaped by (1) the extent of EU conditionalities in plans' formulation and implementation; (2) divergence between the country‐specific recommendations and national policy preferences; and (3) involvement of broader social actors. Going beyond the literature's focus on the formulation phase of national plans and extending the focus to how the plans are implemented, the article sheds new light on the Commission's role as a social advocate in the EU's neoliberal periphery and its potentially adverse effects on democratic legitimacy and national ownership.