Protecting Consumers and the Environment in Europe

Abstract

This chapter provides readers with an introduction to policy dynamics in European Union (EU) consumer and environmental protection. Eckert reviews the literature on the power balance between corporate interests and environmental and consumer interests. Next, Eckert formulates expectations on how corporate regulatory strategies materialise at the EU-level. To that end, she compares the role of voluntary agreements, secondary law and its implementation, and litigation. She argues that EU-wide self-regulation is often too demanding for industry, and not necessarily rewarding. By contrast, she expects that corporate power in non-legislative rule-making, i.e. agency governance, standardisation bodies and courts, is particularly pronounced. The chapter concludes by providing a brief overview of the areas of EU regulation to be covered in the industry case studies conducted in the subsequent chapters.