Central Banks are often side-lined, yet crucial parts of political systems – in the case of the German Bundesbank with heavy influence on the German economy and political decisions as on those of its neighbours until the foundation of the European Central Bank. The Bundesbank – “Germany's best-known and most feared institution'' (Marsh 1992) – shaped German policies, whilst securing its independence, even passing it on to the European Central Bank. However, albeit the independence of most central banks in the world is secured by law (Central Bank Legislation Database), the recent crises have caused growing criticism and discussions about the necessary level of central bank independence.
Dealing with the Bundesbank and the ECB, the objective of this course is twofold. At first, students will be introduced to the historical roots of central banking. The class will follow the development of national central bank systems and their functioning as political/politicised actors on the German example. The class will also deal with the development and transformation of the EMU and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), aiming to comprehend the political, economic, social, and identity dimensions of the Common Currency (€), especially from Member States perspective. Thereby, we will analyse the many similarities between the ECB and the Bundesbank, as well as the different conflicts, which shaped the ESCB of today.
Secondly, we will analyse the political positions of the Bundesbank and further German political actors on the Common Currency, the ECB´s crisis policies and new preventive measures considering growing Euroscepticism, and re-nationalisation tendencies. The Common Currency of the European Union is – two decades after its introduction as ‘book money’ – still contested amongst politicians, practitioners, and the general public, especially in Germany. The recent rulings of the Bundesverfassungsgericht (2 BvR 859/15, 2 BvR 980/16, 2 BvR 2006/15, 2 BvR 1651/15) sparked another debate on the lawfulness of the ECB´s crisis measures and contested the European Monetary integration, which will be analysed exemplary.
The following questions will be raised in the seminar:
- How do Central Banks act? What are the differences of “independent vs. dependent” Central Banks?
- What kind of influence do the Bundesbank and the ECB have (development over time)?
- How do German political actors view the actions of the ECB?
- How does the Bundesbank challenge the ECB?
- Is the Bundesbank still a relevant actor in the political system of Germany?
To answer these questions, this class will:
- Use recent datasets from research projects, governments, and EU institutions to answer some of these questions through quantitative analysis
- Have a first look into “Text as Data”
- Replicate analysis to understand the toolset of empirical political science in the field of EMU
- Taking an international perspective on the German political assessments
- Develop own research questions based on the questions of the class
- Develop research agendas for student´s questions and proposals
- Dozent/in: Darius Ribbe