The Establishment of FRONTEX: A New Institutionalist Approach

Abstract

As border management continues to be a contentious and fast developing policy area in the EU, a better understanding of FRONTEX is needed. This article takes the new institutionalist approach that the functioning of institutions is dependent on the conditions under which they emerge. Drawing on documentary resources and semi-structured interviews with EU officials, the article traces the process leading to the establishment of FRONTEX. It argues that a proper understanding of agency creation and design requires us to look beyond rational choice institutionalist explanations and take into account social processes and historical contexts. Expectations derived from the three main strands of new institutionalism (rational choice institutionalism, sociological institutionalism and historical institutionalism) are not mutually exclusive and can function as conceptual lenses drawing attention to different aspects of agency creation.

Keywords:

• FRONTEX
• new institutionalism
• European Union
• migration policy

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Erratum

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Angie Sohlberg and the anonymous referees for their helpful and constructive comments on previous versions of the article.

Notes

This article was originally published with errors. This version has been corrected. Please see erratum: (http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07036337.2014.893069)

1. To preserve anonymity the interviewees are only referred to by their running number.

2. The UK claimed to have been denied the right to take part in the adoption of the measure despite having that right under the Protocols on the position of the UK and Ireland and on the integration of the Schengen acquis into the EU framework.

3. On the concept ‘rationality’, see Simon (1978).

4. The documents listed in the proposal are: the Meta-Evaluation on the Community Agency System, the Communication from the Commission on the operating framework for the European Regulatory Agencies and the Commission Regulation of 23 December 2002 on the framework Financial Regulation for the bodies referred to in Article 185 of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No. 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities.