A study on regrouping of municipalities or regions and new public policy process in France

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 17K03525
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Politics
• Research Institution: Ibaraki University
• Principal Investigator: SAGAWA Yasuhiro 茨城大学, 人文社会科学部, 教授 (50311585)
• Project Period (FY): 2017-04-01 – 2020-03-31
• Keywords: フランス / 地方分権 / 中央－地方関係 / 自治体広域化

Outline of Final Research Achievements

(1) In France, which has had more than 36,000 communes (municipalities), the government has not succeeded in promoting the merger, and the number of commune has remained unchanged for many years. On the other hand, various commune cooperative organizations have been functioning. In the 2010s, the fiscal crisis and the pressure from the EU to reduce the budget deficit became stronger, and while the Presidents Sarkozy and Holland proceeded with the reform of the local system, the regrouping of local governments including mergers has progressed to some extent.
(2) Although decentralization has been promoted in France, local governments are forces to compete under the constrained environment that central government has defined "from a distance" under the national reform based on the idea of NPM and some local administrative and financial reforms since the 2000s. The new form of vertical central-local relationship has reappeared.

Free Research Field

政治学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

フランスでは、近年、市町村や地域圏（州に相当）の広域化や広域連携強化が強力に進められている。その状況の紹介は日本国内でも多少行われてきたが、背景・文脈や広域化に伴う自治体内部行政組織や政策過程の変化はまだ十分に明らかにされていなかった。日本でも政府が市町村広域連携強化を改めて促進しつつあり、道州制構想も消えてはいない現在、フランスにおける一連の地方制度改革の内容や要因、これらの歴史的意味や中央－地方関係の変化を考察し、明らかにしておくことは、日本における地方制度改革にあたっての参考となる。