Investigating the Relationship Between EU Cohesion Policy and Euroscepticism: An Exploratory Qualitative Analysis of the Polish Political Elite

The manifestation and escalation of the recent economic, political and social developments and multifaceted crises in Europe and the implications thereof for the European Union urges one to reflect on the limits of the European integration process and the multi-speed Europe phenomenon, and take a closer look at the gaps, misinterpretations and limits in the Europeanization literature. In this vein, questions arise with regards to the way EU policies are designed, implemented and communicated by supranational, national and sub-national elites, and whether some of these policies have already done so or could potentially countermand Euroscepticism and contribute to the creation of positive images about Europe and the promotion of the European identity. It is in the light of this background context that my doctoral dissertation, of which the proposed paper constitutes one of three case studies, investigates whether and at which extent EU Cohesion Policy (EU Regional Policy) has shaped either Europhile or Eurosceptic narratives at the level of the elites in selected EU regions. The methodological framework of the dissertation consists in qualitative case study research including primary sources’ review and analysis and elite interviewing. On grounds of specific selection criteria, the EU (NUTS 2 as defined by the EC) regions of West Wales and the Valleys (UK), Silesia (Poland) and Crete (Greece) have been identified as suitable case studies to explore the design, implementation and communication principles and modalities of EU programmes under the Union’s Cohesion Policy. The proposed paper constitutes the second empirical case study, and touching upon the literatures on Europeanization and Euroscepticism, discusses key preliminary findings from research conducted in Poland and the region of Silesia.