EMS 10th anniversary issue - introduction

Abstract

The European Community is frequently accused of being short on tangible achievements. Consequently, it seemed obvious to the editors of the Review that the 10th anniversary of the EMS was an occasion worthy of note. The first reason for this is that the maintenance of a stable exchange rate zone, for what already amounts to 40 per cent of the life of the Bretton Woods System, should surely be highlighted. There was another reason: Ireland's decision to break the sterling link after more than a century and to join the EMS was a rare textbook example of a `policy regime change? in a way which it was not for the other EMS countries. Despite this fact, most Irish economists have devoted little energy to issues of exchange rate policy and the experience of the European Monetary System. It is worth emphasising that this is particularly surprising in view of the fact that the Irish case has received the attention of a number of major international economists. These include Mussa (1986), Baxter and Stockman (1988) and Dornbusch (1989). This special issue on the European Monetary System is designed both to develop the debate on some of the major conceptual issues which the EMS has given rise to and to stimulate further study of the Irish experience.