The financial crisis has largely been studied by economists, but the diversity of European countries' response has both an economic and a political perspective. By exploring national responses not just in fiscal terms, but also from a political-administrative perspective, it reveals that decision making has been driven by political factors, leading to profound effects on public administration and management. Filling an important gap in the research literature for scholars of public management, public administration and policy, it will be a benchmark for future work on the global economic crisis. sakriti opis