Conclusion. Multilevel Governance between centralisation and local agency

In this final chapter, we present a comparative synthesis of modes of policy-making vis-à-vis the 2015 European migration crisis considering both decision-making and implementation processes. Whereas, with respect to processes of policy reform our study reveals an increasing centralisation of decision-making in the aftermath of the refugee crisis, leading to a prevailing hierarchical mode of policy-making in all of the analysed countries, as regards implementation network governance has become prominent at the local level, with local authorities and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) engaged in coordinating responses to the challenges of reception. Overall, and similar to other areas of asylum policy, reception emerges as a highly centralised issue. It follows that MLG-like (multilevel governance) policy-making arrangements are few and their impact quite limited. Against this backdrop, we assess the hypotheses on the factors accounting for MLG modes of policy-making presented in the Introduction to this volume and we also discuss the research findings on the relationship between MLG and policy convergence. In the final section, we put forward new possible research paths and developments on asylum seekers’ reception policy following the Covid-19 crisis.