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891. The Nordic Path of Spain's Mediterranean Welfare

Author:
Luis Moreno
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
Despite the fact that the Nordic welfare model has become less exceptional in recent times, it continues to offer numerous examples for “best practices” in social policy provision, together with a high degree of welfare political legitimacy. This paper explores Nordic “benchmarking” as reference to the case of welfare development in Spain. In the general process of convergence of the European welfare states towards the middle, the Spanish case stands out as the one Mediterranean EU country which has gone further in incorporating inputs and traits of the social-democratic Nordic world of welfare capitalism. While Spain's welfare state has become more liberal in macroeconomic policies, and social policymaking has followed a pattern of universalization of welfare entitlements and provision, there has been a detachment from the Bismarckian principle of income maintenance. This paper deals with Spain's evolution in two main areas, which have distinctively characterized Nordic welfare in contemporary times: fiscal resources, and female employment. The analytical purpose of the first section is to ponder the claim as to whether or not Spanish welfare has intensified a socioeconomic path in the direction of the Nordic model. Subsequently, Spain's societal changes and welfare reforms are reviewed with relation to the two areas identified as having the greatest impact in the future evolution of Spain's welfare: conciliation of work and family life, and the territorial politics of welfare provision. Concluding remarks speculate on the hypothesis that countries with fragmented political institutions and a decentralized state organization, such as Spain, may move faster and be more responsive in the development of new welfare Polices. Likewise, the emergence of gender and family issues into the political arena is also regarded as generating pressure for major changes in Spain's Mediterranean welfare, and possibly intensifying its Nordic path or component.
Topic:
Security, Economics, Markets, Migration, and Poverty
Political Geography:
Europe and Spain

892. Hawk and handsaws: What can France learn from the "Nordic Model"?

Author:
Éloi Laurent and Jean-Paul Fitoussi
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
In this paper, we try to point out some important weaknesses of the contemporary French social-economic model, focusing on relevant elements of comparison with Nordic countries. In doing so, we rely on the idea that large and small countries differ in terms of growth and governance strategies. Hence, while a look at the “Nordic model” can be a good way to reveal of some of France's major problems, it is also an ambiguous template for reform. The paper starts by examining the question of growth strategy (macroeconomic management and structural reforms), then goes on to investigate governance strategy (trust, confidence, governance quality) and finally explores the issues of diversity and integration policy.
Topic:
Economics, Markets, Political Economy, and Political Theory
Political Geography:
Europe

893. Europe Must Present a Single Market to SWF's

Author:
Antonio De Lecea
Publication Date:
09-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
European Affairs
Institution:
The European Institute
Abstract:
The Commission hopes to help put in place a Europe-wide approach to sovereign wealth funds designed to avoid a situation in which the investors play off EU countries against each other. A common European attitude may help sensitize the funds about the value of transparency concerning their own rules of the road.
Topic:
Economics
Political Geography:
Europe

894. Moving Forward with the Transatlantic Economic Council

Author:
Daniel M. Price
Publication Date:
09-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
European Affairs
Institution:
The European Institute
Abstract:
The Transatlantic Economic Council was a major U.S.-EU innovation designed to negotiate away non-tariff barriers between the two markets. To consolidate the promise of its first year at work, it needs to choose its issues and do something tangibly effective about them, according to Dan Price, the White House point man in the TEC.
Topic:
Economics and International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:
United States and Europe

895. Unemployment and Unemployment Protection in Transition

Author:
Wayne Vroman and Vera Brusentsev
Publication Date:
04-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Nearly twenty years have passed since the transition from a centrally-planned towards a market-oriented economy in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union (CEE-FSU). This paper documents the differing patterns of unemployment during the period 1990 to 2006 in the 28 countries that constitute the CEE-FS U group and outlines how unemployment protection programs developed in response. We also suggest some tentative explanations for the observed trends in unemployment and unemployment compensation. Our approach is novel in that we compare the performance of the CEE-FSU group to the worldwide average and to other major economies. In addition, we demonstrate important contrasts across the CEE-FSU sub-regions.
Topic:
Economics
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia, and Soviet Union

896. Investment in Stadia and Regional Economic Development – Evidence from FIFA World Cup 2006

Author:
Arne Feddersen, André L. Grötzinger, and Wolfgang Maennig
Publication Date:
10-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chair for Economic Policy, University of Hamburg
Abstract:
Using the case of the new stadiums for the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany, this paper is the first multivariate work that examines the potential income and employment effects of new stadiums outside of the USA. This study is also the first work on this topic that conducts tests on the basis of a (serial correlation consistent) Difference-in-Difference model with level and trends. As a robustness check, we use the “ignoring time series information” model in a form that is modified for nonsynchronous interventions. We were not able to identify income or employment effects of the construction of new stadiums for the FIFA World Cup 2006, which are significantly different from zero.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Infrastructure, Sports, Regional Economy, and Stadiums
Political Geography:
Europe and Germany

897. Monument Protection: Internal and External Price Effects

Author:
Gabriel Ahlfeldt and Wolfgang Maennig
Publication Date:
04-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chair for Economic Policy, University of Hamburg
Abstract:
This paper analyses the impact of heritage-listed buildings on condominium transaction prices in Berlin, Germany. We use transaction data to test for price differentials between listed and nonlisted properties and to study their impact on surrounding property prices. Proximity to built heritage is captured by distance to listed houses and indicators capturing neighborhoods with built heritage. Impact is assessed by applying a hedonic model to micro-level data and a non-parametric approach to location. While our findings suggest that listed properties do not sell at a premium or discount, heritage-listed buildings are found to have positive external effects on surrounding property prices.
Topic:
Economics, Culture, Heritage, and Real Estate
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, and Berlin

898. The Feel-good Effect at Mega Sports Events. Recommendations for Public and Private Administration Informed by the Experience of the FIFA World Cup 2006

Author:
Wolfgang Maennig and Marcel Porsche
Publication Date:
02-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chair for Economic Policy, University of Hamburg
Abstract:
One of the most important social effects of the 2006 football World Cup was the feel-good effect. The present contribution is one of the first to deal with the development of a general theory for the management of feel-good effects and systematically analyses the influencing factors taking the 2006 World Cup as an example. Of importance are suitable basic organizational and infrastructure conditions in the realms of security, transport, and ecology. The media activities of public and private sponsors should break away from the traditional narrow focus and classic brand sponsoring in favor of a more socially responsible sponsoring. Sporting success of the home team is important, which may be due in equal measures to the style of play of the team and its demeanor. The creation of generally accessible participation opportunities through free TV in the host country and the setting up of fan festivals can counteract any frustration that might arise from the allocation of ad-mission tickets. Any targeted manipulation of the weather may be considered with due regard to possible ecological implications.
Topic:
Economics, Sports, Media, and World Cup
Political Geography:
Europe and Germany

899. Economic Exclusion of Ethnic Minorities: On the Importance of Concept Specification

Author:
Tim Dertwinkel
Publication Date:
12-2008
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI)
Abstract:
This issue brief is a plea for a more systematic investigation into the concept of economic exclusion of ethnic minorities.1 What does “economic exclusion” exactly mean? How does it relate to the broader and more established phenomenon of social exclusion? Is economicexclusion, especially when applied to historical ethnic minorities, worthwhile studying in its ownright, or is it just a fashionable reframing of “older” development concepts such as poverty or inequality? It is exactly these questions that this issue brief attempts to shed some light on. I argue that such an exercise is overdue mainly for the two following reasons: first, there is a recent abundance in the use of the term “economic exclusion”, prominently taken up and further promoted by the work of minority rights related institutions, NGOs and practitioners. Second, and in sharp contrast to fast emerging policy programs and legal frameworks, theoretical orconceptual clarifications of economic exclusion - as well as empirical results on factors promoting or mitigating exclusion - are rare. The main argument put forward here is that so far, working definitions of economic exclusion are broad and extensive, and tend to vary according to institution. No standard definition of economic exclusion exists so far. This lack of conceptualspecification makes it almost impossible for empirical work to catch up with recent normative developments
Topic:
Economics, Minorities, Ethnicity, and Exclusion
Political Geography:
Europe

900. A Statistical Analysis of the Quality of Impact Assessment in the European Union

Author:
Caroline Cecot, Robert Hahn, and Andrea Renda
Publication Date:
05-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Brookings Institution
Abstract:
In 2002, the European Union required that an impact assessment be done for all major initiatives, including many regulations, directives, decisions, and communications. This paper is the first paper to statistically analyze these impact assessments using the largest available dataset. As a benchmark, we compare our results in the EU with recent results on the quality of regulatory analysis in the U.S. We score impact assessments using a number of objective measures of quality, such as whether a particular assessment provides any quantitative information on costs or benefits, and use the scores to develop two indices of quality.
Topic:
Economics, Government, and International Trade and Finance
Political Geography:
Europe