scholarly journals It Isn't Just about Greece: Domestic Politics, Transparency and Fiscal Gimmickry in Europe

2014 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 707-716 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Alt ◽  
David Dreyer Lassen ◽  
Joachim Wehner
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Politics ◽  
National Level ◽  
Fiscal Rules ◽  
Economic And Monetary Union ◽  
The European Union ◽  
National Accounts ◽  
Limited Budget ◽  
Creative Accounting ◽  
Supranational Level ◽  
The Eu

This article analyzes the political origins of differences in adherence to the fiscal framework of the European Union (EU). It shows how incentives to use fiscal policy for electoral purposes and limited budget transparency at the national level, combined with the need to respond to fiscal rules at the supranational level, interact to systematically undermine the Economic and Monetary Union through the employment of fiscal gimmicks or creative accounting. It also explains in detail how national accounts were manipulated to produce electoral cycles that were under the radar of the EU budget surveillance system, and concludes with new perspectives on the changes to (and challenges for) euro area fiscal rules.

scholarly journals The Influence of Fiscal Rules on the Fiscal Stability in the EU Member States

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 212
Author(s):  
Ryta Iwona Dziemianowicz ◽  
Aneta Kargol-Wasiluk
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Public Debt ◽  
Budget Deficit ◽  
National Level ◽  
Fiscal Rules ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Fiscal Discipline ◽  
Member States ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
The Eu

Due to the rapid increase of the budget deficit and public debt in many the EU countries after 2008, fiscal policy has faced a significant challenge for developing an appropriate tools to strengthen fiscal discipline and thereby improve the quality of public finance. Institutional mechanisms such as among others numerical fiscal rules play an important role in maintaining the fiscal discipline and support fiscal credibility of the state. Fiscal rules are most often defined as permanent constraints on fiscal policy, expressed by indicators introducing a limit for a particular fiscal aggregate, such as a budget deficit (real or structural), public debt, public expenditure or public revenue. The theoretical objective of the article is to analyze the institutional dimension of numerical fiscal rules (their type, legal basis, transparency, complexity, flexibility, adequacy and coherence). The empirical purpose, on the other hand, is to conduct a statistical analysis and to examine the relationship between the value of the fiscal rules index and the level of budget deficit and public debt in 28 Member States of the European Union. Examining the effectiveness of applied fiscal rules, at both European and national level seems to be the most valuable part of the analysis.

scholarly journals CONCEPTUAL BASES AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EU YOUTH POLICY

2016 ◽  
pp. 136-144
Author(s):  
E. N. Grachev
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Young People ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
National Level ◽  
National Council ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Youth Policy ◽  
European Youth ◽  
Supranational Level ◽  
The Eu

Europe is making significant efforts to create a common space where not only common political institutions and values, but also common future is to be shaped. And it is young people who is selected to be the main policy object for building common European identity. To this end in recent years, the European Union has worked out the institutional mechanisms of its youth policy, has formed special agencies for its implementation, developed legal framework. The main document, which laid the conceptual basis of EU youth policy is the White Paper. The document determines the most challenging issues in youth policy that need to be resolved in the short and long term. The next major document - the European Youth Pact - has become a real legal act which came into force throughout the European Union. The most important document which determines the guidelines of the current EU youth policy is a strategy "Youth - Investing and Empowering." The strategy settles a key vector of European youth policy for all EU countries. All documents take into account the interests of the whole EU and not individual nation states that is why they influence young people at the supranational level. The European Union has developed a full-fledged system of management of youth policy on two levels: the supranational (pan-European) and national. Council of Europe and European Parliament are responsible for the implementation of youth policy at supranational level. Various national agencies are responsible for the implementation of certain EU youth programs at national level. The EU documents on the youth policy show that the youth is viewed by European politicians as one of the most politically important social groups in Europe. That is why youth policy is directed not only at youth development, but has to it a significant political component. A significant part of the youth policy is related to the involvement of young people in the democratic institutions, the involvement of young people in the EU governance.

European experience in transition to circular economy

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 598-617 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.V. Ratner
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
National Level ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Scientific Methods ◽  
European Experience ◽  
General Scientific ◽  
The Eu

Subject. The article considers the concept of circular economy, which has originated relatively recently in the academic literature, and is now increasingly recognized in many countries at the national level. In the European Union, the transition to circular economy is viewed as an opportunity to improve competitiveness of the European Union, protect businesses from resource shortages and fluctuating prices for raw materials and supplies, and a way to increase employment and innovation. Objectives. The aim of the study is to analyze the incentives developed by the European Commission for moving to circular economy, and to assess their effectiveness on the basis of statistical analysis. Methods. I employ general scientific methods of research. Results. The analysis of the EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy enabled to conclude that the results of the recent research in circular economy barriers, eco-innovation, technology and infrastructure were successfully integrated into the framework of this document. Understanding the root causes holding back the circular economy development and the balanced combination of economic and administrative incentives strengthened the Action Plan, and it contributed to the circular economy development in the EU. Conclusions. The measures to stimulate the development of the circular economy proposed in the European Action Plan can be viewed as a prototype for designing similar strategies in other countries, including Russia. Meanwhile, a more detailed analysis of barriers to the circular economy at the level of individual countries and regions is needed.

Polish Approach to Sharing Resources Deployable for the EU Civil Protection Mechanism

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-158
Author(s):  
Tomasz Zwęgliński
Keyword(s):  
Emergency Response ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
International System ◽  
National Level ◽  
Civil Protection ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Internal Security ◽  
Protection Mechanism ◽  
European Dimension ◽  
The Eu

Poles are highly aware of the fact that Polish civil protection assets are being deployed abroad in order to assist other disaster- and crisis-stricken countries around the world. Such a type of urgent assistance provided from one country to another in an emergency response situation is regulated and organised by the European Union. Poland, as a state participating in the EU international system, is very active in sharing its civil protection assets, such as in the Beirut explosion case in Lebanon (2020), and during forest fires in Sweden (2018). Using its civil protection resources to assist other countries poses a question on the potential influence of such activities on the homeland’s internal security. Solving the problem has to be preceded by answering the following question — How is the process of international civil protection deployment organised in Poland? Responding to this question required utilising such methods as a review and analysis of literature sources on the European dimension of civil protection, EU legal regulations, statistics, reports as well as Polish standard operating procedures and internal regulations on the national level and was the key method applied in the research. Furthermore, semi-formal interviews with Polish and EU experts were done. The findings prove that operational planning in the researched area is well organised, which significantly diminishes the identified risk for internal security.

Understanding the Crisis Symptoms of Representative Democracy: The New European Economic Governance and France's ‘Political Crisis’

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-131
Author(s):  
Julia Lux
Keyword(s):  
National Level ◽  
Representative Democracy ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Economic Governance ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Discursive Space ◽  
New Economic Governance ◽  
Political Economic ◽  
The Eu

This article will investigate the ‘political crisis’ in France (Amable, 2017) to highlight two aspects often set aside in public and academic discussions: 1) the technocratic, neoliberal character of the European Union (EU) that limits democratic debate about political economic issues and 2) the socio-economic context the parties operate in. Using this perspective, I add to the debate on the inherent theoretical/conceptual tension between representative democracy and populism (Taggart, 2002) by showing how the ‘new economic governance’ increases the democratic problems of the EU by limiting the discursive space. Representative liberal democracy has particularly marginalised anti-capitalism at EU and national level. My analysis shows that the EU's discursive strategies are aligned to those of governing parties and the employers’ association. Left-wing actors and the Front National (FN) oppose the EU's discourse not necessarily for reasons of sovereignty but for political reasons concerning the politico-economic trajectory of France.

Policy-Making in the European Union

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
National Level ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Eu Policy ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Common ◽  
Key Events ◽  
The Eu

Policy-Making in the European Union explores the link between the modes and mechanisms of EU policy-making and its implementation at the national level. From defining the processes, institutions and modes through which policy-making operates, the text moves on to situate individual policies within these modes, detail their content, and analyse how they are implemented, navigating policy in all its complexities. The first part of the text examines processes, institutions, and the theoretical and analytical underpinnings of policy-making, while the second part considers a wide range of policy areas, from economics to the environment, and security to the single market. Throughout the text, theoretical approaches sit side by side with the reality of key events in the EU, including enlargement, the ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon, and the financial crisis and resulting Eurozone crisis, focusing on what determines how policies are made and implemented. This includes major developments such as the establishment of the European Stability Mechanism, the reform of the common agricultural policy, and new initiatives to promote EU energy security. In the final part, the chapters consider trends in EU policy-making and the challenges facing the EU.

scholarly journals National Set of MAES Indicators in Greece: Ecosystem Services and Management Implications

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ioannis P. Kokkoris ◽  
Georgios Mallinis ◽  
Eleni S. Bekri ◽  
Vassiliki Vlami ◽  
Stamatis Zogaris ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
National Level ◽  
Natura 2000 ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Thematic Maps ◽  
Food Material ◽  
Data Gaps ◽  
Condition Indicator ◽  
The Eu

Research Highlights: The developed National Set of Indicators for the Mapping and Assessment of Ecosystems and their Services (MAES) implementation in Greece at the national level sets the official, national basis on which future studies will be conducted for MAES reporting for the achievement of targets within the National and the European Union (EU) biodiversity Strategy. Background and Objectives: Greece is currently developing and implementing a MAES nation-wide program based on the region’s unique characteristics following the proposed methodologies by the European Commission, in the frame of the LIFE-IP 4 NATURA project (Integrated actions for the conservation and management of Natura 2000 sites, species, habitats and ecosystems in Greece). In this paper, we present the steps followed to compile standardized MAES indicators for Greece that include: (a) collection and review of the available MAES-related datasets, (b) shortcomings and limitations encountered and overcome, (c) identification of data gaps and (d) assumptions and framework setting. Correspondence to EU and National Strategies and Policies are also examined to provide an initial guidance for detailed thematic studies. Materials and Methods: We followed the requirements of the EU MAES framework for ecosystem services and ecosystem condition indicator selection. Ecosystem services reported under the selected indicators were assigned following the Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services. Spatial analysis techniques were applied to create relevant thematic maps. Results: A set of 40 MAES indicators was drafted, distributed in six general indicator groups, i.e., Biodiversity, Environmental quality, Food, material and energy, Forestry, Recreation and Water resources. The protocols for the development and implementation of an indicator were also drafted and adopted for future MAES studies in Greece, providing guidance for adaptive development and adding extra indicators when and where needed. Thematic maps representing ecosystem services (ES) bundles and ES hotspots were also created to identify areas of ES importance and simultaneously communicate the results at the national and regional levels.

scholarly journals Spatializing authoritarian neoliberalism by way of cultural politics: City, nation and the European Union in Gdańsk’s politics of cultural policy formation

2020 ◽  
pp. 239965442096523
Author(s):  
Thomas Borén ◽  
Patrycja Grzyś ◽  
Craig Young
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Political Economy ◽  
Cultural Policy ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
National Level ◽  
Policy Research ◽  
Policy Formation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Policy Mobilities ◽  
The Eu

This paper develops perspectives which seek to spatialize authoritarian neoliberalism through arguing for greater engagement with the politics of urban cultural policy formation in the neglected context of post-socialist East and Central Europe. Through analyzing the politics of urban cultural policy-making in Gdańsk, Poland, the paper spatializes authoritarian neoliberalism by exploring how relations between the urban and the national, and between the urban and the supranational, shape urban cultural policy, drawing upon literatures on political economy, policy mobilities, cultural policy research, and the concepts of authoritarian neoliberalism and the relational-territorial nexus. Gdańsk is a liberally run city, strongly aligned with the European Union (EU), opposed to the authoritarian neoliberal national level politics in Poland. The paper analyses urban-national tensions and relationships between Gdańsk and the EU to unpack the contested spatial nature of authoritarian neoliberalism.

scholarly journals A Soil Erosion Indicator for Supporting Agricultural, Environmental and Climate Policies in the European Union

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 1365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Panos Panagos ◽  
Cristiano Ballabio ◽  
Jean Poesen ◽  
Emanuele Lugato ◽  
Simone Scarpa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Soil Conservation ◽  
Soil Loss ◽  
National Level ◽  
Water Erosion ◽  
Soil Protection ◽  
Conservation Practices ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Eu

Soil erosion is one of the eight threats in the Soil Thematic Strategy, the main policy instrument dedicated to soil protection in the European Union (EU). During the last decade, soil erosion indicators have been included in monitoring the performance of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study comes five years after the assessment of soil loss by water erosion in the EU [Environmental science & policy 54, 438–447 (2015)], where a soil erosion modelling baseline for 2010 was developed. Here, we present an update of the EU assessment of soil loss by water erosion for the year 2016. The estimated long-term average erosion rate decreased by 0.4% between 2010 and 2016. This small decrease of soil loss was due to a limited increase of applied soil conservation practices and land cover change observed at the EU level. The modelling results suggest that, currently, ca. 25% of the EU land has erosion rates higher than the recommended sustainable threshold (2 t ha−1 yr−1) and more than 6% of agricultural lands suffer from severe erosion (11 t ha−1 yr−1). The results suggest that a more incisive set of measures of soil conservation is needed to mitigate soil erosion across the EU. However, targeted measures are recommendable at regional and national level as soil erosion trends are diverse between countries which show heterogeneous application of conservation practices.

From embedded to uncompromising neoliberalism: Competitiveness policies and European Union interscalar relations in the case of Greece

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 227-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicos Souliotis ◽  
Georgia Alexandri
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Sovereign Debt ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Debt Crisis ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Supranational Level ◽  
Of Greece ◽  
The Eu

This article traces the transfer of competitiveness and cohesion policies from the European Union (EU) institutions to the national and subnational authorities in Greece, both before and after the sovereign debt crisis. We argue that prior to the crisis, the flexibilities of the EU governance system allowed the Greek central government to use the competitiveness and cohesion agenda, as well as the associated funds, to build a domestic socio-political consensus focused on the idea of ‘convergence’ with Europe. The crisis-induced bailout programme deepened neoliberal policies and reorganised vertical and horizontal power relations: policy-making powers have been upscaled towards the supranational level, while the national authorities have been socially disembedded.

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