scholarly journals Changes in industry interference in policy in the United Kingdom 2017-2020

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
P Chamberlain ◽  
A Gilmore ◽  
K Silver ◽  
M Zatoński ◽  
L Laurence ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Industry ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Agreed Framework ◽  
Government Websites ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Partial Implementation

Abstract Background The Tobacco Industry Interference (TII) Index evaluates the implementation of FCTC Article 5.3. The first edition of the Global TII Index was published in 2019, included 33 countries, and covered the years 2017-2018. A second edition, covering 2018-2019, is scheduled to be published in October 2020. This paper reports on findings of the Index for the UK, the changes observed between 2017 and 2020, and the resulting policy recommendations. Methods The UK Index was based on a questionnaire covering different forms of tobacco industry interference. Lower scores indicate better compliance with Article 5.3. In order to complete the questionnaire, an expert consultation was conducted with UK's leading tobacco control specialists. This was supplemented by a scoping review of academic literature, media websites, government websites, and the Tobacco Tactics resource. Results In the 2019 Index the UK has achieved the lowest score among 33 countries surveyed. Strengths of the UK system included the exclusion of TI from government bodies that set public health policy and from FCTC COP delegations; the obligation of the government to publish information on all meetings with TI; and guidelines stipulating that its diplomats must not engage on behalf of TI. Nevertheless, weaknesses were also identified; including only partial implementation of the above obligations, the absence of an effective lobbying register, and the ongoing involvement of parliamentary consultative bodies, individual politicians and political parties with TI and affiliated organisations. Discussion The change of government in the UK in 2019, the shifting policy framework resulting from Brexit, and the increasing use by the tobacco industry of third parties to access policymakers, bring new challenges to the maintenance of robust Article 5.3 compliance. The presentation will analyse how this has affected the change in the UK's performance between the 2019 and the 2020 Tobacco Industry Interference Index. Key messages The need to strengthen transparency regulations for policymakers. A need for continued monitoring against an agreed framework in the light of very fluid political developments.

scholarly journals Rhetorical uses of precise numbers and semi-magical round numbers in political discourse about COVID-19: Examples from the government of the United Kingdom

2021 ◽  
pp. 095792652110131
Author(s):  
Michael Billig
Keyword(s):  
19Th Century ◽  
British Government ◽  
Political Incentives ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Round Numbers ◽  
Magical Power ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The 19Th Century

This paper examines how the British government has used statistics about COVID-19 for political ends. A distinction is made between precise and round numbers. Historically, using round numbers to estimate the spread of disease gave way in the 19th century to the sort precise, but not necessarily accurate, statistics that are now being used to record COVID-19. However, round numbers have continued to exert rhetorical, ‘semi-magical’ power by simultaneously conveying both quantity and quality. This is demonstrated in examples from the British government’s claims about COVID-19. The paper illustrates how senior members of the UK government use ‘good’ round numbers to frame their COVID-19 goals and to announce apparent achievements. These round numbers can provide political incentives to manipulate the production of precise number; again examples from the UK government are given.

The ‘Pillared-Privatisation’ of Pension Provision in the European Union: The Case of the United Kingdom

2002 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Ring ◽  
Roddy McKinnon
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
World Bank ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Means Testing ◽  
The Road ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
National Governments

Across the European Union, national governments are re-assessing the institutional mechanisms through which pension provision is delivered. This articles sets the debate within the wider context of the ‘pillared’ structural analysis often adopted by international institutions when discussing pensions reform. It then sets out a detailed discussion of developments in the UK, arguing that the UK is moving towards a model of reform akin to that promoted by the World Bank – referred to here as ‘pillared-privatisation’. The themes of this model indicate more means-testing, greater private provision, and a shift of the burden of risk from the government to individuals. An assessment is then made of the implications of UK developments for other EU countries. It is suggested that while there are strong reasons to think that other countries will not travel as far down the road of ‘pillared-privatisation’ as the UK, this should not be taken as a ‘given’.

Private Dentistry after COVID-19 – A Clinician’s Personal Experience

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reginald O’Neill
Keyword(s):  
Dental Care ◽  
Private Practice ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
Dental Practice ◽  
Health Practice ◽  
Dental Services ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk

Face to face dental care in the UK was largely suspended from March until June and beyond is very limited still in many cases. Both NHS and Private dental services in the four nations of the United Kingdom aligned with the government in lockdown and dental emergencies could be accessed face to face in specific urgent centres only (UDC’s). Return to dental practice has been challenging for the profession with a lack of clarity from regulators and a gulf between financial support of private practice (almost none) and National Health practice (at 100% of their contact value pre-COVID). Dramatic changes to the provision of dental care are likely to persist and the COVID crisis may precipitate significant change to both private and NHS dental services.

scholarly journals The Role of Anaerobic Digestion in Achieving Soil Conservation and Sustainable Agricultural Development in the UK

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 13
Author(s):  
Franklin I. Duruiheoma ◽  
Cynthia V. Burek ◽  
Graham Bonwick ◽  
Roy Alexander
Keyword(s):  
Anaerobic Digestion ◽  
Soil Conservation ◽  
Agricultural Development ◽  
Nutrient Recycling ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Poor Access ◽  
Class 1 ◽  
Limited Application ◽  
The Uk

<p class="1"><span lang="EN-GB">Anaerobic digestion represents one form of renewable energy technology but has many wider benefits. This paper reviews the processes involved in anaerobic digestion, the type of systems in place and the use of digestate to improve soil quality. A case is made for the technology in the UK in the context of soil conservation and sustainable agricultural production. Its broader contribution to sustainable development in the United Kingdom is also considered. Low levels of awareness of the benefits of anaerobic digestion, poor access to funds, inadequate incentives, an unfavourable legislative and policy framework for the technology, limited application of digestate for agricultural purposes and the need for further research on digestate use are identified as key factors hindering uptake of the technology. Anaerobic digestion is presented as a technology that can support soil conservation and sustainable agricultural development while also generating both energy and income, enhancing waste and nutrient recycling and promoting environmental protection.</span></p>

scholarly journals Covid-19 and labour law in the United Kingdom

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 332-346
Author(s):  
David Mangan*
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Union Member ◽  
Prime Minister ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
European Union Member States

2020 had been marked as a significant year for the UK with its departure from the European Union. The coronavirus pandemic quickly became the most important issue facing the Government under a third Prime Minister since the 2016 referendum. From the start, problems have dogged this Government in meeting the monumental challenges posed by Covid-19. The UK approached the work implications of this pandemic in some distinct ways, as compared to European Union Member States. This piece is longer than other country reports in this volume as a result of critically engaging with these differences.

UK Fiscal Prospects

2010 ◽  
Vol 213 ◽  
pp. F66-F70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray Barrell ◽  
Simon Kirby
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
Budget Process ◽  
Spare Capacity ◽  
Intention To Move ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

The UK is restructuring the fiscal policy framework once again, with an intention to move toward independent assessment and forecasting in the budget process. At the same time a large-scale, if delayed, fiscal consolidation is planned at a time when there is significant spare capacity in the economy. Economic growth is also projected to be below trend, at least this year and perhaps next. It is unusual to see a fiscal tightening when the output gap appears to be widening. These policy settings should be seen in the context of the most radical change in the nature of the relationship between the government and the economy for at least thirty years. This note assesses the impact of the new programme on the economy as well as setting out a projection for the medium-term public finances.

Spain’s budget majority promises political stability

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
Economic Recovery ◽  
Socialist Party ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Eu

Significance The minority Socialist Party (PSOE) - Unidas Podemos (UP) government needed the support of several left-wing and pro-independence parties to get the budget through. Its approval makes early elections unlikely and gives the government a better chance to shape the COVID-19 economic recovery and implement some of its 2019 electoral pledges. Impacts Spain’s poor record in absorbing EU funds suggests it will struggle to make the most of the EU recovery fund. The weakening of the UK currency will hurt Spanish exports to the United Kingdom, especially with fewer UK tourists coming to Spain. Greater political stability will enable Spain to pursue a more assertive foreign policy.

Welcome to the Umma: The British State and its Muslim Citizens Since 9/11

2009 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-347 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toby Archer
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Terrorist Attacks ◽  
Muslim Community ◽  
Policy Responses ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
British Muslims ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Security Questions ◽  
British State

British Muslims are citizens of the United Kingdom and also part of a worldwide community, the Umma, the Muslim community of the faithful. British Muslims have both national and transnational allegiances and on the part of the British state this has necessitated new ways of governing its Muslim citizens. Concerns over both terrorist violence and societal security questions regarding Muslims in the UK are both internal and external to the state. The government has had difficulties in finding transnational policy responses that go beyond the old division of internal and external security. After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, security was the main reason why the British state sought to engage Muslims, but this has been transformed into the wider agenda of ‘community cohesion’. In tracing the Muslim groups that the government has engaged with since 2001, I show how the issue of governing Muslims has gone beyond concerns just about terrorism and violence to a wider agenda that accepts British Muslims as citizens, yet at the same time still reflects the fears of Muslim ‘otherness’. I consider how this otherness is seen as a threat to societal security, and how the government’s attempt to create policies to deal with such threats is best understood as the ‘politics of unease’.

scholarly journals Government as Institutional Entrepreneur: Extending Working Life in the UK and Japan

2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 535-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
MATTHEW FLYNN ◽  
HEIKE SCHRÖDER ◽  
MASA HIGO ◽  
ATSUHIRO YAMADA
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Older Workers ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Light Touch ◽  
Institutional Entrepreneurship ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Welfare Systems ◽  
Institutional Entrepreneur ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk

AbstractThrough the lens of Institutional Entrepreneurship, this paper discusses how governments use the levers of power afforded through business and welfare systems to affect change in the organisational management of older workers. It does so using national stakeholder interviews in two contrasting economies: the United Kingdom and Japan. Both governments have taken a ‘light-touch’ approach to work and retirement. However, the highly institutionalised Japanese system affords the government greater leverage than that of the liberal UK system in changing employer practices at the workplace level.

The implications of Brexit for the governance of telecommunications markets in the United Kingdom

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ewan Sutherland
Keyword(s):  
European Economic Area ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Economic Sectors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Regulatory Governance ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Vested Interests ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Uk

Purpose This paper aims to analyse the implication of the exit of the UK from the European Union (a.k.a. Brexit). Design/methodology/approach This paper analyses the options for the UK and the freedom this creates for the government to design its system of governance for the telecommunications and related economic sectors. Findings Brexit, other than the Norway Option or membership of the European Economic Area, allows the UK Government considerable freedom to reshape its system of governance for telecommunications. The strongest influence in such a redesign would be vested commercial interests, with the risk of subsequent underperformance and insufficient rigour. Research limitations/implications Events have moved relatively quickly, yet the outcome of the negotiations remains difficult to predict, beyond broad scenarios. Social implications There will be a need for greater involvement of consumers and business users in the process of recasting the regulatory governance system if it is not to be for the benefit of vested interests. Originality/value This is the first substantive analysis of Brexit for the telecommunications sector.

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