The Hare and the Tortoise Revisited: The New Politics of Consumer and Environmental Regulation in Europe

British Journal of Political Science ◽

10.1017/s0007123403000255 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 33 (4) ◽

pp. 557-580 ◽

Cited By ~ 143

Author(s):

DAVID VOGEL

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

European Union ◽

Environmental Regulation ◽

The United States ◽

Political Support ◽

The European Union ◽

Related Factors ◽

New Politics ◽

Regulatory Standards ◽

The 1960S

There has been an important shift in the pattern of divergence between consumer and environmental protection policies in Europe and the United States. From the 1960s through the mid 1980s American regulatory standards tended to be more stringent, comprehensive and innovative than in either individual European countries or in the European Union (EU). However, since around 1990 the obverse has been true; many important EU consumer and environmental regulations are now more precautionary than their American counterparts.The ‘new’ politics of consumer and environmental regulation in Europe are attributable to three inter-related factors: a series of regulatory failures within Europe, broader and stronger political support for more stringent and comprehensive regulatory standards within Europe and the growth in the regulatory competence of the European Union.In many respects, European regulatory politics and policies since the 1990s resemble those of the United States during the 1970s. Thus health, safety and environmental politics and policies in the United States are no longer as distinctive as many scholars have portrayed them.

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Economic models of Environment monitoring under imperfect information and high Costs

Voprosy Ekonomiki ◽

10.32609/0042-8736-2014-4-99-122 ◽

2014 ◽

pp. 99-122

Author(s):

M. Levin ◽

K. Matrosova

Keyword(s):

Environmental Monitoring ◽

Environmental Regulation ◽

Environmental Economics ◽

Imperfect Information ◽

Central Element ◽

Economic Models ◽

Environment Monitoring ◽

Nature Protection ◽

Protection Measures ◽

Effective System

The paper considers monitoring of environmental change as the central element of environmental regulation. Monitoring, as each kind of principalagent relations, easily gives rise to corruptive behavior. In the paper we analyze economic models of environmental monitoring with high costs, incomplete information and corruption. These models should be the elements of environmental economics and are needed to create an effective system of nature protection measures.

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Hydropower production and environmental regulation: opting for a performance-based tax approach

ECONOMICS AND POLICY OF ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT ◽

10.3280/efe2014-002007 ◽

2015 ◽

pp. 137-152 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Alessandro De Carli ◽

Andrea Goltara ◽

Antonio Massarutto ◽

Federico Pontoni

Keyword(s):

Environmental Regulation ◽

Hydropower Production ◽

A Performance

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Review: New Politics, New Union?

Scottish Affairs ◽

10.3366/scot.2009.0027 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 67 (First Serie (1) ◽

pp. 110-112

Author(s):

Michael Keating

Keyword(s):

New Politics

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Impacts of Environmental Regulation on Sustainable Economic Growth

Journal of Business and Economics ◽

10.15341/jbe(2155-7950)/09.09.2018/001 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (9) ◽

pp. 749-773

Author(s):

Jonathan Fisher

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Environmental Regulation ◽

Technical Change ◽

Best Practice ◽

Environmental Regulations ◽

The European Union ◽

Porter Hypothesis ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

Environment Agency ◽

Sustainable Economic Growth

There is considerable concern and debate about the economic impacts of environmental regulations. Jonathan Fisher, former Economics Manager at the Environment Agency in England and Wales, reviews the available evidence on this subject. Section 2 presents estimates of the costs and benefits of environmental regulations. Section 3 examines the impacts of environmental regulations on economic growth, innovation and technical change as well as impacts on competitiveness and any movement of businesses to less pollution havens. He questions call for greater certainty regarding future environmental regulations, whereas in fact there should be calls for less uncertainty. This section then suggests how this could be achieved. This section then finishes with an overview of the available evidence. This includes an examination of the Porter Hypothesis that environmental regulations can trigger greater innovation that may partially or more than fully offset the compliance costs. Section 4 then sets out principles for how better environmental regulation can improve its impacts on sustainable economic growth and illustrates how the European Union (EU) Water Framework Directive is a good example of the application of these principles in practice. Section 5 reviews current and recent political perspectives regarding developments in environmental regulations across the EU and shows how the United Kingdom (UK) has successfully positively managed to influence such developments so that EU environmental regulations now incorporate many of these principles to improve their impacts on economic growth. Section 5.1 then examines the implications of Brexit for UK environmental regulations. Finally, Section 6 sets out some best practice principles to improve the impacts of environmental regulation on sustainable economic growth, innovation and technical change.

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