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This paper aims at putting forward the key elements of a constitutional theory of European law on the basis of D. Neil MacCormick's theory of European constitutional pluralism. Firstly, I consider how the institutional theory of law fleshed out by MacCormick creates the theoretical space within which it is be possible to make sense of legal and political phenomena below, above and beyond the nation-state, and particularly, of the EU. Secondly, I ponder on how this affects standard constitutional theories of Community law. Because standard theoretical re-constructions of Community law are premised on the close relationship between law and nation-state, they turn to be incapable of providing a satisfactory and simultaneous answer to three fundamental questions, namely the genesis of EU law, the primacy of EU law and the endurance and growth of EU law. Thirdly, I consider the many achievements of MacCormick's European constitutional pluralism, in particular, the thesis that Community law can be approached from at least two differentiated, but equally authoritative, standpoints (the differentiated but equal standpoints thesis) and that the stability of the European legal order is rooted on non-legal bases that reveal the transformation of sovereignty in contemporary Europe (the stability beyond sovereignty thesis). But I also consider the turn that the Scottish philosopher made towards a moderate pluralism under international, a shift that is decisive in order to understand the problématique of Community law and the questions that MacCormick was struggling to solve. Fourthly, I sketch the theory of constitutional synthesis, a constitutional theory of European integration which aims to apply the key insights of MacCormick's European constitutional pluralism to solving the problems which were left open by the theory of the Edinburgh professor. It emphasises the singularity of the European path towards a democratic constitution, the theory of constitutional synthesis combines sensitivity towards the fundamental pluralistic traits of Union law with a commitment towards the idea of constitutional law as a monistic means of social integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on a draft paper circulated among member states of the European Union (EU) regarding Turkey's membership which will be the focus of the December 17, 2004 EU summit. Reaction of the EU on the effort of Turkey to meet the Copenhagen criteria; Clauses that could halt entry talks, included in the draft paper; Overview of the condition of Turkey's stock market.

This paper focuses on the role of information and knowledge in the EU foreign policy system. In particular, it examines the case of HoMs reports, which are drafted by Heads of Mission (HoMs) in non-EU countries about the situation on the ground and what the EU could/should do about it. They include both information, such as data, and more complex cognitive schemata defining problems and their potential solutions, here referred to in general terms as knowledge. The paper argues that information and knowledge included in HoMs reports can be both useful to member states and European in nature. It can be useful because the empirical evidence surveyed shows that the majority of HoMs reports cover areas in which few member states have a diplomatic representation. Member states might double-check the information summarized in the reports, but the knowledge included is considered useful. Moreover, the drafting process of a HoMs report does not necessarily reflect a common minimum (or maximum) denominator, but can also emerge from genuine cooperation and reflect a European approach, as shown in the case of the HoMs report on East Jerusalem. As the European External Action Service (EEAS) multiplies its capacity for information gathering and knowledge construction, the issue of whose information and knowledge informs policy proposals is likely to become even more relevant in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European citizenship poses a theoretical challenge to the paradigmatic understanding of citizenship as congruence between nation, state, and membership rights. This challenge is addressed in this paper by focusing on ideal typical models of the EU polity. Is EU citizenship more nation-based, federal, or cosmopolitan? Utilized heuristically, the models account for different features of European citizenship practice, and the relative weighting between them. Based on this analysis, the main argument of the paper is that despite certain developments towards granting rights based on 'personhood' and not 'nationhood', institutional practices of European citizenship are also heavily dependent on the interface between nation-state and federal arrangements in EU politics. The main reasons for this conclusion are found in the continuing bifurcation of citizenship rights as transnational and supranational in the EU, and the institutionalization of member state nationality as a prerequisite for enjoying such rights. The degree of 'incongruence' or 'de-linkage' is therefore dependent on the mixed nature of EU politics, rather than the effect of postnational projects that address the 'liberation' of citizenship from nationality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on fiscal policy and labour market in European countries focusing on employment and unemployment rates on young people.

Establishing a cornerstone, a fundamental reference point in the new world order, human rights have been a very much cherished but very loosely adopted concept. Thus, in international relations, human rights emerged as a critical issue while the European Union appeared as a remarkable player. Correspondingly, within the European context, human rights stand not only as a defining principle of the EU but also as a tool of its foreign policy. However, parallel to the difficulties experienced in establishing a common foreign policy, the implication of human rights in the EU's relations with third countries remained problematic. In this regard, this paper aims to bring about a closer look at the function of human rights in EU's foreign policy by analyzing the Union's relations with Turkey in terms of human rights. Accordingly, the focus will be on major problematic areas in the EU's human rights policy towards Turkey, with a special emphasis on the discrepancies between the rhetoric and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the prominence, content and justifications of Euroscepticism as a form of EU legitimacy contestation. Support of and opposition to European integration have so far been mainly measured through the positions of political parties or citizens' attitudes through public opinion polls. Against this reliance on static indicators, we focus on dynamic contestation, mediation and formation of public opinion in the public sphere. Our survey delivers original data on EU legitimacy contestation as unfolding on frequently visited political websites and blogs in 12 EU Member States and transnational websites during the European Parliament election campaign of 2009. The results are, first, that intensity of contestation varies across Member States unrelated to the amount of coverage of the elections. Secondly, the majority of contestation focuses on the current institutional set-up of the EU, rather than the principle or future project of European integration. A majority of evaluations made, particularly those by citizens, are negative in all countries included in our study. However, as these Eurosceptical contributions remain relatively underspecified, it is unclear what would alleviate citizens' discontent. Thirdly, we find that a primary concern in EU legitimacy contestation is democracy, especially for those evaluating EU legitimacy negatively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses national parliamentary plenary debates on the Constitutional and the Lisbon Treaty in the six European states; Germany, France, Great Britain, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. The comparative qualitative and quantitative discourse analysis of the plenary debates presents the patterns of support and rejection of the Treaties in the analysed states. The findings of the paper confirm the existing thesis that the left-right and TAN-GAL dimensions explain support for the Treaties. However, the paper also demonstrates that in this case the opposition moved towards the political centre represented by the mainstream conservative and Christian-democratic parties that until now counted among supporters of the European integration. The second factor identified in this paper as accounting for support or rejection of the Treaties was membership in the government: governing parties, also the conservative ones, were more likely to overcome internal opposition in order to ratify the Treaty. Regarding democracy models, the proponents of the Treaties were in favour of the polycentric European Union, whilst the opponents favoured the intergovernmental model. The federal model of the European Union was present in the parliamentary debates, however, it received only negative evaluations. The cosmopolitan model was entirely absent in the discussions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper builds upon the theoretical premises developed by Erik O. Eriksen and John Erik Fossum and empirically examines if democracy at the EU level is closer to the ideal-type of delegated, federal or regional-cosmopolitan democracy. We focus on a particular dimension of parliamentary representation, namely, party politics at the European level, and we concentrate on the 2009 European election party manifestoes. We hypothesise that under the delegated democracy model there should hardly be any similarities between the Euro-party and their member party manifestoes. The opposite should hold for the federal model, whereas in the case of the regionalcosmopolitan model the manifestoes should have a post-national outlook. Even though most manifestoes have a discernible European outlook and the national and Euro-party manifestoes share a number of common features, the differences remain more than the similarities. Our empirical findings suggest that the PES, the EPP and the EGP cannot be placed under the same EU democracy model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the mediatizing potential of the internet on the politics of European integration and the process of enhancing the democratic legitimacy of the European Union (EU), i.e. the ways in which online media participate or interfere with the democratization of the EU by either advancing or constraining the development of a legitimate political order respectively. Using three 'mediatization potential' indicators (publicity, inclusion and degrees of contestation), we focus our analysis on the online debates during the 2009 EU elections (May-June 2009) in twelve memberstates and at trans-European level. Our findings highlight the multiple, conflicting dynamics of mediatization present in the EU political e-sphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2008, the Eurozone has undergone two recessions, which together constitute the "Great Recession." The combination of a decline in output and disinflation as well as a persistent decline in inflation suggests that contractionary monetary policy was one factor. This paper makes two methodological points. First, in analyzing the causes of the Great Recession, it is important to distinguish between credit and monetary policy. Second, a multiplicity of estimated models can "explain" the Great Recession. In practice, economists choose between models through an associated narrative that adds additional information about causation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is part of the joint project between the Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission and the OECD's Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs on "Review of Labour Migration Policy in Europe". This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Grant: HOME/2013/EIFX/CA/002/30-CE-0615920/00-38 (DI130895) A previous version of this paper was presented and discussed at the OECD Working Party on Migration in June 2015. The paper investigates the preferences and post-graduation mobility behaviour of international students, focusing on how the EU could succeed in attracting and keeping highly educated talent from across the globe. Providing their skills to European labour markets, graduates from outside the EU have a potential to enrich the supply of high-skilled labour. Seen as the 28 EU countries still constitute the most attractive destination area for studying abroad, the paper examines different calculation methods in order to generate stay rates for over 170 countries of origin. Empirical results indicate that for the EU as a whole, aggregate stay rates from stayers from all non-EU source countries lie within a range of 16.4% and 29.1%. They are also typically very low among students from other OECD countries, and much higher for students from less developed or politically less stable countries. The paper concludes by recommending a catalogue of measures to boost the EU's attractiveness, and to increase stay rates. Proposed policy measures draw on a smooth labour market integration of international graduates, as well as on cultivating strong points of the European countries, such as: political stability and participation possibilities, reliable institutions and governance structure, as well as an innovative and competitive environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is part of the joint project between the Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission and the OECD’s Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs on “Review of Labour Migration Policy in Europe”. This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Grant: HOME/2013/EIFX/CA/002 / 30-CE-0615920/00-38 (DI130895) A previous version of this paper (DELSA/ELSA/MI(2015)2) was presented and discussed at the OECD Working Party on Migration in June 2015. This paper presents an overview and analysis of the policy development at the EU level regarding external labour migration (ELM). It reviews the shift in ELM policy at the EU level by examining documents and debates. It looks at the treatment of ELM, setting out from the Amsterdam Treaty and then follows the development up to the present, paying close attention to the evolving rational for increasing ELM. The difference between the horizontal approach and the sectoral approach is explained. The major ELM Directives under the sectoral approach are presented and discussed in terms of how they were negotiated and how they fit into the overall ELM policy strategy. The document concludes by identifying current political challenges for expanding the EU approach beyond its present form. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is part of the joint project between the Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission and the OECD's Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs on "Review of Labour Migration Policy in Europe". This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Grant: HOME/2013/EIFX/CA/002 / 30-CE-0615920/00-38 (DI130895) A previous version of this paper was presented and discussed at the OECD Working Party on Migration in June 2015.The paper investigates the notion of the "community preference" which in filling job posts gives a priority to EU-nationals over third-country nationals. Analysing the impact of the principle on the European labour migration policy, the report presents a brief history of the notion, and discusses how it is referred to in EU labour migration policy documents. It also examines the challenges that the principle is facing as the EU immigration policy develops, tending to give increasing rights to third-country nationals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is part of the joint project between the Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission and the OECD's Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs on "Review of Labour Migration Policy in Europe". This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Grant: HOME/2013/EIFX/CA/002/30-CE-0615920/00-38 (DI130895) A previous version of this paper (DELSA/ELSA/MI(2015)4) was presented and discussed at the OECD Working Party on Migration in June 2015. The paper assesses the impact of three European Directives - Student Directive, Researcher Directive and the Blue Card Directive -- on migration flows from third countries to the EU. Using a difference-indifference empirical strategy and data from the EU-LFS and Eurostat database on work permits to non-EU workers, it estimates the effect of each Directive on the inflow of targeted third country nationals. Overall, the econometric analysis does not provide evidence of a direct impact of the implementation of either of the Directives on the inflow of targeted groups. Most member states did experience an increase in the inflow of non-EU high skilled workers after the adoption of the Blue Card Directive; however, this increase can be almost entirely explained by positive pre-existing trends in the inflow of this type of immigrants. Similarly, despite the increase in the number of permits issued to students and researchers from third countries in Europe, difference-in-differences estimates do not provide evidence of a direct effect of the implementation of the Student and Researcher Directive on changes in this type of inflows. The absence of a measurable impact of the three Directives analysed may be due to delayed effects of policy changes, which take time to filter into perception and thus affect immigrant inflows to Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is part of the joint project between the Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission and the OECD’s Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs on “Review of Labour Migration Policy in Europe”. This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Grant: HOME/2013/EIFX/CA/002 / 30-CE-0615920/00-38 (DI130895). This paper is a revised version of an earlier paper (DELSA/ELSA/MI(2015)3) presented and discussed at the OECD Working Party on Migration in June 2015. The paper examines the mechanisms for labour migration management across individual European countries. Distinguishing between high- and low-skilled workers, it investigates the policies aiming at attracting and retaining qualified migrants. It finds that in EU countries there are several different forms of barriers to labour migration, each of which is affected differently by EU legislation. It then specifically focuses on the Student, Researchers and EU Blue Card Directives, studying their effects on the real policy framework in the EU countries affected, in terms of approach. It finds that the first two directives have had a modest impact on the legislative framework, which was largely aligned with the Directive prior to transposition in many cases. The Blue Card scheme is compared in detail with national schemes, in terms of the key parameters of the Directive (criteria, processing standards, benefits, etc.). The paper examines the use of a salary threshold and its different effect according to the country in which it is applied. The paper concludes by examining the impact of these directives on recruitment opportunities, attractiveness and levelling the playing field among EU countries. It explores some options for adjusting the policies in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the sovereign debt crisis of 2012, some southern European countries have debated proposals to leave the Euro. We evaluate this policy change in a standard monetary model with seigniorage financing of the deficit. The main novel feature is that we depart from rational expectations while maintaining full rationality of agents in a sense made very precise. Our first contribution is to show that small departures from rational expectations imply that in ation upon exit can be orders of magnitude higher than under rational expectations. Our second contribution is to provide a framework for policy analysis in models without rational expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article the author discusses the Organised Crime Threat Assessment (OCTA) report of the European Union (EU). The author states that the study has been regarded as a significant step towards a more pro-active approach to fight organised crime in European Union countries. The author examines the effectiveness and reliability of the OCTA as a tool for policymakers to prevent crime and combat crime syndicates.

The article considers the impact of international standards and guidelines on prisoner health in Eastern and Central Europe and draws on some common themes from research carried out in various European prison systems both in adult and juvenile prisons in the new EU member states (MacDonald, 2005, 2004, 2003). The issues discussed affect some states more than others. However, often the same problems are found in established EU states as in new member states. An analysis of what the barriers to implementation are and what future assistance is required to improve implementation of prisoners' right to health care and drug treatment services will be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We find that the introduction of stricter merger control legislation in the European Union in the period 1986-2007 increases the abnormal announcement returns of targets in bank mergers by 7 percentage points. In searching for potential explanations, we document an increase in the pre-merger profitability of targets, a decrease in the size of acquirers and a decreasing share of transactions in which banks are acquired by other banks. Other merger properties, including the size and risk profile of targets, the geographic overlap of merging banks and the stock market response of rivals appear unaffected. The evidence suggests that the strengthening of merger control leads to more efficient and more competitive transactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of OECD Social, Employment & Migration Working Papers is the property of Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The European Union's (EU's) Emissions Trading System (ETS) is a cornerstone of the EU's efforts to meet its obligation under the Kyoto Protocol. It covers more than 11,500 energy intensive facilities across the 25 EU member countries, including oil refineries, powerplants over 20 megawatts (MW) in capacity, coke ovens, and iron and steel plants, along with cement, glass, lime, brick, ceramics, and pulp and paper installations. Covered entities emit about 45% of the EU's carbon dioxide emissions. The trading program does not cover emissions of non-CO2 greenhouse gases, which account for about 20% of the EU's total greenhouse gas emissions. The first trading period began January 1, 2005. A second trading period is scheduled to begin in 2008, with a third one planned for 2013. In deciding on its trading program, the European Commission (EC) adopted a "learning-by-doing" approach to prepare the EU for the Kyoto Protocol's emission limitations. The EU does not have major experience with emissions trading, and the EC felt that an initial program beginning in 2005 would give the EU practical familiarity in operating such a system. At first glance, it would appear that the EU may have little difficulty meeting its Kyoto Protocol requirements during the second trading period. The anticipated deficit between the second trading period for the original 15 Member States can be covered by trading with the 10 newer Member States that anticipate a surplus. Also, credits are likely to be available through Joint Implementation (JI) and Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects sanctioned under the Protocol. However, there are other considerations. The availability of surplus credits created via JI and CDM is restricted by the EC requirement that such credits be "supplemental" to a country's domestic efforts. Each country is to spell out what "supplemental" means in its National Allocation Plans (NAPs) for the second trading period. Individual countries are likely to define that term differently -- restricting allowance trades and purchases in some countries. Another consideration is the overall commitment of the Kyoto Protocol. As noted earlier, the ETS covers only a percentage of the overall greenhouse gas emissions in the various Member States of the EU. Some sectors not covered by the ETS may grow faster than sectors covered by it, creating difficulties for compliance. In particular, the transportation area is already a source of concern. A final consideration for the ETS is its suitability for directing long-term investment toward a low-carbon future -- the ultimate goal of any climate change program. It is too early to tell whether the ETS's market signal and individual countries' NAPs will move investment in the appropriate direction. The early signs are not particularly encouraging, with the 2005-2008 NAPs producing an overallocation of allowances and one major Member State (Germany) attempting to direct its second NAP toward carbon-intensive, coal-fired electric-generating facilities rather than low-carbon alternatives. Reluctance by countries to redirect their NAPs and an inconsistent price signal from the ETS make the long-term effect of the ETS uncertain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sets out to examine the impact of the quality of local and regional governments on the returns of investment, focusing on the returns of EU structural and cohesion funds. Despite the widespread belief that the quality of government affects the returns of public investments, whether this is effectively the case has seldom been proved. Using primary data on quality of government collected by the Quality of Government Institute, combined with World Bank Global Governance Indicators data, we conduct a two-way fixed effect panel regression model for a total of 169 in European regions during the period 1996 to 2007. The results of the analysis underline the importance of the quality of government both as a direct determinant of economic growth, as well as a moderator of the efficiency of structural and cohesion funds expenditure. Our analysis finds that both EU investments targeting regions and quality of government make a difference for regional economic growth, but that above a significant threshold level of expenditure, the quality of government is the key factor determining the returns of public investment. In many of the regions receiving the bulk of structural funds, greater levels of cohesion expenditure would, in the best case scenario, only lead to a marginal improvement in economic growth, unless the quality of government is significantly enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of CMR Working Papers is the property of Centre of Migration Research and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A foreword to the book "Directive on European Works Council," is presented.

The author discusses the aspects on the continuing debate over the causes of the Great Recession and the succeeding recovery in the U.S. and countries like Germany, Great Britain and Sweden. He focuses on two interesting results about the contribution of various shocks to the evolution of diverse variables in several countries, risk premium shock and the two shocks hypothesis which are discussed in detail. Causes of the fall of gross domestic products in the U.S. and Germany are also mentioned.

This paper is part of the joint project between the Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission and the OECD's Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs on "Review of Labour Migration Policy in Europe". This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Grant: HOME/2013/EIFX/CA/002/30-CE-0615920/00-38 (DI130895) A previous version of this paper was presented and discussed at the OECD Working Party on Migration in June 2015. The paper investigates the preferences and post-graduation mobility behaviour of international students, focusing on how the EU could succeed in attracting and keeping highly educated talent from across the globe. Providing their skills to European labour markets, graduates from outside the EU have a potential to enrich the supply of high-skilled labour. Seen as the 28 EU countries still constitute the most attractive destination area for studying abroad, the paper examines different calculation methods in order to generate stay rates for over 170 countries of origin. Empirical results indicate that for the EU as a whole, aggregate stay rates from stayers from all non-EU source countries lie within a range of 16.4% and 29.1%. They are also typically very low among students from other OECD countries, and much higher for students from less developed or politically less stable countries. The paper concludes by recommending a catalogue of measures to boost the EU's attractiveness, and to increase stay rates. Proposed policy measures draw on a smooth labour market integration of international graduates, as well as on cultivating strong points of the European countries, such as: political stability and participation possibilities, reliable institutions and governance structure, as well as an innovative and competitive environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is part of the joint project between the Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs of the European Commission and the OECD's Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs on "Review of Labour Migration Policy in Europe". This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Grant: HOME/2013/EIFX/CA/002/30-CE-0615920/00-38 (DI130895) A previous version of this paper (DELSA/ELSA/MI(2015)4) was presented and discussed at the OECD Working Party on Migration in June 2015. The paper assesses the impact of three European Directives -- Student Directive, Researcher Directive and the Blue Card Directive -- on migration flows from third countries to the EU. Using a difference-indifference empirical strategy and data from the EU-LFS and Eurostat database on work permits to non-EU workers, it estimates the effect of each Directive on the inflow of targeted third country nationals. Overall, the econometric analysis does not provide evidence of a direct impact of the implementation of either of the Directives on the inflow of targeted groups. Most member states did experience an increase in the inflow of non-EU high skilled workers after the adoption of the Blue Card Directive; however, this increase can be almost entirely explained by positive pre-existing trends in the inflow of this type of immigrants. Similarly, despite the increase in the number of permits issued to students and researchers from third countries in Europe, difference-in-differences estimates do not provide evidence of a direct effect of the implementation of the Student and Researcher Directive on changes in this type of inflows. The absence of a measurable impact of the three Directives analysed may be due to delayed effects of policy changes, which take time to filter into perception and thus affect immigrant inflows to Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sources cited within the book "Directive on European Works Council," are presented including "EC Employment Law," by C. Barnard, "European Labour Law," by B. Bercusson and "International Encyclopaedia of Laws and Industrial Relations," edited by R. Blanpain.

The article presents a reprint of the article "US and EU apparel groups set out stance on TTIP" by Leonie Barrie, which appeared in the October 1, 2014 issue of the website. It states that clothing retailers of the U.S. and European Union (EU) have sent a joint position paper to their respective governments asking for flexible regulations, no tariffs and standards that are mutual. It mentions that the U.S. and EU are working on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) deal.

Using data on a broad set of European firms, we find a strong positive relationship between the use of external financing and future productivity (TFP) growth within firms. This relationship is robust to various measures of financing and productivity, and strengthens as financing costs increase. We provide evidence against a reverse-causality explanation by showing that this relationship arises from the component of TFP that is outside the information set of the firm. These findings indicate that financial development supports productivity growth within firms, and helps explain why economic activity remains persistently depressed following financial crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a hypothetical distress insurance premium (DIP) as a measure of the European banking systemic risk, which integrates the characteristics of bank size, default probability, and interconnectedness. Based on this measure, the systemic risk of European banks reached its height in late 2011 around € 500 billion. We find that the sovereign default spread is the factor driving this heightened risk in the banking sector during the European debt crisis. The methodology can also be used to identify the individual contributions of over 50 major European banks to the systemic risk measure. This approach captures the large contribution of a number of systemically important European banks, but Italian and Spanish banks as a group have notably increased their systemic importance. We also find that bank-specific fundamentals predict the one-year-ahead systemic risk contribution of our sample of banks in an economically meaningful way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on various issues related to the development of a right energy policy for securing energy supply in Europe. It discusses the need for member states of the European Union (EU) to engage in energy diplomacy, fostering diplomatic relationships with future energy producers, and the mutual energy relationship between Europe and Russia. It also discusses the need for a single European energy market and the British energy policy that focuses on investments in the renewable sector.

The article focuses on the factors that led to the alliances of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) with several East European countries like Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. However, initially, the post Cold War NATO enlargement in the year1999 is stated to have shown not much co-ordination between the European Union (EU) countries and NATO. The article further informs that NATO enlargement emerged as a result of the cold relations between Russia and the West Countries.

The article reports on the four recent investigations by the European Union (EU) on the issue that certain countries had provided illegal state aid to corporations via favorable tax rulings. The cases mentioned concerns corporations including Apple and Amazon and Starbucks and McDonald and evaluates the possibility of retro activity of the EU actions.

The article presents parliamentary activity covering training, children's services and education in Scotland in 2013. Member of Scottish Parliament Neil Bibby asked the Government for considering to charge students of Great Britain tuition fees, but not students from other European Union (EU) countries as compatible with the law of the EU. The Convener of the Education and Culture Committee Stewart Maxwell introduced an agreement to improve results for looked-after young people and children.

The article presents the conclusion of a paper on the foreign and security policy of the European Union (EU). It indicates that some analysts predict a multipolar world order where countries such as Brazil, Russia, India and China are moving alongside the U.S. and Europe as centers of power. The article also analyzes the U.S.- EU relations and the EU and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) relations, which arose during discussions about the Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP).

The article presents a paper on foreign and security policy of the European Union (EU) prepared by the U.S. Congressional Research Service. It offers an understanding of the complexities of EU policy making, assesses the compatibility and effectiveness of U.S. and EU policy approaches, and explores the long-term implications of changing transatlantic dynamics. The article also elaborates on the institutions and actors as well as instruments of the Common Security and Defense Policy (CDSP).

The article discusses the three proposals for deepening transatlantic economic ties between the U.S. and the European Union (EU), which are the reduction of regulatory barriers, negotiation of a zero-tariff agreement, and movement towards a barrier-free investment. The Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) plays a vital role in fostering regulatory cooperation and reducing regulatory burdens to trade. Several factors support the proposal to eliminate tariffs on U.S.-EU trade, and European companies seeking to invest in the U.S. face two possible hurdles.

The European Union's (EU) Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is a cornerstone of the EU's efforts to meet its obligation under the Kyoto Protocol. It covers more than 11,500 energy intensive facilities across the 27 EU Member countries; covered entities emit about 45% of the EU's carbon dioxide emissions. A "Phase 1" trading period began January 1, 2005. A second, Phase 2, trading period will begin in 2008, covering the period of the Kyoto Protocol, with a third one planned for 2013. Several positives resulting from the Phase 1 "learning by doing" exercise may assist the ETS in making the Phase 2 process run more smoothly, including: (1) greatly improving emissions data, (2) encouraging development of the Kyoto Protocol's project-based mechanisms - Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Joint Implementation (JI), and (3) influencing corporate behavior to begin pricing in the value of allowances in decision-making, particularly in the electric utility sector. However, several issues that arose during the first phase remain contentious as the ETS moves into Phase 2, including allocation schemes, shutdown credits and new entrant reserves, and others. In addition, the expansion of the EU and the implementation of the directives linking the ETS to the Kyoto Protocol project-based mechanisms created new issues to which Phase 2 has had to respond. The United States is not a party to Kyoto. However, almost three years of carbon emissions trading has given the EU valuable experience as it prepares for Kyoto. This experience, along with the process of developing Phase 2 NAPs, may provide some insight into cap-and-trade design issues currently being debated in the U.S. • The U.S. currently requires only electric utilities to monitor CO2. The EU- ETS experience suggests expanding similar requirements to all facilities covered under a cap-and-trade scheme would be pivotal for developing allocation systems, reduction targets, and enforcement provisions. • In the U.S. debate on comprehensive versus sector-specific reduction programs, the EU-ETS experience suggests that adding sectors to a trading scheme once established may be a slow, contentious process. • Like the EU-ETS, most U.S. industry groups either oppose auctions outright or want them to be supplemental to a base free allocation. The EU-ETS experience suggests Congress may want to consider specifying any auction requirement if it wishes to incorporate market economics more fully into compliance decisions. • EU-ETS analysis suggests the most important variables in determining Phase 1 allowance price changes were oil and natural gas price changes; an apparent linkage that raises possible market manipulation issues, particularly with the inclusion of financial instruments such as options and futures contracts. Congress may ultimately be asked to consider whether the Securities and Exchange Commission or the Commodities Futures Trading Commission should have regulatory and oversight authority over such instruments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses various issues tackled in the consultations of British legislators for November 2014. Topics covered include the directive released by the European Union (EU) to facilitate free movement of professionals in the region as well as the proposal of the Department of Education to extend the resident requirement for nationals in EU in England. Also mentioned is the development of standards for teaching assistants in Great Britain.