Agricultural policy modelling under imperfect competition

This study evaluates the role of imperfect competition in determining the agri-food policies impact assessment outcomes. In most impact studies, the supply chain between agricultural production and final consumption is modelled in a perfectly competitive framework. However, there is a growing attention of stakeholders for the presence of imperfectly competitive markets, with the retail sector often being under investigation. This issue is empirically analysed with an application to the dairy industry. First, the degree of market power is estimated using a multi-output demand and price transmission equation system. Then, this model is used for policy simulation with the perfect competition outcome taken as a benchmark to evaluate the impact of imperfect competition. Results show a significant degree of market power in the dairy industry with implications on the projected policy scenarios. Moreover, the imperfect competition model alters the price transmission mechanisms, generating more flexible price trends.     

Modeling trade policies under alternative market structures

The paper focuses on the importance of assumptions made about market structure and firm behavior in empirical trade policy analysis. The contribution to the relevant literature is 3-fold: first the paper develops two original models which incorporate imperfectly competitive market structures in a spatial modeling framework; then it proposes a procedure to identify the degree of market power in international trading which is consistent with observed prices and traded quantities, and applies it to the banana market; finally, it assesses how analysis of the implications of recent changes in the EU import regimes for bananas (the Economic Partnership Agreements and the December 2009 WTO agreement) is affected by the assumptions made on the prevailing market structure.     

Telecommunications infrastructure in Australia

This paper considers Australia’s approach to telecommunications infrastructure from the perspectives of the policy official and the public administration scholar. From the official’s perspective, the approach has been successful in stimulating private sector investment in many markets. This has been achieved by promoting open competition and where necessary establishing a government business enterprise as a transitional measure to build and operate a next-generation National Broadband Network (NBN) to provide high-speed fixed-line broadband to all Australian premises by 2020. From the academic perspective, however, the approach reveals the shifting balances between political objectives and market challenges. This paper consists of three main parts. The first is an introduction by a former senior public servant turned public administration scholar. The second is from a policy official and provides an overview of the Australian telecommunications market, starting with some historical context, the deregulation in the 1990s and the privatisation of the former government-owned telecommunications incumbent, Telstra. The third is from a public administration scholar and provides a short complementary critique of Australia’s communications policy. The paper discusses, from different perspectives, the policy settings that have been adopted to support infrastructure competition and investment in the Australian telecommunications market, including the development of the NBN.     

An economic analysis of nanofood labeling

The paper examines the economic effects of labeling food nanotechnology products using an analytical framework of heterogeneous consumers and imperfectly competitive suppliers. Labeling results in increased costs for nanofood producers (the cost effect of the labeling policy), reduced consumer uncertainty regarding the nature of the food product (certainty effect), and can affect consumer attitudes towards nanofoods by being perceived as a warning signal (stigma effect). In this context, nanofood labeling can change the perceived quality differences between nanofoods and their conventional and organic counterparts, with such changes being more salient when the stigma effect is large, when consumers have low awareness of food nanotechnology in the absence of labeling, and/or when competition among nanofood suppliers is more intense. Despite its empirical relevance, the impact of a labeling policy on consumer preferences (and the economic ramifications of such impact) has largely been ignored by the theoretical literature on the economics of labels. Our analysis shows that it matters. Specifically, our study shows that the market and welfare effects of labeling are case-specific and dependent on consumer awareness of, and attitudes towards food nanotechnology before and after the introduction of the policy as well as the relative magnitude of the cost, certainty and stigma effects of nanofood labeling. Our analytical findings also suggest that the effects of nanofood labels on consumer welfare are asymmetric with certain groups of consumers benefiting even when labeling has a stigma effect on nanofoods.     

Social Inclusion and Place‐Focused Initiatives in Western Sydney: A Review of Current Practice

This paper presents a review of the range of policies and programs that currently direct resources to disadvantaged communities in New South Wales, with a specific focus on the western Sydney region. These ‘place‐focused initiatives’ are the main sources of funding for community renewal from a range of government agencies at federal, state and local government levels. The research on which this paper is based identified thirty‐six programs administered or managed through thirteen government agencies or departments with a combined budget in excess of $163m in 2000/2001. It is argued that this diverse range of programs, while important, is highly fragmented, lacks a coherent spatial targeting framework, is poorly related to either local social or physical planning processes, and is poorly integrated in terms of its local outcomes. Moreover, beyond the public housing estates, existing policies lack the capacity to address the poor housing market conditions that generate local concentrations of disadvantage. A number of alternative policy ideas are presented that, if developed, might offer a better framework for the delivery of integrated policies to address the problems of social disadvantage and exclusion at the local level.     

Third Way Social Governance: Where is the State?

The ‘Third Way’ politics of Blair's New Labour government of the United Kingdom has popularised a number of policy reforms centred on a supposedly new discourse of ‘devolution’, ‘inclusion’, ‘partnerships’ and ‘community’. These notions reflect a re‐emergence of the ideas and values of civil society, participation and localism. Key drivers of this discourse are: new conceptions of citizenship; a retreat from the social state to a politics of community; and a questioning of both ‘big‐state’ interventionist and competitive market approaches to public policy. These trends have resonance in the Australian context. The welfare reform agenda of the Australian Commonwealth government together with community building and engagement initiatives of State governments have been sites for these policy directions. Much of the debate surrounding these policies excludes or minimises the fundamental role of an active state by focusing on an uncritical conception of community. Drawing on the notion of network governance, an alternative framework for re‐conceptualising state‐community relations and delivering improved community outcomes is posited. The paper concludes by suggesting possible social governance methodologies for actioning this framework.     

Economic crisis and social policy reform in Korea

The economic crisis that broke out in Korea in December 1997 has had a chilling impact on social development in the country. Today unemployment is the highest that Korea has experienced in the past thirty years. This paper aims to examine the impact of the economic crisis on social development and the role of public policy to mitigate the problems caused by the crisis. The economic crisis has hit vulnerable groups harder, increased the proportion of part-time and daily workers, and reversed the trend of steady improvement of income distribution. The economic crisis along with the trend of aging population, globalization, and competition calls for an expanded role of social policy, which the Korean government has neglected for a long time. The main targets of social policy reform in Korea include the expansion of government programs and safety nets for the unemployed and redesigning the national pension and health insurance scheme to provide adequate income security as well as to improve the system sustainability.     

Market Forces for the Unemployed? Training Vouchers in Germany and the USA

Vouchers are meant to increase competition and consumer choice in public service markets. Using the example of training vouchers for the unemployed in the USA and Germany, we show, however, that deficits, both on the demand and the supply side of the market, create problems with preference alignment and market formation. Information asymmetries undermine choice by the unemployed and reduce government control over the training system. Ironically, restrictions meant to compensate for these information deficits further inhibit competitive market formation. Evaluation data on training vouchers from both countries show that voucher systems do not increase choice, but weaken the partnerships public employment agencies previously had with training providers, and may lead to a shortage of high‐quality and specialized training, as well as creaming in the selection of training participants. Theoretical justification for vouchers is based on the notion of choice and consumer sovereignty. Using this framework to analyse the changed relationship between government, private training providers, and jobseekers, we challenge the efficacy of vouchers as a delivery mechanism in complex public service markets such as job training.     

日本新冠疫情的社会影响与政策选择

新冠病毒疫情对日本社会各个方面都产生了严重的影响。疫情防治本身就属于社会政策范畴。总体而言,日本作为东方国家所实施的防疫政策取得较好效果,但同时也存在着一些问题。相对宽松甚至曾经数度放缓的防疫政策使日本错过了疫情治理的最佳时机,因而导致疫情的长期化。实现经济复苏是日本政府关注的重点,规模空前的经济刺激政策与以防疫为主导的社会政策之间既有结合也存在矛盾。日本政治的变化具有长期的社会基础,新冠疫情的暴发与蔓延使其凸显出来。在新的国际格局条件下,日本面临着外交战略方向的重大选择。     

Discourse, Learning and Welfare State Change: The Case of German Labour Market Reforms

In this article we argue that Germany has significantly changed its approach to labour market policies (LMPs) during the past decade; in many instances Britain has served as a model to learn from. In a first step, we identify the core institutional arrangements of the conservative approach to LMP in Germany and contrast them with the liberal approach, using the UK as an example. Secondly, we trace the development and nature of changes in German LMP since the 1990s. We show that the policy has increasingly incorporated elements of, and to a considerable extent shifted towards, a liberal approach. Thirdly, we review competing theoretical approaches that might explain this turn in LMP and conclude that changed interpretative patterns have been crucial to understand the overall shift. Fourthly, utilizing the policy transfer framework, we show that in regards to the specific policy instruments German policy‐makers have learnt from the experiences in the UK.     

消极“安全化”与政治社会化:日本儿童版《防卫白皮书》的双重逻辑CSSCI

2021年8月16日,日本防卫省首次发布面向中小学生的儿童版《防卫白皮书》。该白皮书采用儿童易于接受的形式,着力渲染了来自中国等各方面的威胁,而其背后则隐藏着消极“安全化”与政治社会化的双重逻辑。一方面,日本政府不遗余力渲染威胁、塑造敌人,炮制各种安全问题,并将此类负面价值向儿童宣传灌输;另一方面,日本政府面对后疫情时代变数较多的国内外形势,着力推进儿童政治社会化政策,以通过保持政治文化的一致性来维护稳定。可以说,儿童版《防卫白皮书》是以上两者相交融的扭曲产物,必然会对日本本国儿童及地区国家关系产生十分消极的影响,其后续动向值得高度警惕。     

NHS Purchaser–Provider Relationships in England and Wales: The View from Primary Care

Primary care organizations (PCOs) in the National Health Service in England and Wales are required to purchase most hospital-based health care for their populations. This 'quasi-market' in health care can be seen as 'relational', characterized by an emphasis on cooperative long-term relationships rather than on true competition. The English government has recently introduced new market mechanisms as a response to the perceived weakness of the relational market. This article draws on three qualitative case studies of PCOs to investigate whether PCO personnel interviewed in 2005/6 concurred with that perception of weakness. Overall, relationships between PCOs and hospital services providers were regarded as unbalanced in favour of the latter, despite a shared framework of central government policy. Commissioners were seen as generally weak, and providers were judged to be generally unresponsive to PCOs' wishes. Top–down pressure by governments on PCOs and providers of hospital services was more important than commissioning power in shaping hospital services. It remains to be seen whether the remarketization strategy succeeds in strengthening the commissioning function in primary care.     

A Systematic Approach to Instruction in Research Ethics

This article describes a systematic approach for developing instructional programs that emphasizes defining learning needs, planning the learning environment, and evaluating learning to ensure continuous course improvement. This review outlines the nature of these interrelated components of instructional development and draws attention to issues specific to instruction in research ethics. Guiding questions summarize key, practical considerations, and the discussion suggests future steps in the pursuit of effective instruction in research ethics. Overall, the variety of approaches to instruction and mixed findings regarding its effectiveness underscore the need to apply a systematic framework to instruction in research ethics.     

效率何处寻:对温州民营企业发展的一项考察

本文的关注点在于,改革开放以来,"温州模式"下民营企业的效率机制产生的来源是什么.关于企业的效率机制历来存在两种解释路径:来自企业内部的制度优化和由地方政府及地方市场提供的支持资源.本文考察了这两种解释路径在不同规模企业里的适用性,并提出两种解释路径不是相互竞争的关系,它们对不同规模的企业有着不一样的适用性.文章对制度化产权和家族管理模式、理性化的企业运作、源自政府的支持对企业效率的实际影响提出了一些新的思考.     

DISABILITY AND PRODUCTIVE EMPLOYMENT: A PREDICTION OF FAILURE AND A PROPOSAL FOR CHANGE

This article will argue that recent disability services legislation has selectively interpreted the concepts of normalisation and integration to focus on employment for people with an intellectual disability as a major policy goal. It will be contended that the nature of the contemporary labour market is such that this goal cannot be fulfilled and therefore that the aim of enhancing quality of life cannot be achieved. The article recommends an approach to the reorientation of policy which is based upon a critical analysis of the cultural position of people with disabilities. In this regard, the notion of cultural productivity is introduced as a framework within which some solutions may be found.     

论我国粮食生产与贸易保护政策的演变趋势

对粮食生产与贸易实行特殊保护 ,是各国政府普遍实行的一种特殊政策。但是 ,以国家干预为特点的粮食保护政策 ,必然会扭曲市场运行机制 ,削弱资源优化配置功能 ,这就要求建立符合我国国情和市场经济规律要求的粮食贸易与保护政策 ,以增强我国粮食的竞争力。     

The Informal Economy: A Case Study in Unrestrained Competition

The New Labour government in Britain is the first post-deregulation regime in Europe and the first to attempt to re-regulate the labour market. In particular, its welfare-to-work programme and New Deal for Lone Parents are aimed at shifting activities from the informal to the formal economy, and at enlarging labour market participation. Its commitment to social justice and inclusion is closely linked to increased employment opportunities and a responsibility for contributing to national prosperity. The new programmes must also reconcile these aims with the retention of the flexibility that it sees as giving Britain a competitive edge over other European economies. In order to combine efficiency and equity, increased participation must not involve excessive transaction and enforcement costs. The problem is that those at present engaged in the informal economy (and especially in undeclared cash work while claiming) do not have strong incentives to cooperate with the new schemes. This paper uses the example of the informal relations of taxi-driving in a small town to illustrate the paradoxes of this situation. It is a case study in the rational strategies of individual actors, which collectively frustrate each other; and in the difficulties of starting collective action for mutual restraint of competition. The New Labour government must solve many such problems if its policies are to succeed.     

农业农村发展中的政府与市场、社会：一个分析框架

统筹城乡发展要求政府承担促进农业农村发展的责任。我国政府以国家干预、政府主导为特征的农业农村政策,在农业发展、农民增收和城乡协调发展等方面都已取得较大进展,但现有农业政策在提高农业生产率方面的限度日益显现。有鉴于此,急需构建一个政府调控和引导农业农村发展的新的分析框架,在其中,政府需要界分与市场、农村社会组织之间的行为边界,在充分尊重市场配置资源的基础性作用、尊重农村社会自主管理的基础上,体现政府职能的＂兜底＂特征;而且,政府在构建市场/社会运行的基本制度、匡正和补充市场/社会失灵、培育市场/社会主体等职能中需要进行逻辑先后排序。应用这一新分析框架,加强和改善政府对农业农村发展的调控和引导,就需要基于农业市场化取向改革农村基本经营制度和农业支持保护体系,注重对农业生产市场主体的培育;需要以政府为主体构建城乡一体化的基本公共服务体系,创新农村社会管理体制,充分调动社会力量参与公共事务治理;需要基于城乡一体化要求重构政府行政管理体制,确保农业农村发展政策的落实。     

Making Markets in the English National Health Service

Many commentators point to the rise of markets in public services such as healthcare. However, the conventional ‘similarity’ thesis has been challenged by the ‘difference’ thesis. This article critiques and extends the analysis of a recent contribution by Jane Gingrich to the ‘difference thesis’ with a more detailed case study of the English National Health Service (NHS). It argues that the text tends to ignore earlier models and other associated variables; provides a rather crude monolithic characterization of ‘left’ and ‘right’; and assumes rather than demonstrates strategic choice. It modifies some of her major conclusions: markets in public services matter (correct); markets vary in profound and important ways (correct, but perhaps in other ways); and partisan politics are central to explaining and shaping markets (perhaps over‐stated). While Gingrich's ‘breadth’ account is persuasive at the macro‐level, some questions arise from a more detailed account of the English NHS. First, it is not certain that Gingrich's typology is based on the most important dimensions. Second, her account tends to under‐state the importance of issues such as the nature of contracts, price competition, regulation and policies such as Private Finance Initiative. Third, it is not clear that the Conservative healthcare market can be characterized as an Austerity Market, and the Labour market as a Consumer‐Controlled Market. Fourth, this static characterization under‐states the degree of change between and within governments. Lastly, it is not clear what type of market the coalition government has introduced, but this hybrid type may be marked more by policy learning than ideology.