Brexit,Cabinet Norms and the Ministerial Code: Are we Living in a post-Nolan Era?

The Nolan Report will celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2020, and for most of this last quarter-century, it has provided the underlying ethical basis for public life in the United Kingdom. However, its principles are now being called into question in a number of areas, following the Conservative government’s loss of its parliamentary majority in the 2017 election, with the interests of party taking precedence over adherence to both the spirit and the codified practical implementation of some of the ultimate outcomes of Nolan, namely the Ministerial Code and the Commissioner for Parliamentary Standards. This article argues, with explicit evidence and examples, that ministerial conduct which would not have been tolerated before 2017 is now being routinely ignored in the interest of maintaining party unity in order to deliver some form of Brexit. The article concludes by asking whether Nolan norms still command consensus post-Brexit.     

希伯来法中商业交易规范考辨

希伯来法是西方法律文明和英美法的源头之一,具有很高的研究价值.希伯来的商业交易规范是以《圣经》为法律渊源,源自习惯法则和宗教信仰,由此倡导契约守信观念和诚实无欺的贸易规则.从摩西时期的《圣经·旧约》到犹太教法典编纂时期的《塔木德》,商业交易规范形成与发展折射出希伯来商法的演变历程,也从一个侧面反映了西方商法成长的最初概貌,因此对其做一细致的考证,在外国法律史研究上颇有补正的功效.     

试论民间法的司法进入

法律的存在应该回应社会的需求,因此,国家不应忽视在社会中起实际调整作用的民间法。民间法具有地域性、非正式性和内生性等特点,它的特点决定了民间法进入国家法的最好途径是司法途径。当然这种进入不是无条件的,它要求能够作为法源的民间法要具有普遍性、延续性、适时性、合理性、可诉性和权利义务性。     

刑法机能产生的制度基础

刑法的整体机能是由刑法的诸多构成要素共同相互作用的结果,但是,对于刑法的每一种具体机能来说,其产生却分别由刑法不同的构成要素所决定。考察刑法机能产生的制度基础,其实践上的意义在于:我们可以在对刑法机能与刑法构成要素之间的关系进行充分了解的基础上,通过优化刑法的结构而建构刑法机能的良性机制;以技术手段增加刑法的有效性,使刑法真正成为有目的的社会控制手段。     

论中国的合作经济

20世纪 5 0年代中期的合作化 ,从方向上说 ,组织个体劳动者走合作化道路是完全正确的 ,但采取搞政治运动的方式来搞合作化 ,严重违背了自愿互利原则 ,违背了经济规律 ,则不能肯定。从改革开放 2 0多年的实践情况看 ,老模式的集体经济与新模式的合作经济 ,二者的发展态势是不相同的 ,并总结出了 8种合作经济的类型。合作制和集体制尽管都属于公有制范畴 ,但它们是两种不同类型的公有制和企业制度 ,鉴于老的集体经济模式已出现萎缩状态 ,必须进行制度创新 ,按新体制规范发展。     

中国政策科学的理论困境及其本土化出路

十多年来,我国政策科学在现实政策问题的推动下显得异常的活跃,但由于理论和方法主要是照搬其他学科和西方的体系,缺乏学科自身理论的建树和创新,这种理论上的困境导致学科整体发展缓慢,使政策科学学科长期停留在较低的水平。从讨论中国政策科学发展的基本情况和特点入手,分析政策科学在中国发展所面临的问题和困境的根源,试图从社会科学本土化的角度探讨中国公共政策科学追求自身完善,摆脱学科发展困境的某些理论和方法的问题。     

Brandom on Norms and Objectivity

The aim of this paper is to investigate Brandom’s conception of the objectivity of norms. In Making It Explicit Brandom supports a weak notion of objectivity based on his understanding of the perspectival structure of linguistic practices. In his following works, he resorts to the Hegelian notion of recognition, adding a historical dimension to his account. I contend that this notion of objectivity can be successfully defended against the objections raised by the commentators. In particular, it does not jeopardise the same possibility of communication, as claimed by Habermas and others, unless a strongly objective notion of communication is assumed. However, the paradigm shift from a strong to a weak understanding of objectivity entails a consequent revision of the conception of social criticism.     

The moment you decide,you divide: How politicians assess procedural fairness

Are politicians more rational decision makers than citizens? This article contributes to the ongoing debate by examining how politicians and citizens assess the fairness of the process leading to a controversial policy decision. It contains theories as to why it is tempting to match the favourability of policy decision with a fairness assessment of the preceding process, and how politicians and citizens differ in their approach to the task. Having derived three hypotheses, parallel scenario experiments are run in large samples of Swedish politicians and citizens, in which the outcome and fairness of a policy decision process are manipulated. As predicted, it is found that both politicians and citizens match the favourability of the decision with the assessment of the process, that these self-serving biases are stronger among politicians, and that policy engagement accounts for the group-level difference.     

Contending regionalisms: hubs and challengers in the Americas and the Asia-Pacific

As regions become more institutionalized, they are characterized by two competing trends. First, key regional institutions can become hub institutions that act as transmitters of a comprehensive set of norms. Second, as regional institutions increase in number, regions themselves are liable to become more fragmented. How these trends have played out is explored in two key regions, the Americas and the Asia-Pacific. It is concluded that regions are not static entities but are ever-changing structural arrangements. Hub institutions can be challenged and the consequences can be significant as regions gain in importance on the international stage.     

劳动人权与法律规范下的劳动自治

劳动人权是人权的重要内容之一,每个人都享有与生俱来的劳动权利。应当平等保障所有劳动者的劳动人权,以体现劳动价值。在此法律规范下,劳动自治作为意思自治在劳动关系领域的反映,体现了劳动权的契约自由。应允许符合劳动伦理的劳动力自由交易行为。国家应在国际劳工标准基础上,建立与社会物质生活条件相适应的劳动年龄制度,顾及未成年人和退休人员的劳动需求。法律对劳动权利应当保护性限制,而非限制性保护。