Studying the New Constitutionalism: bringing political science back in

Books reviewed in this article:
R. Blackburn, and R. Plant, (eds) Constitutional Reform. London and New York
M. Foley, The Politics of the British Constitution
R. Hazell, (ed.) Constitutional Futures: A History of the Next Ten Years
K. Sutherland, (ed.) The Rape of the Constitution?     

Britannia waived the rules: The Major government and the 1994 Rwandan genocide

Ten years after the 1994 Rwandan genocide occurred, seriousquestions remain about the circumstances of the British government'sresponse. This article critically evaluates the response ofJohn Major's government to the genocide. It does so in fourstages. The first section provides a brief overview of the Majorgovernment's international agenda in 1994, focusing on Britishpolicy towards the war in Bosnia and the African continent ingeneral. The second section deals with the substance of Britain'sRwanda policy, while the third discusses the ways in which thispolicy has been almost totally omitted from mainstream accountsof this period. The final section provides a critical evaluationof some of the tactics that British officials employed to avertcriticism of their government's policies. Based on the evidencepresented we conclude that the British government displayeda deeply troubling indifference towards the victims of Rwanda'sgenocide.     

Electing the Leader: The British Labour Party's Electoral College

This article uses a principal-agent model to explore how leadership selection rules affect the autonomy and security of tenure of the British Labour party's leader. It examines Labour's electoral college, which was intended to enable activists and trade unions to hold the leader to account. However, it had the reverse effect, increasing leaders' autonomy. Nomination rules frustrate activist attempts to instigate leadership contests, while a range of 'transaction costs' rule out anything but the most serious challenges to incumbents. The college was originally dominated by trade unions because block voting enabled union leaders to determine the trajectory of contests. The introduction of 'one member–one vote' curtailed the power of union leaders, shifting power mainly to MPs. The conceptual tools deployed can be used to analyse leadership selection mechanisms in other parties.     

Berlin's Republic: Parliamentary government in a German land

Berlin is the only German Land that has had to manage its own reunification and originally many hoped that it would turn into a model for east–west reconciliation. Yet 15 years later there is widespread consensus that Berlin failed to live up to the challenges of the time and adequately deal with the consequences of reunification. Instead of embarking on structural reforms Berlin produced its own version of a Reformstau. The article describes and examines some basic features of the party system in Berlin and the Berlin polity. It will thus give an answer to the question as to how unification affected the institutional setting in this Land. Overall it will be shown that the Reformstau in Berlin cannot be explained by a fragmented political system or powerful veto players. Political stagnation in Berlin rather was due to the combined effects of party system change, institutional stagnation, and constitutionally inhibited political leadership.     

Militares Empresarios: Approaches to Studying the Military as an Economic Actor

In the twentieth century, Latin American militaries developed economic industries, organised businesses, and provided security and development assistance in lieu of the state. Despite shifts to democracy and the market, the military remains an economic actor in many countries in the region. This article seeks to open debate and suggest ways to approach the subject theoretically. It examines the concept of military entrepreneurs and scholarship on the topic, and then suggests how three approaches from the domain of comparative politics – rational, structural and cultural – can be useful to develop theoretical frameworks for studying the military's role in the economy.     

Perils of pork‐barrel politics: The birth of the Murayama government

In August 1993, Morihiro Hosokawa's coalition government brought an end to the “1955 Regime” of Liberal Democratic Party‐dominated politics in Japan. Since then, Hosokawa himself has been brought down, as has his successor Tsutomu Hata. After years of stability, Japanese politics are now marked by confusion and indecision that show no signs of abating. In this article, IIPS Research Director Seizaburo Sato, who is also professor of political science at Keio University in Tokyo, points out that whatever happens to the not‐so‐strange bedfellows of the present governing coalition, Japan as a nation is at a historical crossroads, and the decisions it makes in the next few years will have far‐reaching implications.     

Institutionalising the 'eternal return': textbooks and the study of British politics

Anthony Birch, The British System of Government
Ian Budge and David McKay (eds), The Developing British PoliticalSystem: the 1990s
Ian Budge, Ivor Crewe, David McKay and Ken Newton, The NewBritish Politics
Bill Coxall and Lynton Robins, Contemporary British Politics
John Dearlove and Peter Saunders, Introduction to British Politics
Patrick Dunleavy, Andrew Gamble, Ian Holliday and Gillian Peele (eds), Developments in British Politics 5
Bill Jones, Andrew Gray, Dennis Kavanagh, Michael Moran, Philip Nortonand Anthony Seldon, Politics UK
Dennis Kavanagh, British Politics: Continuities and Change
John Kingdom, Government and Politics in Britain: An Introduction
John P. Mackintosh, The Government and Politics of Britain
R. M. Punnett, British Government and Politics
Robert Pyper and Lyton Robins (eds), Governing the UK in the 1990s     

Regions and the constitution for Europe: German and British impacts

Regions have attempted to influence the emerging constitutional order of the EU for around 20 years. The German Länder have made a particular impact in sensitising the Union to regional concerns at successive Intergovernmental Conferences since Maastricht. They were also the leading regional voice in shaping debates at the Convention on the Future of Europe, though the Scottish government also succeeded in leaving an imprint on the Constitution for Europe. This article contrasts the different understandings in Germany and Scotland of how regions should make their interests felt. The German Länder have opted for a strategy focused heavily on using the structure of the member state to limit EU regulation of their fields of competence, while the Scottish government developed a more open-ended and flexible strategy based also in constructive engagement beyond the member state at the EU level. In the light of the Scottish approach the article questions whether the Länder strategy is too one-dimensional, leaving them over-dependent on the German federal government.