The Final Frontiers of Healthcare Universalisation in Costa Rica and Panama

This article explains how Costa Rica and Panama, two Central American countries with nearly universal public healthcare programmes, have come to enjoy such broad coverage. It then describes the distinct paths each is taking towards reaching the populations still left out of healthcare coverage. Costa Rica is seeking to bring all residents under the umbrella of its ILO‐style social security plan. Panama is targeting the rural poor with a package of defined interventions aimed at maternal and child mortality. The article frames these cases within the literature on the varieties of universalism.     

Fathers,Families and Work: Putting ‘Working Fathers’ in the Picture

This article is a review of Fathers, Families and Work, one of a series of reports published as part of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC)'s ‘Working Better’ programme. The article examines Fathers, Families and Work in the context of the wider conclusions and recommendations of the ‘Working Better’ programme and considers the extent to which these recommendations will translate into public policy. It concludes that there is a gap between parents' desire for both mothers and fathers to be involved in caring for children and the reality of long hours and inflexible workplaces that limits the time men can spend caring for children.     

An Analysis of the Time to Adoption of Local Sales Taxes: A Duration Model Approach

The timing of the decision of local governments to adopt a local sales tax is explored in a duration model with time‐varying covariates. Our framework suggests a set of factors associated with the decision to adopt a local sales tax and we find empirical support for these factors. We also consider whether the adoption by one jurisdiction depends on the adoption by neighboring jurisdictions and find empirical support for interdependency of behavior.     

Growthism and the Green Backlash

Recent years have seen the growth of a 'green backlash' movement which has argued against 'the myths of environmentalism'. Many environmentalists have pointed out the political motivation and factual errors in much of these arguments. But what has not been given much attention is their underlying philosophy. To look at this is to find an ideology, related to neoliberalism, which we might call 'growthism'; based on a utopian faith in the inevitability of endless material growth, this is animated by a revolt against the very idea of limits. This faith has a potent influence on contemporary politics, which we can best see in relief: as today the only serious challenge to the neoliberal hegemony over electoral politics comes from environmentalism, so we can see revealed in the green backlash the utopianism of that unquestioned principle at the heart of all mainstream political debate - the commitment to economic growth.