Subsidiary,supporter or challenger? Local‐national relations in Japan

The impact of governance attributes on frequently overlooked attitudes of local councillors towards local governance reform agendas is assessed, based on the MAELG survey of approximately 11,000 councillors in 15 European countries and Israel. Eighteen policy statements are grouped into six reform agendas, followed by analyses of their explanatory factors. Europe's north–south divide is found meaningful for the understanding of variations in attitudes towards reform, being most profound in notions of democracy, participation and devolution. Southern Europe, including post-communist Europe, shows clear support for new democratic mechanisms, whereas northern European councillors reveal more reserved, perhaps weary, attitudes towards reforms. Councillors may provide the ‘correct’ statements in the south, because less has been reformed there so far, knowing that change would anyway be difficult. Substantial variations between different northern sub-groups could be linked to the memory of non-democratic regimes in Germany and Austria and to the influence of existing systems, deeply embedded in local political cultures. Nevertheless, the impact of present institutional practices is far from universal. Councillors in liberal regimes are not pro-privatisation, and cautious attitudes towards reform are shared by northern decentralised and centralised countries.     

Meeting the Information Needs of Older People: A Challenge for Local Governance

The challenge of the ageing population is not just to provide more services but to employ new strategies. One of these is the need to rethink the provision of information to older people and their carers. This paper makes four points. First, that information and access to information have become more critical issues. Second, that older people may place a much higher value on information than other citizen groups but their access is poor for a range of reasons. Third, that the processes by which older people seek information may be empowering. Finally, effective partnerships with creative older people can be a catalyst to changing governance cultures which is a vital step in modernising local government. The paper draws upon examples from the author's experience of working alongside older people under the umbrella of the Better Life in Later Life project in Newcastle upon Tyne.     

Partial Privatisation in Local Services Delivery: An Empirical Analysis of the Choice of Mixed Firms

Mixed public–private firms are increasingly used in several European countries. This paper makes use of survey data from Spanish municipalities to examine the motivations of local governments for engaging in partial privatisation of local service delivery of water distribution and solid waste collection. The empirical analysis indicates that mixed firms emerge as a pragmatic middle way between purely public and purely private production. Indeed, local governments make use of mixed firms when cost considerations, financial constraints and private interests exert contradictory pressures. Political and ideological factors play no significant role in that decision.     

Changing aspects of government–society relations in South Korea: evidence from the evolution of environmental policy governance

In South Korea, the development of environmental policy did not garner much attention from either the government or society before the mid-1980s, although policy-making in this sphere had a long history prior to this time, as with other traditional policy areas. Moreover, it is significant that mid-1980s in Korea was a period characterised by a new political–economic landscape that induced changes in the aims and roles of the government and society in policy-making. Thus, specific developments of Korea's government–society relationship may be reflected in the evolution of its environmental policy. This paper aims to analyse the changing aspects of this relationship in the area of environmental policy by examining environmental policy governance since 1971. The research results show that the government–society relationship in this policy area has been gradually transformed – from a stage of confrontation to that of complex interactions. Per the findings, this paper argues that the relationship needs to be further enhanced to a stage of institutionalisation, and explores ways of achieving this goal.     

Pro-poor development performance of livestock projects: analysis and lessons from projects' documentation

The importance of livestock as a pathway out of poverty is widely recognised, but the effectiveness of pro-poor livestock development projects has been questioned. This study examines a sample of livestock development projects to draw lessons about their effectiveness and identify best practice. A large proportion of projects (60 per cent) were categorised as having not been successful. Project success is found to be positively associated with size of project, diversity of direct project beneficiaries, institution development activities in projects, and effective monitoring and evaluation activities. Lack of reliability of government partners, and inclusion of other agricultural activities together with livestock activities in projects, undermine success.

Résultats en matière de développement pro-pauvres des projets basés sur l’élevage : analyse et enseignements tirés de la documentation de projets

L'importance de l’élevage comme moyen d’échapper à la pauvreté est largement reconnu, mais l'efficacité des projets de développement pro-pauvres basés sur l’élevage a été mise en cause. Cette étude examine un échantillon de projets de développement basés sur l’élevage pour en tirer des enseignements concernant leur efficacité et identifier les meilleures pratiques. Un considérable pourcentage des projets (60 pour cent) ont été catégorisés comme n'ayant pas réussi. Le succès des projets se révèle être positivement associé à la taille du projet, à la diversité des bénéficiaires directs du projet, aux activités de développement des institutions dans le cadre des projets, et à des activités efficaces de suivi et d’évaluation. Le manque de fiabilité des partenaires gouvernementaux et l'inclusion d'autres activités agricoles dans les activités d’élevage dans le cadre des projets ont aussi une incidence négative sur le succès.

Desempeño de los proyectos de desarrollo ganadero en pro de los pobres: análisis y aprendizajes a partir de la documentación de los proyectos

Es ampliamente reconocida la importancia que tiene el ganado como un medio para salir de la pobreza. Sin embargo, se ha cuestionado la efectividad de algunos proyectos de desarrollo ganadero en pro de los pobres. El presente estudio examina una muestra de proyectos de desarrollo ganadero, con el fin de obtener aprendizajes sobre su efectividad y de identificar las mejores prácticas. Un elevado porcentaje (60%) de los proyectos fue clasificado como no exitoso. Se encontró que el éxito del proyecto se asocia positivamente a su tamaño, a la diversidad de los beneficiarios directos, a las actividades de desarrollo llevadas a cabo por las instituciones participantes en el proyecto, así como a actividades de monitoreo y de evaluación efectivas. El éxito de los proyectos se ve disminuido por la falta de formalidad de las contrapartes gubernamentales y por la incorporación de otras actividades agrícolas en los proyectos ganaderos.

Desempenho de projetos sobre gado pra o desenvolvimento dos pobres: análise e lições extraídas da documentação de projetos

A importância da criação de gado como um caminho para sair da pobreza é altamente reconhecida, mas a efetividade de projetos sobre a criação de gado para o desenvolvimento de pessoas pobres tem sido questionada. Este estudo examina uma amostra de projetos sobre criação de gado para o desenvolvimento visando extrair lições sobre sua efetividade e identificar as melhores práticas. Uma grande proporção dos projetos (60 por cento) foi classificada como não tendo sido bem-sucedida. Constatou-se que o sucesso do projeto está positivamente associado ao seu tamanho, diversidade dos seus beneficiários diretos, atividades de desenvolvimento institucional nos projetos e monitoramento efetivo e atividades de avaliação. A falta de confiança de parceiros do governo e a inclusão de outras atividades agrícolas, juntamente com as atividades de criação de gado nos projetos, impossibilitam o seu sucesso.     

Constraining consolidation: military politics and democracy in Pakistan (2007–2013)

Why do some militaries retain high authoritarian prerogatives during transitions from militarized authoritarian rule? The Pakistan military's 2007 extrication shows that an important part of the answer lies in the level of structural differentiation between the “military government” and the “military institution”. Despite sustained contentious opposition to military rule, the high level of separation between these two military dimensions of the state allowed the institutional military to delink itself from the discredited dictatorship and exit on its own terms. In the post-authoritarian context, the military has preserved its expansive prerogatives by using a variety of adaptive contestation mechanisms – including the mobilization of the media and the judiciary – that act as a continuing source of political instability and uncertainty.     

The terror experts and the mainstream media: the expert nexus and its dominance in the news media

Academic writing on ‘terrorism’ and the availability to the mainstream media and policy-makers of terror ‘experts’ have increased exponentially since 11 September 2001. This paper examines the rise of terror expertise and its use in one particular public arena – the mainstream news media. Using a combination of citation analysis and media analysis, the paper presents a ranking of the most influential terror experts in the mainstream news media in the Anglophone world. It is shown how what has been called an ‘invisible college’ of experts operates as a nexus of interests connecting academia with military, intelligence and government agencies, with the security industry and the media. The paper then takes a small number of case studies of some of the most prominent experts who exemplify the dominant trend in the field and examines the networks in which they are embedded. The last part of the paper uses the data generated to re-examine theories of ‘terrorism’ and the media, of ‘propaganda’ and ‘terrorism’, and of ‘source–media’ relations. It is suggested that the study of terror experts shows the need to study and theorise the media in a wider context by focusing on the relations between media content and production processes and wider formations of power. In so doing, the paper attempts to connect studies of media and terrorism to wider studies of terror and political violence.     

An Evaluation of Standardized Software for Processing GC/MS Data from Different Vendors' Instruments in a Forensic Laboratory

Forensic science laboratories perform analyses on a variety of materials using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Instruments from different vendors may be used, requiring analysts to be proficient in the use of multiple proprietary software packages for collecting and processing data. There is no standardized GC/MS software available that can acquire data from different vendors' instruments. However, there are third‐party processing software products that can import data files in different formats. The Centre of Forensic Sciences compared the data processing performance of one such product, ACD/MS Manager Suite, with three instrument vendors' software used for casework analysis. This product was tested for its compatibility with the existing software, its capability to load and present data, and to initiate searches of commercial libraries. The study shows that the MS Manager module provides a means for the forensic analyst to view, process, and report on data from different sources in one software package.     

UPLC-MS/MS测定全血中的氯丙嗪

目的建立全血中氯丙嗪的UPLC-MS/MS分析方法。方法采用乙腈沉淀蛋白,以Waters ACQUITY UPLCBEH C18柱(2.1mm×50mm,1.7μm)分离,乙腈-0.1%甲酸水溶液为流动相,梯度洗脱,正离子方式检测,多反应离子监测模式(MRM)。结果血液中氯丙嗪在1～100ng/mL范围内线形关系良好,检出限为0.01ng/mL,回收率为81.81%～89.36%,日内、日间精密度分别为9.3%、12.1%。结论本方法准确、快速,可用于全血中氯丙嗪的定性定量分析。     

GC/MS、GC/NPD法检测毛发中的氯胺酮

目的采用液-液萃取、衍生化和GC/MS、GC/NPD方法,进行毛发中氯胺酮定性定量分析。方法选择4-苯基丁胺为内标,毛发样本用NaOH、HCl及芳基硫酸酯酶/β-葡萄糖醛酸酶等3种方式进行水解,再进行衍生化后,采用GC/MS和GC/NPD方法定性定量分析。对不同水解和衍生化条件以及提取溶剂进行比较优化,并考察方法精密度、稳定性和检出限。结果方法的提取回收率大于95%,精密度和样品稳定性良好,日内和日间标准偏差小于6%;采用GC/NPD和GC/MS直接分析毛发中的氯胺酮,检出限为0.2ng/mg和2.0ng/mg,线性范围为10.0～250.0ng/mg,相关系数均大于0.99;采用酰化衍生化后分析,GC/NPD和GC/MS检出限分别提高至0.1ng/mg和0.2ng/mg。结论该方法回收率高、检测限低,可以用于毛发中氯胺酮的定性定量分析检验。