Reforming the Spanish Senate: Mission Impossible?

Attempts in recent years to reform the Spanish Senate have proven futile. Using an institutionalist approach, this article highlights some of the weaknesses of the Spanish Senate in terms of its constitutional design and institutional development. The article explains how attempts at reforming political institutions are influenced by the historical context in which the institution was originally designed and the political context in which it has subsequently developed. The debate over Senate reform is analysed by examining the Senate's institutional setting and its relationships to broader political settings such as the legacy of the transition to democracy, political party discourse, and a competitive culture in Spain's system of intergovernmental relations.     

Recent interpretations of ideology

The ‘emergence’ of the ‘market’ as the basis of economic and political decision-making has become a main focus of debate within the social sciences since the late 1970s. Even while those opposing the growing centrality of neo-classical economics and market-oriented political discourses remain a significant academic constituency, within their ranks there has been a growing realization that regulatory mechanisms, and in particular the role of the state, have nevertheless been the subject of extensive changes. Alternative schools of thought have argued in terms of the way in which such mechanisms have been refashioned. Regulation has become, in the words of Regini and Majone, ‘transferred’ and the ‘boundaries’ between regulator and regulated ‘changed’: the regulatory process has been seen to shift at the macro/national level and at the micro/enterprise level. While supporting the general argument that it is the boundaries of regulation which are to be discussed, not its presence, we shall nevertheless argue that these changes are, if anything, more contentious and that a set of ironies emerges which politicize regulation even further.     

Leveson Past,Present and Future: The Politics of Press Regulation

As a result of the phone‐hacking scandal and evidence of other serious journalistic abuses by some newspapers, the government set up the Leveson Inquiry to hear evidence from victims and to make recommendations for a new and effective system of press regulation. Leveson's recommendations for independent self‐regulation overseen by a “recogniser” was seen as a moderate solution which would uphold the principle of an unfettered press while providing appropriate protection from unscrupulous or unethical press behaviour. After historic cross‐party agreement, Parliament passed a resolution accepting a Royal Charter which adopted the great majority of his recommendations. In response, Britain's main national newspapers have pursued a campaign of systematic misinformation and distortion, aimed at discrediting the inquiry, its supporters and the cross‐party Charter, while promoting a different system which would remain almost wholly controlled by the industry and would in practice be little different from the discredited Press Complaints Commission. After decades of ineffectual political response to press abuse and press power, there is now a historic opportunity for Parliament to assert its sovereign power. Over the next 12–18 months, we will see whether we have reached a genuine milestone in British public life or whether the British press will remain the last bastion of unaccountable power.     

Lijphart goes regional: Different patterns of consensus in Swiss democracies

This article addresses the relationships among the main political institutions of the two dozen cantonal democracies which constitute the Swiss federal state. By replicating Lijphart's analysis in the Swiss subnational context, the article seeks to explain the relationships of the political-institutional variables in the Swiss cantons. The main finding of the article is that in contrast to international comparisons, the cantons cannot be classified along the continuum of majoritarian and consensus democracies. However, the Swiss cantonal democracies practice clearly distinguishable forms of power sharing. Based on a factor analysis and a cluster analysis, it is possible to distinguish a two-dimensional pattern of cantonal democracies and five groups of cantons. Although there are a number of different procedures to achieve political stability through division of power in the cantons, the different characteristics of power sharing can, essentially – and with reference to Switzerland's central institutions – perfectly well be situated on a single axis; namely, on that between pronounced direct citizen involvement and broadly supported government coalitions.     

Subprime catalyst: Financial regulatory reform and the strengthening of US carbon market governance

The 2008 financial crisis has had an important, but neglected, impact on carbon market governance in the United States. It acted as a catalyst for the emergence of a domestic coalition that drew upon the crisis experience to demand stronger regulation over carbon markets. The influence of this coalition was seen first in the changing content of draft climate change bills between 2008 and 2010. But the coalition's more lasting legacy was its role in shaping the content of, and supporting, the passage of the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the Dodd–Frank bill) in July 2010. Although that bill was aimed primarily at bolstering financial stability, its derivatives provisions strengthened carbon market regulation in significant ways. This policy episode demonstrates new patterns of coalition building in carbon market politics as well as the growing links between climate governance and financial regulatory politics. At the same time, the significance of these developments should not be overstated because of various limitations in the content and implementation of the Dodd–Frank bill, as well as the waning support for carbon markets more generally within the US since the bill's passage.     

Civil Society Mappings by Government: A Comparison of Ecuadorian and Colombian Cases

Scholars argue that we cannot see civil society organizations (CSOs) as legitimate players in policy if we have no clear ways to define them and if we lack information explaining their functions. Thus, scholars and practitioners alike have encouraged the ‘mapping’ of civil society. Mapping civil society consists of gathering and collating information on CSOs and often making it publicly available. There is little scholarship about such mapping efforts implemented by government. This article compares new mapping efforts in two countries—i.e., registries of CSOs created by governments in Ecuador and Colombia. The article examines the intentions of civil society mapping by government, identifying three key goals: to collect data, to regulate, and to foster collaboration. It discusses the differences across civil society mappings by government and in comparison with other mapping projects. The article argues that registries are increasingly positioned as a link between government and civil society not only to collect data for transparency but also to implement regulatory measures and to foster various degrees of collaboration. Thus, greater research attention to civil society mappings by government and their possible implications on civil society development and civil society/state relations is needed.     

会计人员造假行为的法律治理与制度防范

会计造假导致的信息失真对投资者、债权人和国家的利益造成了巨大的威胁。在实践中,会计人事制度不健全、相关法律机制不完善和政府部门监管不利是导致会计人员造假的三大主动因。规制会计造假行为应当双管齐下,将法律和制度有机结合,集中精力解决会计人员独立性和违法成本与收益两大难题,从而有效阻断造假动因。     

清代工商业行会规约的自治性评析——以苏州地区碑刻史料为视角

根据碑刻史料的记载,有清一代,商人们在长期的商事实践中积累了丰富多彩的商事习惯,同时也积极地建立公所、会馆这类行会组织并制定行会规约来更好地维护自己的利益。清代律典中为数不多的几条律例以及地方官府判决是清代行规制定的基础,但同时也给商人们留下了很大的立法空间。由律文引申出的自愿原则被官府作为审查与监督行会与行规的标准。这些都使得清代的行会规约体现出了很高的自治性。国家权力不过多介入商业社会,政府充分尊重商人们的自治精神,这在当下仍有一定的价值。     

浅议技术侦查的司法控制

技术侦查作为一项新兴的强制侦查手段,在有效提升刑事案件侦破能力的同时,实施过程中对公民隐私权有较大的现实危害性。文章指出完善技术侦查立法规制的具体措施,明确指出建立技术侦查司法审查制度应从四方面入手,同时,指明案件当事人有效的侵权救济渠道,以保障公民的合法权利不受侵害。     

宪法学视野下的海洋战略

海洋战略的根本性、重要性及长期性等特征决定了它属于一项基本国策。海洋战略涉及宪法调整的国家主权,凸显出国家统一和主权完整的宪法价值;涉及宪法对国家的整体调整,彰显出宪法的制度安排价值,并折射出宪法保护国防与经济安全的价值诉求。“海洋入宪”有其必要性,解决海岛海洋争端和提升我国海洋执法的正当性均需宪法提供明确的依据;十八大报告为海洋入宪创造了契机,我国的海洋主权神圣不可侵犯,修宪时可在宪法中增设涉海条款,明文规定海洋属于我国的疆域。