Political Consequences of Welfare Regimes: Social Assistance and Support for Presidentialism in Turkey

ABSTRACT

Tackling redistributive expansion in developing countries, this paper explores broader political consequences of social assistance programmes. Drawing from the Turkish case, where social welfare expanded since the 2000s, it examines attitudes of social assistance beneficiaries towards transition to presidentialism, which was approved in a referendum in 2017, and took effect in 2018. Using the results of an original survey, it indicates that social assistance benefits played a significant role in increasing support for presidentialism, by garnering votes from opposition voters, especially those with high-risk perceptions, in return for benefits. Given the character of Turkish presidentialism, devoid of vital checks and balances, the findings reveal that incumbents can mobilise support by using redistributive instruments in the context of democratic backsliding.     

论欧盟温室气体控制法律和政策的方法论意义

欧盟关于温室气体排放削减的法律和政策为我国有关温室气体减排的法律和政策的完善提供了很多可资借鉴的东西。从方法论的角度看,值得借鉴的东西主要有:对各种温室气体的统一控制;温室气体减排同经济社会发展相结合;政府管制、市场手段、企业自愿协议和技术开发等方法的互补应用和温室气体排放控制政策制定程序的民主性。     

European Structural Policy: Bend or Break

This article deals with the consequences for the European Structural Policy (ESP) of the extension of the EU with countries from Central and East Europe. It argues that the allocation mechanism of financial assistance from the structural funds must be changed profoundly in order to gain a balanced system of distributing the available funds. In view of the changing Common Agricultural Policy and international trade policy in the framework of the WTO the European Structural Policy will become gradually more important. In order to compensate for the decreasing price support for agricultural products extension of structural assistance in the near future is inevitable.     

欧盟远程金融服务监管立法的新发展及评价

远程金融服务是一种以现代传真、电话及网络为介质的、体现个性化的新型金融服务方式。为此,欧盟以原有的《电子商务指令》及《远程销售指令》为基础推出了《消费者金融服务远程销售指令》。尽管新的欧盟指令起到了整合性与系统性的作用,但是由于欧盟内部离心力的存在,所以要达到预期目标仍然是一个任重而道远的行程。固然如此,新指令所确立的以消费者为保护中心的立法价值取向等对我国未来金融监管立法之创新仍具有借鉴意义。     

欧盟合并控制法的根本变革

在全球经济一体化、欧盟实施货币一体化、成员增加之际 ,欧盟开始了对欧盟合并控制制度的进一步完善。 2 0 0 4年初 ,欧盟理事会通过了新的合并控制条例 ,欧盟委员会通过了与之配套的欧盟历史上第一个合并评估准则 ,代表着欧盟的合并控制制度发生了根本性的变化。欧盟新合并条例 ,实体上采取了新的合并控制标准 ,由支配地位标准改为重大阻碍有效竞争标准 ;程序上在坚持单一程序原则的基础上 ,实行欧盟委员会与成员国双向移交的模式。合并评估准则建立了合并效果评估的法律框架和评估因素 ,在合并评估中正式认可了效率的积极作用。     

Explaining Interstate Trust/Distrust in Triadic Relations

Emotion or affect is important to understanding the current international interactions. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationships among interstate affects in triads. The hypotheses of structural balance, symmetry, subjectivity and objectivity are tested here. Nations are more likely to trust a target nation when the target trusts them, when their friend trusts the target, when they trust other nations in general, and when other nations in general trust the target. Their attitudes towards the target are not influenced by the fact that their enemy trusts or distrusts the target. The structural balance gives way to some dyads of imbalance. Rather, nations are unlikely to feel friendly towards an enemy of their enemy's. More than 80% of bilateral affects are correctly predicted with the other affect relations only. Some implications on the spread of anti-Americanism and on the role of mediator between two adversaries are discussed.     

Restricting the import of ‘emission credits’ in the EU: a power struggle between states and institutions

This article examines the development of a cap on the use of so-called ‘project credits’ in the EU emissions trading scheme. It investigates how the issue of such a limit was addressed in the negotiations of the Linking Directive, and how it has been dealt with in the later implementation of this directive. The article applies two explanatory approaches: one based on intergovernmentalist theory, assuming that the cap reflected the preferences of the EU Member States; and one based on the multi-level governance model, assuming that the cap expressed the preferences of EU institutions rather than Member States. What is found is a two-stage development: during the negotiations of the Linking Directive, Member States managed to secure a no-cap solution allowing extensive use of the project credits. In the later implementation phase, however, when the emissions trading scheme was up and running and a certain legitimacy for the system had been established, the Commission managed to ‘regain control’ by bringing back a cap. Thus, the project credit cap—and by that, the very nature of the EU emissions trading scheme—has been the subject of a continuing power struggle within the EU—and different theoretical perspectives explain different stages of this process.     

欧盟非合同义务法律适用统一化——以《罗马条例Ⅱ》为中心

《罗马条例Ⅱ》的诞生,标志着欧盟国际私法统一化的最新发展——非合同义务领域法律适用的统一,从而使非合同义务的法律适用增加了一种“超国家”法律渊源。而且,统一的内容涉及侵权或不法行为、不当得利、无因管理等非合同之债的主要方面,统一的法律选择力求在法律适用的确定性与灵活性、管辖权选择与内容定向法律选择、社会公共利益与个人利益等方面达到平衡。欧盟非合同义务法律适用的统一化给中国国际私法立法以启示。     

EU update

This is the latest edition of Baker & McKenzie's column on developments in EU law relating to IP, IT and telecommunications. This article summarises recent developments that are considered important for practitioners, students and academics in a wide range of information technology, e-commerce, telecommunications and intellectual property areas. It cannot be exhaustive but intends to address the important points. This is a hard copy reference guide, but links to outside web sites are included where possible. No responsibility is assumed for the accuracy of information contained in these links.     

Data retention in the UK: Pragmatic and proportionate,or a step too far?

On 6 April 2009 new legislation came into force, for the first time putting Internet service providers' duty to retain significant amounts of data (relating to customers' email and Internet usage) on a compulsory, as opposed to a voluntary footing. It is a topic which has provoked intense protest from the privacy lobby and fuelled months of “Big Brother” headlines in the press. For the industry it raises operational challenges – how to facilitate storage and retrieval of colossal amounts of data. In this article we consider the policy background to the regime, the detail of the UK implementation and the practical implications for communications service providers. We weigh up the privacy and human rights concerns against the business case put forward by the Government. We also examine the Government's proposals – announced at the end of April – to significantly extend and “future proof” this regime in the form of its Intercept Modernisation Programme.