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.     

‘Spending Wisely: Principles for a Good Spending Review': The First Report of the Fabian Commission on Future Spending Choices

This article examines the work of the Fabian Society Commission on Future Spending Choices published in June 2013. The Commission is undoubtedly the most detailed and ambitious attempt by a centre‐left think‐tank to analyse the structure of UK public spending since Labour's 2010 defeat. The Commission makes an eloquent case for a strategic approach to UK public spending, filling the substantial void in thinking on the centre‐left since Labour's 2010 defeat. Inevitably, the proposals raise fundamental questions about the capacity of the British state and the constitutional framework of the UK political system to accommodate a long‐term, future‐orientated approach to public expenditure, which deserve to be properly aired and debated.     

Between Market‐Preserving Federalism and Intergovernmental Coordination: The Case of Australia

This article investigates Australia's economic success since the 1990s. As this was set in motion by fundamental political reforms, it asks to what extent Australian‐type federalism has been an important factor in the reform process. By using two approaches ‐ the market‐preserving federalism approach of Weingast, which stresses the virtues of ‘limited government’, decentralisation and competition together with the intergovernmental coordination approach of Scharpf which argues for a ‘problem‐solving’ orientation of territorial actors ‐, the structure of Australian federalism, changes in the working of the federal system in the 1990s, and effects on policy‐making are scrutinised. The article demonstrates that a particular combination of a rather centralised federal structure and a particular type of intergovernmental coordination, i.e. collaboration, supplemented by the strong influence of new public management ideas, has been conducive to political reforms in Australia. This suggests that a decentralised and competitive version of federalism, as defended by Weingast, is not a necessary condition for embarking on a successful reform path in federal countries. In future research, both approaches or analytical dimensions should be used in order to better understand the relationship of intergovernmental relations and policy reforms.     

An anthropological analysis of gunshot wounds to the chest

This analysis of gunshot trauma to the bony thorax examines 87 handgun and rifle wounds from documented cases in an effort to corroborate an earlier report and to provide the forensic community with additional literature in this area. Specifically, this study tests whether the trauma signatures associated with gunshot wounds in the bony thorax are useful in determining the direction of fire. Because the ribs occupy a significant portion of the bony thorax, they are struck more frequently than other bones and, consequently, they are the focus of this report. This study confirmed that bullets can leave distinctive markers on ribs that indicate the direction of fire, including depressed fractures, bone fragments displaced in the direction of the bullet's path, and beveling. Although forensic anthropologists can determine the direction that a bullet was traveling when it struck a given rib, they cannot give a definitive statement about the number or sequence of gunshots without supporting soft tissue evidence.     

Comparative analysis of gamma-hydroxybutyrate and gamma-hydroxyvalerate using GC/MS and HPLC

This paper describes two analytical techniques used to separate and quantify gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) and gamma-hydroxyvalerate (GHV). The first technique was a N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)triflouro-acetimide-trimethylchlorosilane derivatization, followed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis using an HP-5 capillary column at a rate of 1.0 mL/min with a run time of 9.25 min. This technique was found to be sensitive (LOD 1 pg on column) and gave a low average error (5%) in a beverage study. When supplemented by a surrogate spike, the method yielded 97% analyte recovery from beverages. The second technique was high-performance liquid chromatography/UV (HPLC/UV) using a C-18 column with a (20:80% v/v) methanol:dibasic phosphoric buffer (10 mM, pH 3) at a rate of 1.00 mL/min with a run time of 7.5 min. UV detection occurred at 254 nm. This method was found to be less sensitive (LOD 0.05 microg on column) for direct analysis of aqueous samples. To remove interferences seen in the beverage study, a liquid-liquid extraction before HPLC analysis was tested. However, a decreased sensitivity (LOD 100 microg on column) and irreproducible peak profiles resulted.     

PROSPECT lost: when a pilot project does not look to learn

If a development project is destined to reach only a selection of its intended beneficiaries or to give them only momentary or uncertain benefits, there is a strong rationale for making it instead a project of trials from which lessons can be taken for obtaining the impact that it may not otherwise have. Because the fundamental problems and opportunities of development are very complex by their nature, interventions that seek to test practice knowledge and to learn above all else may have the greatest potential for benefit in the long term. A project that wishes to create experience from which others can learn will engage in research, so it must be conceived, led and conducted as such. This means it must be designed with knowledge of research. It must be led with an appreciation and understanding of research method. Specific research activities must be conducted that produce knowledge and promote its up‐take, so that learning is a principle project outcome. The large urban anti‐poverty project, PROSPECT, conducted in Lusaka, Zambia, illustrates this argument. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A METHODOLOGICAL ADDITION TO THE CROSS‐NATIONAL EMPIRICAL LITERATURE ON SOCIAL STRUCTURE AND HOMICIDE: A FIRST TEST OF THE POVERTY‐HOMICIDE THESIS*

Dozens of cross‐national studies of homicide have been published in the last three decades. Although nearly all these studies test for an association between inequality and homicide, no studies test for a poverty—homicide association. This absence is disconcerting given that poverty is one of the most consistent predictors of area homicide rates in the abundant empirical literature on social structure and homicide in the United States. Using a sample that coincides closely with similar recent studies, applying a proxy for poverty (infant mortality) that is commonly employed in noncriminological cross‐national research, and controlling for several common covariates (including inequality), this study provides the first test of the poverty—homicide hypothesis at the cross‐national level. The results reveal a positive and significant association between a nation's level of poverty and its homicide rate. The findings also suggest that we may need to reassess the strong conclusions about an inequality—homicide association drawn from prior studies, as this relationship disappears when poverty is included in the model.     

PROTECTING CHILDREN'S RIGHTS IN CONTACT DISPUTES: THE ROLE OF CHILDREN'S CONTACT SERVICES IN AUSTRALIA*

This article explores the role of Children's Contact Services (CCSs) in protecting children's right to express, and have heard, their wishes in contact disputes. The findings presented are drawn from the Australian Children's Contact Services Project and were based on 142 interviews with representatives from the government, the courts and legal profession who refer families to CCSs, service staff, as well as the parents and children who use the services. An analysis of client data from 396 families who had used one of six contact services in Victoria and Queensland during the month of August 2003 was also conducted. The findings suggested that CCSs successfully engaged children in a “dynamic self‐deterministic” process where children were able to explore their own wishes in relation to contact visits over time as their relationship goals changed. John Eekelaar described this process as being central to making decisions that are in children's best interests.     

WILLINGNESS‐TO‐PAY FOR CRIME CONTROL PROGRAMS*

This paper reports on a new methodology to estimate the “cost of crime.” It is adapted from the contingent valuation method used in the environmental economics literature and is itself used to estimate the public's willingness to pay for crime control programs. In a nationally representative sample of 1,300 U.S. residents, we found that the typical household would be willing to pay between $100 and $150 per year for programs that reduced specific crimes by 10 percent in their communities. This willingness amounts, collectively, to approximately $25,000 per burglary, $70,000 per serious assault, $232,000 per armed     

贡斯当与宪政自由主义

贡斯当作为近代自由主义的奠基者之一,其政治思想在二战以后逐渐引起了人们的重视。本文主要探讨贡斯当的宪政自由主义思想,包括其宪政自由主义思想的主要内涵———个人自由和宪政体制,并简要探讨他的宪政自由主义思想能否回答他自己所提出的问题———通过制度建设把古代人的自由与现代人的自由结合起来。