Less Haste,More Speed: The Fit for the Future Reform Program in New South Wales Local Government

In August 2011 the New South Wales (NSW) Government established the Independent Local Government Review Panel to examine the options for improving the sustainability of the NSW local government sector. In October 2014 the NSW Government set out its response in its Fit for the Future reform program. This paper provides a critical assessment of the Fit for the Future program. We show that it contains errors, relies on unreliable data, and neglects important factors, which may be ascribed to the haste with which it has been constructed. This could have serious consequences given the potential impact the Fit for the Future program will have on NSW local government. We thus conclude that it would be prudent to address these matters before proceeding further with the program.     

和谐社会构建中的地方政府行为规范

本文对和谐社会及地方政府行为规范等相关理论进行了梳理,从和谐社会的视角分析了中国地方政府的不规范行为现象,提出了规范地方政府行为、构建和谐社会的对策和方法。     

Learning from Experience? Ottawa as a Cautionary Tale of Reforming Urban Government

This article examines the saga of local government restructuring in Canada's capital city. Specifically, it analyzes the interplay between provincial and local agendas for local government reform over many years, which culminated in provincial legislation and a one-year transition process to establish one municipality for the Ottawa city region. In doing so, the article addresses the extent to which the Ottawa transition demonstrates learning from other major urban restructuring efforts and the extent to which the Ottawa case provides new insights for future local government reform efforts. Key conclusions are that the key motivation for provincially initiated reform—cost saving through simplification of the local government structure in Ottawa—does not fully coincide with local needs and interests. Furthermore, the promise of financial savings has proven difficult to realize as a result of the local politics surrounding existing municipal debt and unresolved human resource management costs. Instead, future benefits from the amalgamation may lie in improved capacity to manage physical development, environmental sustainability, and cultural diversity.     

论地方立法的科学化

地方立法更加符合客观规律、更加体现地方特色、更加提高立法效益,是衡量地方立法科学化的标准。我国地方立法在科学化方面存在严重不足:地方立法理念存在偏差;地方立法"抄袭"严重;地方保护主义、部门利益倾向明显;地方立法技术滞后。推进地方立法的科学化是深入贯彻落实科学发展观的客观要求,是推进依法行政、建设法治政府的重要前提,是提高地方立法效益的有效途径。为了切实有效地推进我国地方立法的科学化,必须树立"以人为本"的地方立法理念,科学编制地方立法规划与计划,建立地方立法助理制度,提高地方立法技术,建立科学的地方立法后评估制度等。     

The impact of mining rights on the local communities in Limpopo Province, South Africa： A comparative study

The paper aims to give an account of the substance and support the development of community based organizations in balancing their interests against the interests of the mining industries. It further examines the issue of the protection of social and economic right in the context of the globalization of the activities of multinational mining and petroleum companies, as illustrated by different instances of increasing state withdrawal and with regard to specific African countries. In Africa, economic liberalization has been accompanied by a programmed redefining of the role of the state withdrawal from certain areas： planning, production and social reform, a reorientation of state intervention from certain other areas, redistribution, regulation and mediation etc, with a view of promoting a particular type of growth strategy based on promotion of private economic interests. This process has led to the delegitimation and weakening of states which were already characterized by fiscal crises, notably in countries under structural adjustment. While the process of reconceptualisation of the role of the state is not specific to Africa, its impact has been particularly significant with regard to the possibility of implementing developmental strategies designed to protect social and economic rights.     

量刑程序控制机制的模式化分析及本土化建构

从实体性和程序性的机制上有效约束和控制法官的自由裁量权,是实现司法公正和人权保障价值的必然要求。然而,我国将量刑权的制约问题囿于实体法研究的领域,没有从程序制约这一维度审思制约量刑权的有效对策,所以难以从根本上克减量刑失当的现象。由于我国的国情和法制传统,导致我国的量刑程序改革不可能全盘移植英美国家的独立量刑模式,唯许多大陆法系国家所倡导的“审判二分法”才是克服“水土不服”的良药。我们应该以此为基点,充分吸收和借鉴独立量刑模式的合理要素,继续发扬大陆法系自身的传统优势,不断推进和完善我国的量刑程序制度改革,建立相应的本土化的量刑程序控制机制。     

现代中国乡土小说的美学嬗变

出于知识分子对现实和自身的强烈危机意识,现代中国乡土小说或显或隐地表现出“悲凉”的现代审美追求。伴随着作家不同的文化立场和精神姿态,以及中国现实与革命对乡土阶段性的影响与发现,以“悲凉”为深层结构的美感意识演化出了不同的悲剧风貌。     

抓体育品牌培育促地方经济发展

体育品牌,特指被社会认同的体现体育规则、组织优良、独具一格、影响深远并具有一定经济属性的区别于其他体育活动的典型活动。体育品牌活动的培育是社会主义市场经济的必然要求,也是新时期对体育功能定位的要求,更是建设社会主义和谐社会的需要。     

当代中国地方政府行为模式分析：政府偏好—政府过程—政府工具视角

政府偏好、政府过程、政府工具三个范畴共同构成的分析框架是研究当代中国地方政府行为模式的有效工具。从这个角度分析当代中国地方政府行为模式,其基本特征表现为：上级政府需求主导型政府偏好、精英政策模式为主轴的政府过程和强制性工具为主体的政府工具选择结构。     

Reputation reform strategies in local government: investigating Denmark and Norway

This article investigates reputation reform in Norwegian and Danish local government and whether they have the same strategy content depending on the degree of administrative involvement and municipality size. Political and administrative actors are likely to cultivate different types of reputation strategies (place or organisational reputation), which explicitly embrace the potentially diverging interests cultivated by the two types of actors. We use a comparative design and quantitative method with an empirical ambition to explore local government reputation strategies in two national contexts. We find that local government responses to reputation reform depend on the size of the municipality and the type of actors involved; the larger the municipality, the more the administration is involved. And the more that administrative actors are involved, the more the strategies target organisational reputation. The country-specific factors do not appear to be the most important determinants for reputation reform strategies.