The Stability and Growth Pact is under fire. Problems have appeared in sticking to the rules. Proposals to reform the Pact or ditch it altogether abound. But is the Pact a flawed fiscal rule? Against established criteria for an ideal fiscal rule, its design and compliance mechanisms fare...

The Stability and Growth Pact has been under fire ever since it was born. But is the Pact a flawed fiscal rule? Against established criteria for an ideal fiscal rule, its design and compliance mechanisms show strengths and weaknesses. The latter tend to reflect trade-offs typical of...

The paper examines the redistribution of public resources induced by general government across Italian regions and the gaps in the quality of public services across the country. It shows that redistribution in favour of Southern regions primarily reflects differences in income levels. It also...

The article reviews the key steps in the construction of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and the accompanying debate in the academics and within the European institutions, stressing that most vulnerabilities unveiled by the sovereign debt crisis were known long before the inception of the...

<i> Il primo anno di applicazione del Patto di stabilità interno: una valutazione </i> (di Fabrizio Balassone, Daniele Franco e Stefania Zotteri) - ABSTRACT: A Domestic Stability Pact has been introduced in Italy with the budget law for the year 1999. The Pact aims at involving Regions and other local...

The distinguished authors in this volume address the fundamental causes for such heterogeneous international experiences, placing particular emphasis on the role of institutions. They demonstrate how the study of economic development is increasingly linked to the development of institutions,...

This book makes a valuable, analytical contribution to recent debates on the ongoing institutional changes occurring within the European Union. It provides a comprehensive and diverse insight into a variety of areas, including in-depth studies of fiscal, monetary and voting issues, to help...

This book explores the origins, rationale, problems and prospects of the European fiscal policy framework. It provides the reader with a roadmap to EMU’s budgetary framework by exploring its theoretical and empirical foundations, uncovering its historical roots and emphasising its...