This paper analyses trade liberalisation policies and the impact of economic openness on agricultural development in a small, open economy. The paper reports on the effect of these policies on the following economic variables: 1) agricultural production; 2) income from agriculture; 3) domestic...

Through the use of a simple behavioural political economy model, we cast doubt on the assumption that voters behave in predictable ways dependent on their expected support for government policies. We show that under certain conditions an unfavourable (i.e. welfare reducing) policy may result,...

This study examines the nature of interdependence, and return and volatility spillovers, for three Indian exchange rates: US dollar (USD), Euro and British Pound. We use the spillover index methodology of Diebold and Yilmaz (2009) to analyse precisely and independently the returns and volatility...

The European welfare regimes face two sets of challenges. One internal, specific for the welfare state itself, and the other external, imposed by changing economic, political and economics conditions. The first challenge lies in the growing gap between the rigid welfare state design and flexible...

This paper demonstrates that the current economic crisis has its roots in the evolution of the global economy during the 1960s. The gradual increase of US debt from the 1960s accompanied by the deficit in the US trade balance due to international competition from EU, Japan, and later from China...

As we embark on the tenth anniversary of the first introduction of the euro, it is befitting to take a step back and ask ourselves: have the economies achieved their economic goals set forth in the Maastricht Treaty and reaffirmed in the Treaties of Rome and Accession? Have they achieved...

The globalisation of markets, particularly the liberalisation of financial markets, has facilitated merger and acquisition activity on a global scale. New financial instruments and the growth of sovereign wealth funds have raised questions regarding the national security and the loss of...

Over the last decades, the structure of the European Union (EU) electricity sector has witnessed fundamental reform due to the increased complexity in interactions of political, economic and technological forces. The way electricity industry is structured is gradually evolving from vertically...

This paper provides a challenging view to the tax harmonisation issue. The literature often proposes tax harmonisation to avoid free-riding behaviours in free-trade areas and more particularly in monetary unions. Without tax harmonisation, tax autonomy may lead to a "race to the bottom". The...

After the fuzziness in Europe that surrounded the implementation of the excessive deficit procedure foreseen by the Stability and Growth Pact (SGP), the European Union had to restore the credibility of the weakened fiscal rule. The constraint was to keep alive the Treaty of Amsterdam. Indeed, an...