We investigate the effects of fiscal transparency and political polarization on the prevalence of electoral cycles in fiscal balance. While some recent political economy literature on electoral cycles identifies such cycles mainly in weak and recent democracies, in contrast we show, conditioning on a new index of institutional fiscal transparency, that electoral cycles in fiscal balance are a f...

The fiscal condition of most OECD countries has deteriorated markedly in the last 30 years. But beyond this general weakening, there has been considerable variation in the fiscal performance of these countries. For example, Italy, Belgium, Japan and Ireland accumulated significant amounts of public debt whereas Finland, Norway, the UK and, until recently, Germany, implemented relatively conserv...

Maximum residue levels (MRLs) regulations in plant products can create unnecessary trade barriers on one hand and enhance demand via risk mitigation or quality assurance on the other. We stipulate a generalized gravity equation model to disentangle the effects of MRLs on the import demand and foreign exporters’ supply. Applying the framework to the MRLs on pesticides imposed by high-income OECD...

It is widely acknowledged that innovation is a key factor for competitiveness and that output growth and productivity depend on the development and diffusion of new technologies (OECD, 1997). However, the innovation process is not linear, but a complex and interactive one, involving business and non-business institutions. Kline and Rosenberg’s (1986) “chain-linked” interactive model is an examp...

Many writers have claimed that research and development (R&D) has two ‘faces’. In addition to the conventional role of stimulating innovation, R&D enhances technology transfer by improving the ability of firms to learn about advances in the leading edge (‘absorptive capacity’). In this paper we explore this idea empirically using a panel of industries across twelve OECD countries. We find evide...

OBJECTIVE To review and update the conceptual framework, indicator content and research priorities of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Health Care Quality Indicators (HCQI) project, after a decade of collaborative work. DESIGN A structured assessment was carried out using a modified Delphi approach, followed by a consensus meeting, to assess the suite of HCQI...

There has been an unprecedented trade liberalization which started in the mid1980s in a wide spectrum of developing countries. In the same period, there have also been considerable changes in the tax structures of countries. This paper uses panel data on 65 countries, including 16 Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries, for the period 1980–1997 to examine how tax structures responded to ...

Higher education has undergone considerable expansion in recent decades in a number of OECD countries. Expansion has been especially dramatic in the UK where aggregate student numbers have doubled in 20 years. However, over the same period, funding per student has halved in real terms. In the UK as well as in other countries, most notably Australia, innovation to diversify the funding base has ...

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