It was reported over the weekend that the Icelandic President Olafur Grimsson, has called for a national referendum on the new plan for repaying British and Dutch loans made as a result of the ‘Icesave’ fiasco. The two countries loaned Iceland €4 billion to bail out the country’s deposit insurance scheme, which could not afford to compensate British and Dutch depositors, when the Icesave savings scheme collapsed. Aside from the political ramifications of the on-going dispute, it raises wider issues about international financial supervision and insurance schemes, as well as a more pressing problem about financial responsibility.
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The announcement that unemployment levels have risen further at the end of last year is unwelcome but no surprise. There are an extra 44,000 out of work, creating an unimpressive total of 2.5 million. What should really set alarm bells ringing is not so much the volume of unemployed, but just who these people are – most are young, piling out of schools or uni’s but with nowhere to work and the employment Catch-22 mounting. This is bad, but what really makes it unacceptable is that while we wallow, other countries, such as Germany, steam ahead. What’s the way out?
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Democracy is frequently trumpeted as one of the EU’s core values and its promotion is a prominent feature throughout EU policy. This is all the more evident in the EU’s relations with third states, particularly the bilateral partners of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). But, with Tunisia’s pro-democracy revolution followed swiftly by Egypt and then several other countries active in the ENP, it seems that, in this particular field, the EU policy may be failing.
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At first glance, a recent decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) seems to challenge the flurry of accusations of judicial expansionism fired at the Strasbourg court over the past weeks. However, a closer reading reveals a troubling subtext which largely belies the laudable national sensitivity the Court purports to possess.
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Via Chris Dillow, we learn of another fascinating study by Francesco Drago and Roberto Galbiati based on Italy’s experience of its 2006 Collective Clemency Bill. It suggests that creating credible threats to return ex-prisoners released on license to prison if they re-offend does not just reduce their re-offending rate. It also reduces offending amongst their peers.
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It is perhaps fitting that on Valentine’s Day David Cameron attempted to stoke up love for the Big Society in the face of recent criticism. It is perhaps doubly fitting because the success of the Big Society may depend upon love, or largely altruistic feelings, in the short term at least.
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