Policy Change in the Canadian Welfare State: Comparing the Canada Pension Plan and Unemployment Insurance

Focusing on Canada, this paper explores the politics of social policy retrenchment and restructuring in two policy areas: old-age pensions, especially the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), and Employment Insurance (EI) [formerly Unemployment Insurance (UI)]. Drawing on historical institutionalism and the literature on ideas and policy change, the paper explains key differences between these two policy areas. The analysis shows that institutional factors like federalism explain some of the differences between the policy areas and programs at stake. Yet, to complement this analysis, the paper also highlights the political consequences of changing ideas and assumptions among policy-makers, which vary strongly from one program to another. In other words, ideational and institutional factors combined to produce distinct patterns of policy change. Overall, the paper suggests that scholars can draw a clear analytical line between ideational and institutional factors before combining them to explain specific episodes of policy change. From a methodological standpoint, the paper also demonstrates the added value of systematic comparisons between distinct policy areas located within the same country.Ideas, institutions, unemployment, pensions, Canada

Creating the Canada/Quebec Pension Plans: An Historical and Political Analysis

Drawing on recent historical institutionalist scholarship, this paper explores the debates leading to the enactment of the Canada/Quebec Pension Plans (C/Q.P.P.) in 1965. More specifically, this analysis underlines the respective role of and the interaction between political institutions, business and labor power, and changing ideas about the role of public and private pensions in Canada. As argued, although the ideas that guided the enactment of C/Q.P.P. stressed the key role of private benefits, the enduring weight of Canadian-style federalism mitigated the impact of interest groups, especially business organizations, on the legislative process. Overall, the paper suggests that students of social policy should pay closer attention to the interaction between political institutions, interest group mobilization, and changing ideas about the relationship between public and private benefits.pensions, ideas, institutions, federalism, politics, social policy, business, labor, private benefits, Canada

The Politics of Social Policy Reform in the United States: The Clinton and the W. Bush Presidencies Reconsidered

The purpose of this paper is to examine what key reform attempts during the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush presidencies reveal about the wider possibilities for social policy change in the United States. Most particularly, why were Presidents Clinton and Bush able to achieve their goals in some policy realms but so badly defeated in others? As argued, institutional variation from one policy area to another helps answer this question. On the one hand, strong institutional obstacles in the fields of Social Security and health insurance largely explain the defeat of the most ambitious social policy proposal put forward by each president. On the other hand, successful reforms occurred in a comparatively favourable institutional context. Yet, the analysis also suggests that paying close attention to the strategic ideas of political actors as they interact with existing institutions and policy legacies is necessary to fully understand the politics of social policy reform.social policy, Medicare, Social Security, welfare, institutions, United States

Vieillissement, discours politique et réforme des retraites aux États-Unis

Explorant les rapports entre institutions, discours politique et changements démographiques, l’article replace le débat américain sur les retraites dans son contexte historique et idéologique. Il souligne le fait que, comme dans d’autres pays, l’idée d’un « choc démographique » inéluctable justifie la nécessité apparente de réformer les retraites, ce qui aux États-Unis est souvent synonyme de « privatisation partielle » du régime fédéral d’assurance-vieillesse. Une analyse de la campagne infructueuse en faveur de la « privatisation partielle » lancée par le président George W. Bush au lendemain de sa réélection en novembre 2004 illustre le poids des obstacles institutionnels à la réalisation de ce projet ainsi que l’omniprésence d’un discours démographique pessimiste au coeur la vie politique américaine contemporaine.Via an exploration of the relationships between institutions, political discourse and demographic change, this article puts the U.S. pension debate back into its historical and ideological context. It underscores the fact that, as in other countries, the prospect of an inescapable “demographic shock” is being advanced as justification for pension reform, which in the United States is often synonymous with “partial privatization” of the federal retirement pension system. An analysis of the unsuccessful campaign in favour of partial privatization launched by President George W. Bush soon after he was re-elected in November 2004 illustrates the weight of the institutional obstacles to this project as well as the omnipresence of a pessimistic demographic discourse in contemporary American political life

Décentralisation, mouvements nationalistes et politiques sociales : les cas du Québec et de l’Écosse

Cet article a pour objectif d’offrir une perspective comparative susceptible d’enrichir notre compréhension des rapports entre les politiques sociales et la décentralisation politique dans le contexte d’États multinationaux. Dans un premier temps, il s’agit de formuler une approche théorique permettant de mieux saisir les rapports complexes et changeants entre les questions d’identité nationale et celles de protection sociale. Tout en explorant l’impact possible des mouvements nationalistes sur le développement de l’État social, l’article montre comment ces rapports peuvent s’articuler. Empiriquement, ces questions sont analysées à travers une comparaison entre les cas québécois et écossais.The goal of this article is to propose a comparative perspective to strengthen our understanding of the relation between social policies and decentralisation of powers in multinational states. It starts by setting out a theoretical approach for understanding the complex and changing relations between issues of national identity and those of social protection. Examining the impact of nationalist movements on the development of the welfare state, the article documents how these relations are linked. The empirical focus is a comparison of Quebec and Scotland

Taking explanation seriously in political science

The concept of explanation has attracted considerable attention in the social sciences and, in particular, in political science. However, scholars are not always familiar with what explaining political phenomena means, let alone with what it entails for developing sound causal arguments. This essay introduces Craig Parsons’ fourfold typology of explanation (institutional, ideational, structural, and psychological) before assessing its value for the causal analysis of political behaviour and processes. As argued, despite its limitations, his typology clearly maps the explanations in political science while helping scholars to combine them more rigorously, when needed. This is why Parsons typology has the potential to move political scientists to the ‘next level’, as far as explanation is concerned

Partisan warfare, fragmented institutions, and market challenges continue to shape the rollout of Obamacare

Though passed by Congress in 2010, the Affordable Care Act, also known as ‘Obamacare’ only came into place towards the end of 2013. The initial months of the program have been characterized by a litany of IT failures for the healthcare.gov website, and concern over gaps in health insurance coverage. Daniel Béland, Philip Rocco, and Alex Waddan write that while the debate over Obamacare is no longer about its repeal, its supporters and opponents still face battles over how it is instituted. They argue that Republican states are using their legislative capacity to thwart the law, which may give Democrats the opportunity to place blame on them for coverage gaps