Career ambitions and legislative participation: the moderating effect of electoral institutions

What motivates politicians to engage in legislative activities? In multilevel systems politicians may be incentivized by ambitions to advance their careers either at the state or federal level. This article argues that the design of the electoral institutions influences how politicians respond to these incentives. Analyzing a unique dataset of both 'stated' and 'realized' career ambitions of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), it finds that those who seek to move from the European to the national (state) level participate less in legislative activities than those who plan to stay at the European (federal) level. For MEPs who aim to move to the state level, attendance and participation in legislative activities is substantively lower among legislators from candidate-centered systems. Importantly, the effect of career ambitions on legislative participation is stronger in candidate-centered systems than in party-centered systems. These findings suggest that the responsiveness associated with candidate-centered systems comes at the expense of legislative activity

A question of trust: intra-party delegation in the European Parliament

Much of the European Parliament’s work rests on negotiations within parliamentary committees, as well as other informal negotiations that take place behind closed doors. But what determines the selection of the MEPs who participate in these negotiations? Drawing on a new study, Fang-Yi Chiou, Bjørn Høyland and Silje Synnøve Lyder Hermansen illustrate that loyalty to the leadership of the transnational parties present in Parliament is the key factor in the selection process. While knowledge about a given policy area is important, parties typically develop a group of experts from which they can select candidates rather than relying on individuals with the most expertise

Co-localization of clinically relevant antibiotic- and heavy metal resistance genes on plasmids in Klebsiella pneumoniae from marine bivalves

Klebsiella pneumoniae is an opportunistic pathogen frequently associated with antibiotic resistance and present in a wide range of environments, including marine habitats. However, little is known about the development, persistence, and spread of antibiotic resistance in such environments. This study aimed to obtain the complete genome sequences of antibiotic-resistantKlebsiella pneumoniae isolated from marine bivalves in order to determine the genetic context of antibiotic- and heavy metal resistance genes in these isolates. Five antibiotic-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates, of which four also carried heavy metal resistance genes, were selected for complete genome sequencing using the Illumina MiSeq platform and the Oxford Nanopore Technologies GridION device. Conjugation experiments were conducted to examine the transfer potential of selected plasmids. The average length of the complete genomes was 5.48 Mbp with a mean chromosome size of 5.27 Mbp. Seven plasmids were detected in the antibiotic-resistant isolates. Three IncFIB, one IncFIB/IncFII, and one IncFIB/IncHIB plasmid, respectively, carried antibiotic resistance genes such as qnrS1, aph(6)-Id and aph(3′)-Ia, aadA1, and aadA2. Four of these plasmids also carried genes encoding resistance to copper (pco), silver (sil), and arsenic (ars). One plasmid carrying tet(D) and blaSHV-1 as well as pco, sil, and ars genes was transferred to Escherichia coli by conjugation. We show the co-occurrence of antibiotic- and heavy metal resistance genes on a conjugative IncFIB plasmid from K. pneumoniae from marine bivalves. Our study highlights the importance of the marine environment and seafood as a possible dissemination route for antimicrobial resistance and provides insights into the potential for co-selection of antibiotic resistance genes by heavy metals

The Performances of Three Commercially Available Assays for the Detection of SARS‐CoV‐2 Antibodies at Different Time Points Following SARS‐CoV‐2 Infection

The aim of this study was to evaluate the performances of three commercially available antibody assays for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies at different time points following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Sera from 536 cases, including 207 SARS-CoV-2 PCR positive, were tested for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies with the Wantai receptor binding domain (RBD) total antibody assay, Liaison S1/S2 IgG assay and Alinity i nucleocapsid IgG assay and compared to a two-step reference ELISA (SARS-CoV-2 RBD IgG and SARS-CoV-2 spike IgG). Diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, predictive values and Cohen’s kappa were calculated for the commercial assays. The assay’s sensitivities varied greatly, from 68.7% to 95.3%, but the specificities remained high (96.9%–99.1%). The three tests showed good performances in sera sampled 31 to 60 days after PCR positivity compared to the reference ELISA. The total antibody test performed better than the IgG tests the first 30 days and the nucleocapsid IgG test showed reduced sensitivity two months or more after PCR positivity. Hence, the test performances at different time points should be taken into consideration in clinical practice and epidemiological studies. Spike or RBD IgG tests are preferable in sera sampled more than two months following SARS-CoV-2 infection.publishedVersio

Procedural Effects and Party Pressure in European Parliament Roll Call Votes

The literature on voting in the European Parliament (EP) highlights the role of legislative parties. This is often done by showing that the uncovered ideal point estimates cluster more heavily around party groups than extant measures of ideology. The standard approach is to study all roll call votes within a legislative term, effectively treating each vote as equally important. Yet, we know that most roll call votes are non-consequential in terms of their effect on EU policies, as they are taken on non-legislative resolutions. This raises two concerns. First, failure to account for vote specific party inducements may make the estimated ideal points appear more clustered around parties than what would be the case if such inducements were accounted for. Second, most of the roll call votes in the EP are on resolutions, to the extent that voting behaviour in non-legislative resolutions is unrepresentative for voting behaviour on codecision legislation, the estimated ideal points will generate a distorted picture of voting behaviour on the votes most researchers care about. Building on the framework of Clinton, Jackman and Rivers (2004), this pape

Political behaviour in the European Parliament

This chapterexamines political behavior and legislative politics in the European Parliament. It begins with a review of research findings on the political behavior of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), focusing on the last decade or so. It considers the process of recruitment and election of the members of parliament and how this process affects them and their political preferences. It then looks at the formation of political parties and committees in the European Parliament—the so-called “equilibrium institutions”—and how the

The political system of the European Union

Published: 21 April 2022Starting from the observation that the European Union now possesses many of the attributes of modern political systems, Hix and Høyland take an innovative approach to analysing, researching and teaching the EU. Using the general theories of political science to understand how the EU works, this text covers each of the main processes in the EU political system - executive, legislative and judicial politics, public opinion, interest groups and democracy, and regulatory, monetary and foreign policies - introducing the key political science tools, reviewing the relevant theories, and applying the knowledge in detailed descriptive analysis. As well as incorporating new data and the latest research, this new edition examines the consequences of the dramatic political and policy developments in the EU over the past decade. The methodology used in the text makes the political system of the EU accessible to political science students as a whole, as well as those specifically studying and researching the EU

Get the Party Started: Development of Political Party Legislative Dynamics in the Irish Free State Seanad (1922—36)

In this article, we investigate the effect of political parties on legislative behaviour. We compile and analyse a unique dataset of all roll-call votes for all the sessions of the Irish Free State Seanad (the Upper Chamber in the legislature, 1922—36). The development of legislative parties inside the Irish Seanad led to the formation of cohesive voting blocs after 1928. This caused dramatic shifts in the rank-ordering of members and changed the coalition pattern. The establishment of disciplined parties also sealed the fate of the legislature when the Fianna Fáil party, hostile to the Free State Seanad, became an organized force inside the institution

The budgetary procedure in the European Union and the implications of the treaty of Lisbon

The Treaty of Lisbon reformed the budgetary procedure of the European Union (EU). This paper describes the key changes and presents a game-theoretical analysis of the annual budgetary procedure. Our focus is on the implications of these changes for the budgetary powers of the European Parliament (EP). Against the common belief that the budgetary powers of the EP were strengthened as a result of the Lisbon Treaty, our analysis paints a somewhat more sober assessment of its budgetary empowerment as a result of the reform. We find that the budgetary procedure operates much like the codecision procedure does in the legislative process. Compared to the budgetary procedure used prior to the Lisbon Treaty, it has become more difficult for the Parliament to pass amendments, if it wants to affect what used to be referred to as non-compulsory spending or decrease compulsory spending. The EP’s ability to pass amendments that increase compulsory spending is mostly unaffected. The configuration of preferences and bargaining powers in the Conciliation Committee determine whether on balance the EP is better off under the new procedure.nrpages: 31status: publishe

Unity in diversity? The development of political parties in the parliament of Canada, 1867-2011

What explains the development of legislative party voting unity? Evidence from the United States and Britain indicate that partisan sorting, cohort replacement effects, electoral incentives, and agenda control contributed to enhancing party cohesion during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Here, these mechanisms are evaluated by analysing a dataset containing all the recorded votes from the Canadian House of Commons, 1867–2011. Overall, we find that partisan sorting and the government’s ability to control the agenda are central to the consolidation of parties over time. Our results underscore the need to integrate institutional rules and legislative agendas into models of parliamentary voting behaviour and suggest that strict party discipline can lead to the development of a multi-party system in the legislative arena