European Union Pension Directive

[Excerpt] This Directive thus represents a first step on the way to an internal market for occupational retirement provision organised on a European scale. By setting the ‘prudent person’ rule as the underlying principle for capital investment and making it possible for institutions to operate across borders, the redirection of savings into the sector of occupational retirement provision is encouraged, thus contributing to economic and social progress. The prudential rules laid down in this Directive are intended both to guarantee a high degree of security for future pensioners through the imposition of stringent supervisory standards, and to clear the way for the efficient management of occupational pension schemes

Bridging rhetoric and practice: new perspectives on barriers to gendered change

Contains fulltext : 167537.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)This article presents a new methodology, Gender Knowledge Contestation Analysis, and uses it to examine the processes under way when transformative gender equality policies, such as gender mainstreaming are implemented. Drawing on data gathered in the European Commission, the findings show the processes linking high-level rhetorical policy statements, strategic policies, and daily working practices. This analysis enables exploration of the mechanisms through which indifference to and nonawareness of gendered policy problems are collectively constituted and methods through which they can be challenged. Findings thus deepen our understanding of barriers to the implementation of gender mainstreaming and the steps required for its effective implementation.20 juli 201

Field-portable-XRF reveals the ubiquity of antimony in plastic consumer products.

Very little systematic information exists on the occurrence and concentrations of antimony (Sb) in consumer products. In this study, a Niton XL3t field-portable-X-ray fluorescence (FP-XRF) spectrometer was deployed in situ and in the laboratory to provide quantitative information on Sb dissipated in plastic items and fixtures (including rubber, textile and foamed materials) from the domestic, school, vehicular and office settings. The metalloid was detected in 18% of over 800 measurements performed, with concentrations ranging from about 60 to 60,000μgg(-1). The highest concentrations were encountered in white, electronic casings and in association with similar concentrations of Br, consistent with the use of antimony oxides (e.g. Sb2O3) as synergistic flame retardants. Concentrations above 1000μgg(-1), and with or without Br, were also encountered in paints, piping and hosing, adhesives, whiteboards, Christmas decorations, Lego blocks, document carriers, garden furniture, upholstered products and interior panels of private motor vehicles. Lower concentrations of Sb were encountered in a wide variety of items but its presence (without Br) in food tray packaging, single-use drinks bottles, straws and small toys were of greatest concern from a human health perspective. While the latter observations are consistent with the use of antimony compounds as catalysts in the production of polyethylene terephthalate, co-association of Sb and Br in many products not requiring flame retardancy suggests that electronic casings are widely recycled. Further research is required into the mobility of Sb when dissipated in new, recycled and aged polymeric materials

Frequency-dependence of large-signal properties in lead-free piezoceramics

The dependence of large signal properties of (1-x)(0.81Bi 1/2Na 1/2TiO 3-0.19Bi 1/2K 1/2TiO 3)-xBi(Zn 1/2Ti 1/2)O 3 with x 0.02, 0.03, and 0.04 on the measurement frequency was investigated for a wide range of frequencies from 0.1 Hz to 100 Hz. A significant frequency dispersion in the characteristic parameters representatively maximum and coercive values was denoted. On extension with the temperature dependent dielectric permittivity measurement, it was shown that the observed frequency dependence is primarily correlated with the dynamics of field-induced phase transition from a relaxor state to a long-range ferroelectric state. Increasing the substitutional disorder introduced by Bi(Zn 1/2Ti 1/2)O 3 addition was demonstrated to pronounce the frequency dependence. It was proposed that the change be due to the increase in random fields and consequent dominance of ergodicity, based on the frequency-dependent hysteresis measurements at an elevated temperature above so-called induced-ferroelectric-to-relaxor transition temperature.open8

Financing social and cohesion policy in an enlarged EU: plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose?

The development of the Open Method of Coordination, agreement on the Lisbon Agenda and EU enlargement offered the prospect of a new and substantial EU social policy agenda. This article considers EU social and cohesion policies in the context of the recent negotiation of the EU budget for 2007—13. We find the Commission's wish to redistribute EU spending in favour of these policy areas and new member states was thwarted by key political features of EU budget making: CAP spending levels which are downwardly sticky; institutional arrangements which provide for budget making as, at best, a zero-sum game; and the preferences of contributor member states in the EU-15 to contain overall spending while preserving their net budget positions. Questions are thus raised as to the ability of the EU to make any progress, from a budgetary perspective, on the social and cohesion policy agenda in an enlarged EU

Three decades of policy layering and politically sustainable reform in the European Union’s Agricultural Policy

The study of policy reform has tended to focus on single-stage reforms taking place over a relatively short period. Recent research has drawn attention to gradual policy changes unfolding over extended periods. One strategy of gradual change is layering, in which new policy dimensions are introduced by adding new policy instruments or by redesigning existing ones to address new concerns. The limited research on single-stage policy reforms highlights that these may not endure in the postenactment phase when circumstances change. We argue that gradual policy layering may create sustainability dynamics that can result in lasting reform trajectories. The European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has changed substantially over the last three decades in response to emerging policy concerns by adding new layers. This succession of reforms proved durable and resilient to reversal in the lead-up to the 2013 CAP reform when institutional and political circumstances changed

Problems in rare tumor study: a call for papers

Rare tumor research presents many challenges. Large, randomized clinical trials are often impractical in this field and access to biospecimens may be problematic. These difficulties can best be addressed through multidisciplinary, national and international collaborative efforts among researchers, clinicians, governmental bodies, and patients. Numerous governmental and private organizations now exist to facilitate cooperation between researchers and institutions. Patient advocacy organizations now play an increasingly important role in partnering with traditional research groups to promote rare tumor research. Rare Tumors is now beginning an editorial series focusing on the problems of rare tumor research. We wish to invite all researchers and clinicians who are involved in rare tumor research and treatment to contribute their observations on the problems of working in this field, either as a letter to the editor, an editorial on a select issue, or as a review paper