Neo-liberalism at a time of crisis: the case of taxation

This essay explores how the global financial crisis of 2008–2009 has affected the stability of what Stephen Gill has termed the ‘new constitutionalism of disciplinary neo-liberalism’, more precisely, in the realm of international tax policy. Rather than providing an in-depth and complete empirical study of the matter, this essay will highlight certain interesting developments and touch upon a series of possibly relevant questions that could form the basis for a future research agenda. In the first section, we will examine the remarkable strength and resilience of the new constitutionalism as the institutional component of neo-liberal hegemony. Then we will proceed to an exploration of the impact of the crisis on this hegemony, also paying attention to deepening geopolitical multipolarity as an additional variable. The final, more empirical section will investigate the case of international taxation in this context, and demonstrate that new constitutionalism remains a crucial supporting pillar of neo-liberal globalisation

Germany's institutional power and the EMU regime after the crisis : towards a Germanized Euro area?

In this article we examine the constraints on Germany’s influence over the reforms of the macroeconomic governance regime of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Drawing on the insights of historical institutionalism, we show that the German government’s control over the process is constrained by the increased sunk costs of European monetary integration and the unintended negative spillovers from its management of the Eurozone crisis. While the German government attempted to promote the domestic societal interests underpinning its creditor preferences by deflecting the burden of macroeconomic and institutional adjustment onto the debtor countries, negative feedback loops linked to the pursuit of these preferences induced it to accept a less orthodox and increasingly accommodative central bank to make the EMU sustainable

Notions of solidarity and integration in times of war: the idea of Europe, 1914–18

This article argues that the First World War did not just aggravate nationalist sentiments but also encouraged intercultural exchange and a better understanding of other societies and ways of life. Indeed, the wartime prevalence of notions of solidarity and integration requires more attention and careful analysis. The essay explores three key issues, focusing in particular on solidarity practices and transnational interaction. It investigates military alliances, the collaboration between national independence movements, and the role of neutral countries as refuge and gathering place of pacifist groups and intellectuals. Many of these actors discussed and promoted forms of at least regional cooperation in post-war Europe

What starting public service interpreters in the EU should know about legislation : the case of Belgium and the Netherlands

Abstract : The interpreting profe ssion weaves its way through a tangled web of legal provi sions. Especially in the areas of immigration, the court, the p olice or social services, third - party rights p lay an important role, and language assistance is needed to act following the law . Freelance i nterpreters are contracted. These interpreters have opt ed for entrepreneurship and private - law relation ships with their clients. T he public - law sphere , however , is very much a part of their activities , through their tra ining, certification, fees they earn , but also taxation . Due to growing professionalization , higher demands are being placed on interpreters . Requirements nowadays are muc h stricter than an oath of faithful translation . This paper discus se s what starting public service interpreters need to know about legal provisions wh en starting their career as entrepreneurs in Belgium and the Netherlands