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Showing papers on "European union published in 2010"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The prevalence of NDM-1, in multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae in India, Pakistan, and the UK is investigated, and co-ordinated international surveillance is needed.
Abstract: Summary Background Gram-negative Enterobacteriaceae with resistance to carbapenem conferred by New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase 1 (NDM-1) are potentially a major global health problem. We investigated the prevalence of NDM-1, in multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae in India, Pakistan, and the UK. Methods Enterobacteriaceae isolates were studied from two major centres in India—Chennai (south India), Haryana (north India)—and those referred to the UK's national reference laboratory. Antibiotic susceptibilities were assessed, and the presence of the carbapenem resistance gene bla NDM-1 was established by PCR. Isolates were typed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of XbaI-restricted genomic DNA. Plasmids were analysed by S1 nuclease digestion and PCR typing. Case data for UK patients were reviewed for evidence of travel and recent admission to hospitals in India or Pakistan. Findings We identified 44 isolates with NDM-1 in Chennai, 26 in Haryana, 37 in the UK, and 73 in other sites in India and Pakistan. NDM-1 was mostly found among Escherichia coli (36) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (111), which were highly resistant to all antibiotics except to tigecycline and colistin. K pneumoniae isolates from Haryana were clonal but NDM-1 producers from the UK and Chennai were clonally diverse. Most isolates carried the NDM-1 gene on plasmids: those from UK and Chennai were readily transferable whereas those from Haryana were not conjugative. Many of the UK NDM-1 positive patients had travelled to India or Pakistan within the past year, or had links with these countries. Interpretation The potential of NDM-1 to be a worldwide public health problem is great, and co-ordinated international surveillance is needed. Funding European Union, Wellcome Trust, and Wyeth.

2,680 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Over the past four years, several new types of experimental biologic treatment have received commercial registration, but the emergence of biosimilars represents the biggest shift in the biologic approval landscape.
Abstract: Over the past four years, several new types of experimental biologic treatment have received commercial registration, but the emergence of biosimilars represents the biggest shift in the biologic approval landscape.

890 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Technical proficiency can be learned and adapted readily as demonstrated by the short-term procedural success rate and low 30-day mortality rates reported in the SOURCE Registry.
Abstract: Background— Transcatheter aortic valve implantation was developed to mitigate the mortality and morbidity associated with high-risk traditional aortic valve replacement. The Edwards SAPIEN valve was approved for transcatheter aortic valve implantation transfemoral delivery in the European Union in November 2007 and for transapical delivery in January 2008. Methods and Results— The SAPIEN Aortic Bioprosthesis European Outcome (SOURCE) Registry was designed to assess the initial clinical results of the Edwards SAPIEN valve in consecutive patients in Europe after commercialization. Cohort 1 consists of 1038 patients enrolled at 32 centers. Patients who were treated with the transapical approach (n=575) suffered more comorbidities than the transfemoral patients (n=463), resulting in a significantly higher logistic EuroSCORE (29.1% versus 25.7%; P<0.001). Therefore, these groups are considered different, and outcomes cannot be compared. Overall short-term procedural success was observed in 93.8%. The incidence...

873 citations


01 Jan 2010
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the patterns and effects of departmental oversight across 28 ministries in Estonia, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia in relation to transposition planning, legal review and monitoring of deadlines.
Abstract: The extent to which member states transpose EU directives in a timely fashion is often argued to be strongly associated with the general effectiveness of national bureaucracies. But what kind of institutional solutions ensure better performance? This paper examines the patterns and effects of departmental oversight across 28 ministries in Estonia, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia. In mapping the strength of oversight, it relies on around 90 structured interviews regarding the rules-in-use on transposition planning, legal review and monitoring of deadlines. The analysis of the impact of departmental oversight is based on an original dataset of over 300 directives with transposition deadlines between January 2005 and December 2008.

858 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The successes and problems encountered with implementation of the WFD over the past 10 years are reviewed and recommendations to further improve the implementation process are provided.

817 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: HPV-based screening is more effective than cytology in preventing invasive cervical cancer, by detecting persistent high-grade lesions earlier and providing a longer low-risk period, but in younger women, HPV screening leads to over-diagnosis of regressive CIN2.
Abstract: Summary Background Human papillomavirus (HPV) testing is known to be more sensitive, but less specific than cytology for detecting cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). We assessed the efficacy of cervical-cancer screening policies that are based on HPV testing. Methods Between March, 2004, and December, 2004, in two separate recruitment phases, women aged 25–60 years were randomly assigned to conventional cytology or to HPV testing in combination with liquid-based cytology (first phase) or alone (second phase). Randomisation was done by computer in two screening centres and by sequential opening of numbered sealed envelopes in the remaining seven centres. During phase one, women who were HPV-positive and aged 35–60 years were referred to colposcopy, whereas women aged 25–34 years were referred to colposcopy only if cytology was also abnormal or HPV testing was persistently positive. During phase two, women in the HPV group were referred for colposcopy if the HPV test was positive. Two rounds of screening occurred in each phase, and all women had cytology testing only at the second round. The primary endpoint was the detection of grade 2 and 3 CIN, and of invasive cervical cancers during the first and second screening rounds. Analysis was done by intention to screen. This trial is registered, number ISRCTN81678807. Findings In total for both phases, 47 001 women were randomly assigned to the cytology group and 47 369 to HPV testing. 33 851 women from the cytology group and 32 998 from the HPV-testing group had a second round of screening. We also retrieved the histological diagnoses from screening done elsewhere. The detection of invasive cervical cancers was similar for the two groups in the first round of screening (nine in the cytology group vs seven in the HPV group, p=0·62); no cases were detected in the HPV group during round two, compared with nine in the cytology group (p=0·004). Overall, in the two rounds of screening, 18 invasive cancers were detected in the cytology group versus seven in the HPV group (p=0·028). Among women aged 35–60 years, at round one the relative detection (HPV vs cytology) was 2·00 (95% CI 1·44–2·77) for CIN2, 2·08 (1·47–2·95) for CIN3, and 2·03 (1·60–2·57) for CIN2 and 3 together. At round two the relative detection was 0·54 (0·23–1·28) for CIN2, 0·48 (0·21–1·11) for CIN3, and 0·51 (0·28–0·93) for CIN2 and 3 together. Among women aged 25–34 years, there was significant heterogeneity between phases in the relative detection of CIN3. At round one the relative detection was 0·93 (0·52–1·64) in phase one and 3·91 (2·02–7·57) in phase two. At round two the relative detection was 1·34 (0·46–3·84) in phase one and 0·20 (0·04–0·93) in phase two. Pooling both phases, the detection ratio of CIN2 for women aged 25–34 years was 4·09 (2·24–7·48) at round one and 0·64 (0·23–1·27) at round two. Interpretation HPV-based screening is more effective than cytology in preventing invasive cervical cancer, by detecting persistent high-grade lesions earlier and providing a longer low-risk period. However, in younger women, HPV screening leads to over-diagnosis of regressive CIN2. Funding European Union, Italian Ministry of Health, Regional Health Administrations of Piemonte, Tuscany, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna, and Public Health Agency of Lazio.

811 citations


BookDOI
01 Jan 2010-Health
TL;DR: This special edition of Health at a Glance focuses on health issues across the 27 European Union member states, three European Free Trade Association countries (Iceland, Norway and Switzerland) and Turkey, giving readers a better understanding of the factors that affect the health of populations and the performance of health systems in these countries.
Abstract: This special edition of Health at a Glance focuses on health issues across the 27 European Union member states, three European Free Trade Association countries (Iceland, Norway and Switzerland) and Turkey. It gives readers a better understanding of the factors that affect the health of populations and the performance of health systems in these countries.Its 42 indicators present comparable data covering a wide range of topics, including health status, risk factors, health workforce and health expenditure. Each indicator in the book is presented in a user-friendly format, consisting of charts illustrating variations across countries and over time, brief descriptive analyses highlighting the major findings conveyed by the data, and a methodological box on the definition of the indicators and any limitations in data comparability. An annex provides additional information on the demographic and economic context within which health systems operate. This publication is the result of collaboration between the OECD and the European Commission, with the help of national data correspondents from the 31 countries.

717 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An overview of the fundamental points and principles that should support any quality-assured screening programme and key performance indicators are presented here in a summary document of the second guidelines edition in order to make these principles and standards known to a wider scientific community.

672 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
01 Apr 2010-Energy
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine experiences within European countries as well as at European Union (EU) level, with the aim of understanding which factors have facilitated or impeded advances in demand response (DR) in Europe.

587 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors review the state of the art in EPI research and practice from the perspective of its conceptual meaning, processes of implementation and outcomes "on the ground" and find that the political commitment to EPI is indeed widespread, especially in industrialized states, but that deep disagreement surrounds its actual application.
Abstract: The principle of environmental policy integration (EPI) attracts great scholarly interest as well as widespread political backing. Political support is particularly strong in the European Union, where it enjoys a prominent quasi-constitutional status. However, the practical fulfilment of EPI appears to lag well behind these aspirations, although the evidence base of this widely held view remains rather fragmented. This article aims to review the ‘state of the art’ in EPI research and practice from the perspective of its conceptual meaning, processes of implementation and outcomes ‘on the ground’. It finds that the political commitment to EPI is indeed widespread, especially in industrialized states, but that deep disagreement surrounds its actual application. In terms of everyday practices, ‘policy integration’ is complex and contingent, and there are few ‘best practices’ that can be easily shared between jurisdictions. Finally, knowledge about policy outcomes is very sparse indeed, and policy-making systems seem very ill prepared to address this lacuna. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

556 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the change in foreign mutual fund investment in firms that began using International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) after its mandatory adoption in the European Union (EU) in 2005.
Abstract: Proponents of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) argue that mandating a uniform set of accounting standards improves financial statement comparability that in turn attracts greater cross-border investment. Our study tests this assertion by examining the change in foreign mutual fund investment in firms that began using IFRS after its mandatory adoption in the European Union (EU) in 2005. We hypothesize that firms experience larger increases in foreign mutual fund ownership when there is a credible increase in uniformity from IFRS adoption. We define a credible increase in uniformity as a large increase in the number of industry peers using the same accounting standards in countries where IFRS is credibly implemented. Consistent with our hypothesis, we find that subsequent to mandatory IFRS adoption, the increase in foreign mutual fund investment is greater among the firms that experience relatively large increases in uniformity and are in countries with strong implementation credibility.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The current burden of MRSA infections in healthcare and community settings across Europe is described and the main threats caused by recent changes in the epidemiology of MR SA are outlined, aimed at identifying unmet needs of surveillance, prevention and control ofMRSA in Europe.
Abstract: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isa major cause of healthcare- and community-associated infections worldwide. Within the healthcare setting alone, MRSA infections are estimated to affect more than 150,000 patients annually in the European Union (EU), resulting in attributable extra in-hospital costs of EUR 380 million for EU healthcare systems. Pan-European surveillance data on bloodstream infections show marked variability among EU Member States in the proportion of S. aureus that are methicillin-resistant, ranging from less than 1% to more than 50%. In the past five years, the MRSA bacteraemia rates have decreased significantly in 10 EU countries with higher endemic rates of MRSA infections. In addition to healthcare-associated infections, new MRSA strains have recently emerged as community and livestock-associated human pathogens in most EU Member States. The prevention and control of MRSA have therefore been identified as public health priorities in the EU. In this review, we describe the current burden of MRSA infections in healthcare and community settings across Europe and outline the main threats caused by recent changes in the epidemiology of MRSA. Thereby, we aim at identifying unmet needs of surveillance, prevention and control of MRSA in Europe.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors reviewed the national strategy plans of the world's leading biofuel producers, focusing on blending targets, support schemes and feedstock use, with particular attention devoted to blending targets and support schemes.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The state-of-art on alien species in the Mediterranean Sea is presented, making distinctions among the four subregions defined in the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive; the WMED hosts most invasive macrophytes, whereas the EMED has the lion’s share in polychaetes, crustaceans, molluscs and fish.
Abstract: The state-of-art on alien species in the Mediterranean Sea is presented, making distinctions among the four subregions defined in the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive: (i) the Western Mediterranean Sea (WMED); (ii) the Central Mediterranean Sea (CMED); (iii) the Adriatic Sea (ADRIA); and (iv) the Eastern Mediterranean Sea (EMED). The updated checklist (December 2010) of marine alien species within each subregion, along with their acclimatization status and origin, is provided. A total of 955 alien species is known in the Mediterranean, the vast majority of them having being introduced in the EMED (718), less in the WMED (328) and CMED (267) and least in the Adriatic (171). Of these, 535 species (56%) are established in at least one area. Despite the collective effort of experts who attempted in this work, the number of introduced species remains probably underestimated. Excluding microalgae, for which knowledge is still insufficient, aliens have increased the total species richness of the Mediterranean Sea by 5.9%. This figure should not be directly read as an indication of higher biodiversity, as spreading of so many aliens within the basin is possibly causing biotic homogenization. Thermophilic species, i.e. Indo-Pacific, Indian Ocean, Red Sea, Tropical Atlantic, Tropical Pacific, and circum(sub)tropical, account for 88.4% of the introduced species in the EMED, 72.8% in the CMED, 59.3% in the WMED and 56.1% in the Adriatic. Cold water species, i.e. circumboreal, N Atlantic, and N Pacific, make up a small percentage of the introduced species, ranging between 4.2% and 21.6% and being more numerous in the Adriatic and less so in the EMED. Species that are classified as invasive or potentially invasive are 134 in the whole of the Mediterranean: 108 are present in the EMED, 76 in the CMED, 53 in the Adriatic and 64 in the WMED. The WMED hosts most invasive macrophytes, whereas the EMED has the lion’s share in polychaetes, crustaceans, molluscs and fish.

Journal ArticleDOI
Siqi Li1
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined whether the mandatory adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in the European Union (EU) in 2005 reduces the cost of equity capital.
Abstract: This study examines whether the mandatory adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in the European Union (EU) in 2005 reduces the cost of equity capital. Using a sample of 6,456 firm‐year observations of 1,084 EU firms during the 1995 to 2006 period, I find evidence that, on average, the IFRS mandate significantly reduces the cost of equity for mandatory adopters by 47 basis points. I also find that this reduction is present only in countries with strong legal enforcement, and that increased disclosure and enhanced information comparability are two mechanisms behind the cost of equity reduction. Taken together, these findings suggest that while mandatory IFRS adoption significantly lowers firms' cost of equity, the effects depend on the strength of the countries' legal enforcement.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A review of existing and proposed pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) plant and discusses the technical and economic drivers for these developments can be found in this paper, where a lack of detailed information on PHES facilities worldwide is reviewed in the context of market and generation mix changes.
Abstract: There has been a renewed commercial and technical interest in pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) recently with the advent of increased variable renewable energy generation and the development of liberalized electricity markets. During the next 8 years over 7 GW of PHES capacity will be added to the European network while projects are also planned in the USA and Japan. This paper provides a review of existing and proposed PHES plant and discusses the technical and economic drivers for these developments. Current trends for new PHES development generally show that developers operating in liberalized markets are tending to repower, enhance projects or build ‘pump-back’ PHES rather than traditional ‘pure pumped storage’. Capital costs per kW for proposed PHES in the review region range between €470/kW and €2170/kW, however these costs are highly site and project specific. An emergence has also been observed in recent PHES developments of the use of variable speed technology. This technology, while incurring slightly higher capital costs, offers a greater range of operational flexibility and efficiency over conventional PHES. This paper has primarily been prompted by a lack of detailed information on PHES facilities worldwide and reviews current developments in the context of market and generation mix changes. The most recent large scale review of PHES faculties was undertaken by the American Society of Civil Engineers Hydro Power Task Committee on Pumped Storage in 1996. In the absence of data in the literature on new PHES plant development, this review draws primarily on publicly available information from utilities, government bodies and electricity regulators. In the same context this study is limited to a review region of the European Union, Japan and the United States as information on developments outside these areas is difficult to procure. This paper also gives a review of locations and proposed timelines for new PHES development and provides a thorough up-to-date overview of the development trends of this technology.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results suggest that the perceived benefits and obstacles of e‐business, technology readiness, competitive pressure, and trading partner collaboration are the drivers that are important for both industries.
Abstract: Purpose – The paper seeks to investigate the factors that affect the adoption of e‐business by firms belonging to European Union (EU) countries, by comparing the effect across two different industries: telecommunications (telco) and tourism.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from 2,459 firms belonging to EU27 countries across two industries. The data were analyzed by employing factorial analysis and relevant hypotheses were derived and tested by logistic regression analysis.Findings – The results suggest that the perceived benefits and obstacles of e‐business, technology readiness, competitive pressure, and trading partner collaboration are the drivers that are important for both industries. Through the comparison of the industries, statistically significant differences between the telco and the tourism industries, i.e. the relative importance of all drivers for e‐business adoption differs between the industries, were found. The only exception is competitive pressure.Research limitations/im...

Book
28 Jan 2010
TL;DR: The European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is the world's largest market for carbon and the most significant multinational initiative ever taken to mobilize markets to protect the environment as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is the world's largest market for carbon and the most significant multinational initiative ever taken to mobilize markets to protect the environment. It will be an important influence on the development and implementation of trading schemes in the US, Japan, and elsewhere. However, as is true of any pioneering public policy experiment, this scheme has generated much controversy. Pricing Carbon provides the first detailed description and analysis of the EU ETS, focusing on the first 'trial' period of the scheme (2005–7). Written by an international team of experts, it allows readers to get behind the headlines and come to a better understanding of what was done and what happened based on a dispassionate, empirically based review of the evidence. This book should be read by anyone who wants to know what happens when emissions are capped, traded, and priced.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: About three times more patients in the stenting group than in the endarterectomy group had new ischaemic lesions on DWI on post-treatment scans, suggesting DWI might serve as a surrogate outcome measure in future trials of carotid interventions.
Abstract: Summary Background The International Carotid Stenting Study (ICSS) of stenting and endarterectomy for symptomatic carotid stenosis found a higher incidence of stroke within 30 days of stenting compared with endarterectomy. We aimed to compare the rate of ischaemic brain injury detectable on MRI between the two groups. Methods Patients with recently symptomatic carotid artery stenosis enrolled in ICSS were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive carotid artery stenting or endarterectomy. Of 50 centres in ICSS, seven took part in the MRI substudy. The protocol specified that MRI was done 1–7 days before treatment, 1–3 days after treatment (post-treatment scan), and 27–33 days after treatment. Scans were analysed by two or three investigators who were masked to treatment. The primary endpoint was the presence of at least one new ischaemic brain lesion on diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) on the post-treatment scan. Analysis was per protocol. This is a substudy of a registered trial, ISRCTN 25337470. Findings 231 patients (124 in the stenting group and 107 in the endarterectomy group) had MRI before and after treatment. 62 (50%) of 124 patients in the stenting group and 18 (17%) of 107 patients in the endarterectomy group had at least one new DWI lesion detected on post-treatment scans done a median of 1 day after treatment (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 5·21, 95% CI 2·78–9·79; p Interpretation About three times more patients in the stenting group than in the endarterectomy group had new ischaemic lesions on DWI on post-treatment scans. The difference in clinical stroke risk in ICSS is therefore unlikely to have been caused by ascertainment bias. Protection devices did not seem to be effective in preventing cerebral ischaemia during stenting. DWI might serve as a surrogate outcome measure in future trials of carotid interventions. Funding UK Medical Research Council, the Stroke Association, Sanofi-Synthelabo, European Union, Netherlands Heart Foundation, and Mach-Gaensslen Foundation.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a choice experiment approach was used to investigate households' WTP for renewable energy technologies in the UK, and the results suggest that whilst renewable energy adoption is significantly valued by households, this value is not sufficiently large, for the vast majority of households, to cover the higher capital costs of micro-generation energy technologies.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Tear film osmolarity was found to be the single best marker of disease severity across normal, mild/moderate, and severe categories and supports the rationale for redefining severity on the basis of a continuum of clinical signs.
Abstract: Purpose A prospective, multisite clinical study (10 sites in the European Union and the United States) evaluated the clinical utility of commonly used tests and tear osmolarity for assessing dry eye disease severity. Methods Three hundred fourteen consecutive subjects between the ages of 18 and 82 years were recruited from the general patient population, 299 of which qualified with complete datasets. Osmolarity testing, Schirmer test without anesthesia, tear film breakup time (TBUT), corneal staining, meibomian dysfunction assessment, and conjunctival staining were performed bilaterally. A symptom questionnaire, the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI), was also administered to each patient. Distributions of clinical signs and symptoms against a continuous composite severity index were evaluated. Results Osmolarity was found to have the highest correlation coefficient to disease severity (r(2) = 0.55), followed by conjunctival staining (r(2) = 0.47), corneal staining (r(2) = 0.43), OSDI (r(2) = 0.41), meibomian score (r(2) = 0.37), TBUT (r(2) = 0.30), and Schirmer result (r(2) = 0.17). A comparison of standard threshold-based classification with the composite severity index revealed significant overlap between the disease severities of prospectively defined normal and dry eye groups. Fully 63% of the subjects were found to be poorly classified by combinations of clinical thresholds. Conclusions Tear film osmolarity was found to be the single best marker of disease severity across normal, mild/moderate, and severe categories. Other tests were found to be informative in the more severe forms of disease; thus, clinical judgment remains an important element in the clinical assessment of dry eye severity. The results also indicate that the initiation and progression of dry eye is multifactorial and supports the rationale for redefining severity on the basis of a continuum of clinical signs. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00848198.).

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the adaptation of farmers and regions in the European Union to prevailing climatic conditions, climate change and climate variability in the last decades (1990-2003) in the context of other conditions and changes was analyzed.

Posted Content
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that border effects may have been mismeasured in a way that leads to a systematic overstatement, and they propose a correct measure of distance that would be consistent for international as well as intra-national trade flows.
Abstract: The measured effect of national borders on trade seems too large to be explained by the apparently small border-related trade barriers. This puzzle was first presented by McCallum (1995) and has gone on to spawn a large and growing literature on so-called border effects. We argue in this paper that, because distances are always mismeasured in the existing literature, the border effects may have been mismeasured in a way that leads to a systematic overstatement. Our goal here is to develop a correct measure of distance that would be consistent for international as well as intra-national trade flows. We show how use of the existing methods for calculating distance leads to “illusory” border and adjacency effects. We then apply our methods to data on interstate trade in the United States and inter-member trade in the European Union. We find that our new distance measure reduces the estimated border and adjacency effects but does not eliminate them. Thus, while we do not solve the border effect puzzle, we do show a way to shrink it.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that integration through law does have a liberalizing and deregulatory impact on the socioeconomic regimes of European Union member states, but this effect is generally compatible with the status quo in liberal market economies, but it tends to undermine the institutions and policy legacies of Continental and Scandinavian social market economies.
Abstract: Judge-made law has played a crucial role in the process of European integration. In the vertical dimension, it has greatly reduced the range of autonomous policy choices in the member states, and it has helped to expand the reach of European competences. At the same time, however, ‘integration through law’ does have a liberalizing and deregulatory impact on the socio-economic regimes of European Union member states. This effect is generally compatible with the status quo in liberal market economies, but it tends to undermine the institutions and policy legacies of Continental and Scandinavian social market economies. Given the high consensus requirements of European legislation, this structural asymmetry cannot be corrected through political action at the European level.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors divide the contents of all PTAs involving the EC and the US currently notified to the WTO, into 14 'WTO+' and 38 ''WTO-X'' areas, where WTO+ provisions come under the current mandate of the WTO and WTO-X provisions deal with issues lying outside the current WTO mandate.
Abstract: It is often alleged that PTAs involving the EC and the US include a significant number of obligations in areas not currently covered by the WTO Agreement, such as investment protection, competition policy, labour standards and environmental protection. The primary purpose of this study is to highlight the extent to which these claims are true. The study divides the contents of all PTAs involving the EC and the US currently notified to the WTO, into 14 'WTO+' and 38 'WTO-X' areas, where WTO+ provisions come under the current mandate of the WTO, and WTO-X provisions deal with issues lying outside the current WTO mandate. As a second step, the legal enforceability of each obligation is evaluated, and judged on the extent to which the text specifies clear obligations. Among the findings are: (i) EC agreements contain almost four times as many instances of WTO-X provisions as do US agreements; (ii) but EC agreements evidence a very significant amount of 'legal inflation' (i.e. non-legally enforceable provisions) in the WTO-X category, and US agreements actually contain more enforceable WTO-X provisions than do the EC agreements; (iii) US agreements tend to emphasise regulatory areas more compared to EC agreements. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors obtained data on international trade in CITES-listed animals in the period 1998-2007 and concluded that there is an urgent need for better assessments of what levels of exploitation are sustainable, for initiatives to make regulatory mechanisms more effective (including the introduction of minimum mandatory standards and monitoring selected wildlife trade hubs), and for better licensing and registration.
Abstract: Wildlife trade is the very heart of biodiversity conservation and sustainable development providing an income for some of the least economically affluent people and it generates considerable revenue nationally. In Asia the unsustainable trade in wildlife has been identified as one of the main conservation challenges. Internationally, wildlife trade is regulated through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora (CITES) to which all Southeast Asian nations are signatory. I obtained data on international trade in CITES-listed animals in the period 1998–2007. In all >35 million animals (0.3 million butterflies; 16.0 million seahorses; 0.1 million other fish; 17.4 million reptiles; 0.4 million mammals; 1.0 million birds) were exported in this period, 30 million (~300 species) of them being wild-caught. In addition 18 million pieces and 2 million kg of live corals were exported. Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and China are the major exporters of wild-caught animals and the European Union and Japan are the most significant importers. Over this period exports in birds significantly decreased, trade in the other taxa either increased or remained stable. For all taxa but butterflies the vast majority of individuals represent wild-caught individuals. Records of illegal or undeclared international trade are scant but can be significantly larger than levels of official exports. It is concluded that there is an urgent need for better assessments of what levels of exploitation are sustainable (including exploring appropriate proxies for Non Detriment Findings), for initiatives to make regulatory mechanisms more effective (including the introduction of minimum mandatory standards and monitoring selected wildlife trade hubs), and for better licensing and registration. Funding for at least some of these initiatives can be obtained by imposing small levies on exports of CITES-listed wildlife.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The potential of nutraceuticals/functional foods/food supplements in mitigating health problems, especially in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, is discussed and the establishment of novel functional cell models of the GI and analytical tools that allow tests in controlled experiments are highly desired for gut research.
Abstract: New eating habits, actual trends in production and consumption have a health, environmental and social impact. The European Union is fighting diseases characteristic of a modern age, such as obesity, osteoporosis, cancer, diabetes, allergies and dental problems. Developed countries are also faced with problems relating to aging populations, high energy foods, and unbalanced diets. The potential of nutraceuticals/functional foods/food supplements in mitigating health problems, especially in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, is discussed. Certain members of gut microflora (e.g., probiotic/protective strains) play a role in the host health due to its involvement in nutritional, immunologic and physiological functions. The potential mechanisms by which nutraceuticals/functional foods/food supplements may alter a host’s health are also highlighted in this paper. The establishment of novel functional cell models of the GI and analytical tools that allow tests in controlled experiments are highly desired for gut research.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Recommendation: population-based screening for prostate cancer reduces prostate cancer mortality at the expense of a high over-treatment rate.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Favourable trends were observed for testicular cancer, Hodgkin lymphomas, leukaemias, and other neoplasms amenable to treatment, though the reductions were still appreciably smaller in eastern Europe.