Towards internal cohesion? The role of local government in economic development under the EU Single Programme in Northern Ireland

This paper focuses on the extent to which EU funding available under the Local Economic Development Measure of the Northern Ireland Single Programme (1994-99) has encouraged local government in Northern Ireland to adopt a new role in local economic development. It also considers whether the implementation of the Measure has effectively addressed its objectives of economic and social cohesion. It discusses the rationale for district council involvement and concludes that the local government structure in Northern Ireland requires adaptation to optimise the impact of the aid on offer.     

The challenge of local government delivery

This article focuses on the challenge facing transformed local government in actually delivering the developmental role and services set out in the Constitution. The White Paper on Local Government sets out an extremely ambitious agenda, identifying municipalities as a main vehicle for improving living conditions for the majority of the population. Successful delivery is critical. The current UK Local Government reform programme is based on the concept of ‘best value’, ie the continuous search to improve the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of public services through year‐on‐year improvement. The article suggests a simple and straightforward implementation model based on three integrated elements: an annual member cycle for the systematic consideration and review of the application of resources to identified priority community needs; adopting a limited number of critical success factors and incorporating these into officer performance appraisal.     

The role of federal funding on the demand for state and local government spending

Federal aid to state and local governments lowers the perceived tax price of state and local government output and, in this way, affects the demand for state and local government. After reviewing some theoretical models, an empirical investigation using data from 1960–89 shows that federal aid makes the demand for state and local government spending more income-elastic. State and local government expenditures have grown more rapidly than federal government expenditures since 1960 and there is some empirical support for the idea that federal aid was an important contributing factor.     

统筹城乡发展的地方政府投资选择思考

本文从统筹城乡发展的基本内涵入手,分析了当前统筹城乡发展中地方政府投资存在的问题和成因,提出了地方政府投资要适应统筹城乡发展的对策建议。     

The impact of globalisation on local government in South Africa

Globalisation has been defined as a continuous evolutionary process whereby functions and influences cross boundaries from one state to another. The question is often raised as to whether a country such as South Africa can ignore global influences after years of isolation and integrate positively with the international community as a global player. The South African government has initiated the debate on the possible benefits of globalisation, especially in the local government sphere. Globalisation could, it is believed, facilitate economic and social upliftment in the communities served by local government. Whether it has the expertise and capacity needed to actualise these benefits is, however, debatable. The larger local authorities, or Category A municipalities, have supported the idea of globalisation and have begun formulating policies on international relations. The purpose of this article is, first, to determine the implications of globalisation for South African local authorities. Secondly, based on these findings, an attempt has been made to identify the criteria for integrating successfully into the international local government system. On the basis of these responses, a qualitative evaluation of the identified criteria was undertaken in order to determine the extent to which they have been met in South African local government.     

The complicit role of local government authorities in corporate bribery: Evidence from a tax collection reform in China

In January 2002, China decided to centralize corporate income tax collection, shifting the collection authority from the local tax bureaus (LTBs) to the state tax bureaus (STBs), for all firms established after December 31, 2001. We exploit this exogenous shock to identify a new cause for corporate bribery, namely, the complicit role of local government authorities. We find that firms whose income taxes are still collected by LTBs after the reform bribe more than similar firms whose taxes are collected by STBs. Such effects are more pronounced for firms located in provinces where government intervention is more prevalent and where judicial system is less independent. Moreover, we find that firms whose taxes are collected by LTBs enjoy lower tax burdens and receive greater tax-related subsidies, especially when they bribe more. Overall, our results highlight the reciprocation between local government authorities and firms in determining corporate bribery.     

地方政府负债问题思考

近几年，我国地方政府通过地方平台融资和筹资搞建设，一部分省市、区县、甚至街道、乡镇一级政府均产生了不同程度负债，规模达数万亿元。最近中央政府下发了《国务院关于加强地方政府融资平台公司管理有关问题的通知一国发（2010）19号文》，     

The effects of local government leadership turnover on entrepreneurial behavior

The behavior of entrepreneurs is significantly affected by the rules of the game and the behaviors of government officials, because they can affect the relative payoffs to different entrepreneurial activities. Based on a representative survey data of private firms and the information of city government officials in China, this paper shows that the change of key local government officials affects the time allocation of the entrepreneurs, and subsequently the performance of firms. In order to maintain and develop the business-government relationship, entrepreneurs have to allocate less time on productive activities and more time on non-productive activities. This effect is particularly large if 1) entrepreneurs do not have political connections, 2) new officials lack local working experience, 3) private firms belong to special industries, 4) private firms have large number of employees. This paper provides micro-level evidence to Baumol's entrepreneurship allocation theory and a mechanism to account for the observed negative effect of local government leadership turnover on local economic growth in China.     

Race and gender in local government employment

Since the democratic elections of 1994, there have been significant shifts in the race and gender composition of the national and provincial spheres of the public service. Less attention has been focused on what has happened in local government employment. This article examines the results of a large sample survey of local governments conducted by the Central Statistical Service in December 1997. The analysis suggests that there are severe imbalances in respect of representivity in this third sphere of government.