Journal articles on the topic 'Independent regulatory commissions – European Union countries'

The issues of ageing management (AM) are regarded as ones of the most important factors for safety ensurance of nuclear installations at the design and longterm operation stages. For Ukrainian NPPs units, the design lifetime (30 years) has either expired, or is at the ending stage. The Energy Strategy of Ukraine until 2035 “Safety, Energy Efficiency, Competitiveness” underlines the Long Term Operation (LTO) based on periodic safety review as one of the high priority areas of nuclear energy development. Thus, the analysis of ageing management issue is paid respective attention in Ukraine and abroad. Ageing management became a subject of first thematic peer review organized by European Commission based on Western European Nuclear Regulatory Authorities (WENRA) proposal. European Union countries took place in this peer review and Ukraine has joined this process as well. Based on the results of topical peer review each country has developed a National report on ageing management. This article is dedicated to main analysis results of ageing management issues at Ukrainian NPPs covering the components such as reactor vessel, containment, electric cables and embedded piping.Based on the results of independent verifications carried out by Western experts in the framework of international projects, the level of Ukrainian existing regulatory framework is in compliance with the level of the IAEA and WENRA documents and safety recommendations in the part of ageing management requirements. In addition, ageing management has a system basis. The areas of further activities on improvement of the regulatory framework taking into account the best practices and and experience, development of regulatory documents for research nuclear reactors, improvement of activities on assessment of the technical state and lifetime extension of reactor vessel along with the extension of the representative data based on the results of surveillanve specimens testing, conducting international peer reviews with the participation of the IAEA SALTO mission have been defined.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) has not only had tremendous impact on the U.S corporate governance system, but also on other countries with companies subject to SOX. The paper analyzes the major direct impacts of SOX on the European Union (EU) and Germany as a Member State. The focus of the analysis is on rules concerning external corporate governance instruments, i.e. the auditing professions’ oversight, auditors’ independence and auditing standards. Additionally, the paper investigates whether the contemporary regulatory activities in the EU and Germany concerning external corporate governance can be explained as indirect institutional consequences of SOX. Although the EU Commission says for the record that it has an own long-term strategy of modernizing corporate governance, the paper demonstrates that several rules of SOX quite obviously served as a model for the EU regulatory activities. The same phenomenon can be observed for the new German regulations of external corporate governance

The project summarised in this paper was aimed at developing water quality legislation in Hungary and funded through the PHARE programme of the European Union. Hungary, in common with the other former Eastern European countries, is in a period of transition as it moves from a state socialist system to a free market economy and a full member of the European Union. The project sought to explore the means whereby water quality could be managed on a river basin basis and the legislative, institutional, economic and regulatory challenges resolved. A key element of the project was the carrying out of five case studies, on different catchments, to evaluate the various approaches. An important element of these studies was the participation of all interested parties in the individual catchments. The project showed that to move to a full system of integrated river basin management would be a step too far at this stage and, instead, recommended a system of Catchment Planning Commissions, accountable to Central Government, for the development of catchment based water quality objectives and plans for their achievement together with the monitoring and reporting of progress on implementation. The concomitant legal requirements were detailed and the need for public participation emphasised.

The article examines the European Union as a unique association of European countries, which was created as an organizational form for political, economic and social cooperation between member countries, candidates for membership and partner countries that are not part of the union. The European Union symbolizes the diversity of nations and European cultures and aims to achieve peace and prosperity. Independent countries united for the sake of a common goal and sacrificed part of their sovereignty in order to become economically stronger, so it is not surprising that the official motto of the union is "unity in diversity". The article pays special attention to the nature of the European Union, because de facto it is an international entity, it combines such features as supra-statehood and inter-statehood, but de jure it is neither one nor the other. The structure of the European Union includes institutions whose tasks are to realize the goals of this union, to serve its interests and the interests of its citizens, as well as to ensure the consistency and effectiveness of its policies. At the beginning of its creation, the European Union consisted of six countries and had a completely different name, namely the European Coal and Steel Association. Gradually, the subjects of this entity are deepening economic integration and creating a single market, we can also see that successively, partial management functions are moving to the supranational level and the number of future participants of the union is increasing. The evolution of the union takes place for the sake of economic development, through the opening of markets, which leads to an increase in production and, as a result, new working cities are created. With an increase in imports, competition increases and prices decrease and the quality of goods increases [1, р. 1]. This scientific work examines the formation of the legislative institution of the European Union, analyzes the cooperation of the European Parliament with other leading institutions, and also examines the regulatory and legal framework that influenced the transformation and reveals the nature of the European Parliament.

Anton Shekhovtsov is a political researcher who deals with far right movements and leaders, mainly in Europe and in post-Soviet countries. This book presents a comprehensive and multifaceted analysis of ties between Russian officials and institutions with Western, predominantly European far-right politicians and intellectuals. Shekhovtsov points out that these ties have strengthened after 2004. He examines in detail the various scenarios and strategies the Russian sides resort to  from simple lobbying-like activity to more sophisticated schemes, such as electoral reports made by “independent” commissions consisting of the representatives of European far right parties and movements. Shekhovtsov gives the historical perspective, showing the interaction with the European far right even in the times of the Soviet Union. He presents the story of pre- and post-war plans to take advantage of the rightwing activists in Europe, mainly in Germany. The book by Anton Shekhovtsov is an interesting contribution both to our knowledge about the foreign policy of authoritarian regimes and to the field of international relations and Russian foreign policy.

Countries of the Western Balkans (WB) – former federal units of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Albania have undergone a lengthy and complex process of democratisation from late 1980s. Free and fair elections are among the cornerstones of democratic consolidation. Even though the institutional setting for electoral management differs greatly across the globe, during the Europeanisation process it was widely recommended to transitional societies to set up independent electoral management bodies in other to guarantee fair electoral conditions, with standards mostly promoted by the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe (VC) and International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA). Based on this influence, all the countries of the WB have established electoral commissions that are to great extent formally independent from the executive, with the intention of being less prone to electoral meddling. This is enhanced by regular election monitoring in the region by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the process being followed and evaluated by both the European Union institutions and member states as part of fulfilment of the Copenhagen criteria to join the EU. This paper gives an overview of the institutional setting of electoral management in the WB that was created following the model of independent bodies and outlines main features of their design.

Non-union representative employee participation recently has attracted increasing international attention in employment relations due to the growing representation gap in many countries as union membership declines, and mounting evidence of the benefits of representative employee participation for enterprise flexibility and efficiency. However, relatively little is known about Australian experiments in employee participation, although it is essential to learn from Australian experience in order to develop effective public policy. This case study represents a contribution to this larger project. SMEC is a non-union employee representative body that has adopted a European works council organizational model. The case study evaluates SMEC's effectiveness as a non-union form of representative employee participation. It concludes that the opportunities for the formation of genuinely independent works council style organs of employee participation remain severely constrained by the current Australian regulatory environment, which tends to encourage a union substitution role.

The purpose of this paper is to compare building control procedures in the countries of the European Union (EU) and Russia. Considered issues are related to regulatory regulation in countries, a fundamental approach to control, participants, performance results, as well as a vector for the development of construction control activities. The solution of these problems was carried out with the help of studying the foreign experience of research on this subject, as well as studying the regulatory framework for this area in the Russian Federation and the countries of the European Union. As a result of the science-metric analysis, a systematized database of official sources for regulating construction control was created. In addition, the concept of automated control was developed. The result obtained allows us to develop a comprehensive system of building control, to ensure an increase in the safety of construction and installation works. Using the data obtained, it is possible to take into account the experience of both structures and create automated software to track the construction process as a whole or as individual parts, to timely eliminate the identified defects. The possible options for improving software technologies for building control that differ from the others is by the possibility of choice of independent and dependent control parameters, by model of processing results of the construction process control in order to localize the defective situations and minimize the size of the secondary damage from the effects of the commissioning of buildings. Based on the obtained data the further development of models and algorithms for construction control of buildings and structures providing the required level of reliability and safety of their construction and operation, taking into account technical and economic efficiency criteria.

The paper is devoted to the examination of the main aspects of the legal regulation of exporting dual-use goods in the EU under Council Regulation (EU) No. 428/2009 of 5 May 2009. The main objective of the instrument under consideration is to establish a system common for EU Member States to control effectively the export of dual-use goods in order to ensure compliance of EU member States with international obligations, especially with regard to the regime of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. The author concludes that the current Regulation on export of dual-use goods is a logical extension and continuation of the EU instruments regulating arms trade with the third countries that pursues the same objectives, i.e. to implement the international legal obligations of the EU Member States assumed under multilateral control and non-proliferation regimes. Under the selected regulatory model, the EU failed to take the opportunity of replacing relevant national regulation; the Dual-Use Export Regulation defines a general framework, leaving it to Member States to take certain measures aimed at promoting an EU-wide approach. It is up to Member States to establish an appropriate control system for transactions, involving dual-use products, carried out by their nationals and legal entities. On the one hand, it allows the authorities of Member States, due to their proximity to economic entities, to take into account to a greater extent the characteristics of the national market. On the other hand, such a system leads to discrepancies in the practice of applying, in theory at least, uniform measures for the whole Union. Thus, even with the legal basis for independent and exclusive regulation of the export of dual-use products, the EU has faced with the unwillingness of Member States to adopt such restrictions and had to focus on coordinating the activities of Member States, leaving them with a considerable degree of independence and autonomy.

The aims of the 2021 European Training Requirements (ETR) in Paediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes (PED) are to (1) provide standards to harmonize training programmes in PED between different European countries, (2) establish clearly defined standards of knowledge and skills required to practice PED at the tertiary care level, (3) foster the development of a network of competent tertiary care centres for PED in Europe and globally, and (4) improve the quality of care for children and adolescents requiring PED services. This ETR in PED specifies the requirements for training institutions, trainers, and trainees. It also provides the detailed syllabus/core content that trainees are expected to achieve in order to become competent independent clinicians in PED. References to consensus guidelines produced and/or endorsed by ESPE are included. The target users are trainees in PED, trainers, and all involved with quality assurance and accreditation. The process to develop and approve this 2021 ETR has been rigorous and involved trainees and consultants in paediatric and adult Endocrinology, ESPE (Syllabus Task Force, Education and Training Committee, Council), European Academy of Paediatrics (Tertiary Care Council, Assembly), European Board of Paediatrics, and Union of European Medical Specialists. Implementing the ETR will complement professional regulatory requirements for postgraduate training in PED in different countries and allow harmonizing standards across Europe. ETR is publicly available at www.eurospe.org/education/education-training-syllabus and at https://www.uems.eu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/133990/UEMS-2021.17-European-Training-Requirement-in-Paediatric-Endocrinology.pdf.

The experience of fiscal regulation in the countries of the Visegrad Group (Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia), which are relatively new members of the European Union, have carried out quite large-scale consolidation of budgets under the influence of supranational fiscal regulation of the European Union. Specific features of fiscal regulation in the Visegrad Group countries and Ukraine have been identified, namely: low level of social security (compared to EU Member States with developed economies); lower level of budget expenditures to GDP of countries (compared to EU Member States with developed economies); more developed indirect taxation than developed countries. The toolkit of consolidation of budgets in the countries of the European Union is specified: measures of increase of budget revenues (increase of tax rates, expansion of the tax base, refusal of privileges and others); measures to reduce budget expenditures (reduction of public sector consumption through wage cuts and others); measures aimed at changing the pension regime (increasing the retirement age, reducing the payment of pensions); measures aimed at reforming social transfers (reduction of payments, abolition of benefits and bonuses). It is found that two approaches are usually used to determine the budgetary consolidation period of the Visegrad Group countries: a quantitative one that operates on a set of indicators that characterize the volume of fiscal impulse; narrative that relies on monitoring regulatory documents. It was determined that one of the main tools for increasing the budget revenues of the Visegrad Group countries was social payments, which are the most stable sources, which are almost independent of macroeconomic dynamics. This was the reason for the nationalization of the pension system in Hungary and Poland. The mechanism of effective fiscal regulation of the Ukrainian economy is proposed. It is argued that the objects of this mechanism of effective fiscal regulation of the economy of Ukraine are the budgetary and tax systems, and the subjects - the state, represented by bodies and services that apply the methods and instruments of fiscal regulation. The main tasks of this mechanism of effective fiscal regulation of the Ukrainian economy are outlined: balancing of budget indicators; assistance in reducing public debt; optimization of tax burden; control over the impact on GDP growth. The principles of effective fiscal regulation of the Ukrainian economy are highlighted: scientific validity; systematic; legislative regulation; continuity; efficiency; reconciliation of interests; adaptation; complexity.

This paper considers the agenda for UK trade negotiations over the post-Brexit period. There are several groups of countries that will need to be dealt with and we consider the priorities among them. Negotiations with the WTO and the EU are the most important and the most pressing in time, and should be pursued simultaneously. On the former, the UK must try quickly to establish its independent WTO status, which will be greatly facilitated by minimising the changes it proposes to its tariffs schedules. On the EU the UK needs to consider the choices between remaining in the customs union, creating an FTA with the EU and maintaining the ‘regulatory union’ that is the European Economic Area (EEA). Only when relations with the EU and WTO are clear will it be feasible to negotiate trade deals of various sorts with other countries, ranging from those with which we already have deals via the EU to those that currently trade with us on ‘WTO rules’. All of this takes time and we argue that it may be worth pursuing transitional arrangements to extend certain current trading arrangements a few years beyond Brexit in order to make time for serious negotiations.

Background Diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) help to identify unusually high dose levels in medical procedures involving radiation. This will subsequently, stimulate quality control. There are legislations and guidelines requiring the Member States of European Union to adopt DRLs. While about 72% of European countries, as well as the United States, have complied, and with subsequent reviews demonstrating significant dose reductions (16% – 30%), no evidence links any African country to replicating the same. Objective This work briefly reviewed the progress of Nigeria with regards to diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) and with particular attention to efforts by radiographers. Methods Google search was made with keywords of 'diagnostic reference levels' as well as 'radiation dose in Nigeria.' Over forty works were retrieved but only twenty-two which had specific relevance to the focus of the review were archived and read. The works were subsequently scrutinized to piece together the trend of DRLs globally, and locally. Results Publications on x-ray, mammography, fluoroscopy and computed tomography dose abound in Nigeria. Doses had wide variations in all modalities. There was no accessible evidence to indicate that any regulatory agency in Nigeria had keyed into the imperative of dose investigation, monitoring and reporting. Conclusion In conclusion, diagnostic reference levels in x-ray, mammography and computed tomography have been recommended by independent researchers in Nigeria. Regulatory agencies are urged to summon the will to give guidelines on implementation of these DRLs in order to improve optimization of protection for patients.

The main aspects of development the cross-boarder cooperation on a local and regional level are mentioned in this article. The definition of institutional forms is formed for the cross-boarder cooperation. The issue of cross-border cooperation between executive authorities and local self-government bodies was considered by concluding agreements and implementing joint projects, their roles and participation in such cross-border advisory bodies as intergovernmental commissions, councils and working groups with Hungary, the Republic of Poland, the Slovak Republic and Romania, and identified disadvantages in this area and suggested ways of their elimination.Integration processes and the formation of European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation with participation of Ukrainian and Hungarian self-government bodies are analyzed based on the Transcarpathian experience.Benefits and drawbacks of such an institution of cross-border cooperation as the Interregional Association "Carpathian Euroregion" were identified. Promising ways of its developments and transformation into a successful institution that can compete with other integration associations with the participation of the member states of the European Union are outlined and they were based on the analysis of the achievements and gains of the member countries during the joint 25-year activity.Simultaneously there is an inconsistency of the regulatory framework in the field of cross-boarder cooperation with international law including the inconsistency concerning the settlement of the creation of cross-boarder associations issues and suggestions of its improvement are presented.The topic of the policy of strategic planning of the state development is revealed, Ukraine participates in the existing international strategies and programs, as well as the formation of new concepts of macro-regional development of cross-border territories. In particular, opening new opportunities for Ukraine by chairing the EU Strategy for the Danube Region in 2022, deepening good neighborly relations with EU member states, complementing other initiatives such as the Carpathian Convention, cross-sectoral integration and broad stakeholder participation (national, regional, state and non-state) were involved in the process of creating a new EU Macro-Regional Strategy for the Carpathian region, etc.

Background: Diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) help to identify unusually high dose levels in medical procedures involving radiation. This will subsequently, stimulate quality control. There are legislations and guidelines requiring the Member States of the European Union to adopt DRLs. While about 72% of European countries, as well as the United States, have complied, and with subsequent reviews demonstrating significant dose reductions (16% – 30%), no evidence links any African country to replicate the same. Objective: This work briefly reviewed the progress of Nigeria with regards to diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) and with particular attention to efforts by radiographers. Methods: Google search was made with keywords of diagnostic reference levels as well as radiation dose in Nigeria. Over forty works were retrieved but only twenty- two which had specific relevance to the focus of the review were archived and read. The works were subsequently scrutinized to piece together the trend of DRLs globally, and locally. Results: Publications on x-ray, mammography, fluoroscopy and computed tomography dose abound in Nigeria. Doses had wide variations in all modalities. There was no accessible evidence to indicate that any regulatory agency in Nigeria had keyed into the imperative of dose investigation, monitoring and reporting. Conclusion: In conclusion, diagnostic reference levels in x-ray, mammography and computed tomography have been recommended by independent researchers in Nigeria. Regulatory agencies are urged to summon the will to give guidelines on the implementation of these DRLs in order to improve the optimization of protection for patients.

Today, mediation is one of the most popular alternative ways of resolving disputes (conflicts) in developed countries. It involves the participation of a mediator (mediator), who helps the parties to the conflict to establish a communication process, analyze the conflict situation so that the parties can choose a solution that will meet the interests and needs of both parties to the dispute.The relationship related to the conduct of mediation and the implementation of the agreements reached during it requires regulatory regulation, given the importance of both the procedure itself and its results. Regulation of the mediation procedure, determination of the rights and obligations of its participants, the rules of registration of agreements between the parties are the basis for achieving the goals of mediation and ensuring a balance between the institution of mediation and the legal system of the country. Therefore, every mediator and every lawyer who is involved in the mediation procedure as a consultant or representative of his client must have legal knowledge and knowledge of the ethical and regulatory principles of mediation. The need to introduce the institution of mediation has long been ripe in the domestic legal system, which is due to the inefficiency and imperfection of the judicial system of Ukraine and the low rate of execution of court decisions. Given the successful application of the institution of mediation in many countries and the course of harmonization of national legislation with the legislation of the European Union, on November 3, 2016, the parliament of Ukraine adopted in first reading the draft Law of Ukraine "On Mediation". For the Ukrainian legal system, the legislative initiative to introduce regulations on the institution of mediation is a very important step. Because in the absence of national legislation that determines the legal basis for the process of out-of-court settlement of disputes, the practical application of the institution of mediation was carried out only on the basis of established practice of the European Union. According to the draft Law of Ukraine "On Mediation", mediation is defined as an alternative (out-of-court) method of dispute resolution, by which two (or more) parties to a dispute try to reach an agreement to resolve their dispute within a structured process involving a mediator. A mediator is an independent mediator who helps the parties to resolve a dispute through mediation.

The research reveals the theoretical and practical aspects of the green energy sector. The article compares the level of development of the green energy sector in the European Union and Ukraine. Different indicators, including the share of energy from renewable sources in Ukraine, the interaction between the level of GDP per capita and the share of renewable energy in the EU and Ukraine, and the structure of the renewable energy resources of Ukraine and the EU are taken into account. The article discussed the role of financial and non-financial tools for the development of the green energy sector in the EU countries. The research states that the countries can be divided into three groups, where group A involves countries with a highly developed green energy sector, group B – member-states with progress in the transition to alternative sources of energy, and group C – countries with weak or no progress in the development of renewable energy sector. The research explains the impact of economic prosperity in developed countries on the renewable energy sector. It investigates that there is a very small positive correlation between the independent variable and the dependent variable. In general, it demonstrates that there is no correlation between the economic condition of very developed countries and the level of their green energy efficiency. The article suggests policy-making changes for the stable development of green energy in both the EU and Ukraine. Revision of existing government's medium and long term plans and adapting them to current circumstances, the gradual reduction of subsidies and reform of energy pricing, the regulatory focus on energy efficiency, the attraction of private investments through the use of domestic and donor investments are determined as important actions for stable development of green energy sector.

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) is projected high-standard and inclusive free trade agreement which is being conversed between the United States (US) and European Union (EU). Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership is a chain of trade negotiations operating between EU and US. The TTIP is mainly about decreasing the regulatory obstacles to trade to open up a way for bigger businesses such as environmental legislation, food safety, sovereign powers of the individual nations and also banking regulations. The US and EU are two of the most integrated countries when it comes to economy globally. It is as a result of their trade in services, investments and the high commercial presence in each other's financial prudence. These two regions support each other when it comes to the economy, and that's why they are good trading partners in products and services. The EU and U.S trade and investment partnership which is sometimes referred to as transatlantic economy has a significant global relationship and creates a mutually beneficial understanding between the two states (Hoekman and Kostecki, 2009). The TTIP is one of the largest trade and investment partnership in the world and also the most significant because of its absolute size. It has many for example the European Union has 28 member states which include: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Belgium, Austria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Denmark, Finland. Greece, Ireland, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia, Lithuania, Romania, Spain, Latvia, Sweden, Portugal and United Kingdom are also part of the partnership. The initial negotiations on TTIP which was to become the first largest bilateral free trade and investment partnership agreement were earlier supported by a paramount and independent study of the Center for Economic Policy Research (CEPR). The study by CEPR was called Reduction of the Transatlantic Barriers to Trade and investment. The negotiations were mainly to provide independent advice to the two negotiators based on the additional research. Despite, TTIP being one of the largest trade and investment partnership, it has created both negative and positive impacts on the two states. There are benefits t being enjoyed by the member states such as job creation and home growth. The EU depends on the US exports; they can get investments from the US and also import the goods and services they require (Khanna, Palepu, and Sinha, 2005). Other positive impacts of the TTIP includes; upholding and promoting human rights, governing in a transparent manner that can hold to account individuals in authority and also has markets that can be open to free and reasonable competition and is well-regulated market areas. TTIP also protects the people and the planet through their international rules. For example, the rules look at everyone's health, their condition at workplaces, the endangered species around them and the entire environment. There are also challenges that have come out from TTIP in the field of politics and economics, poor labor standards, workers' rights and security of their workplaces, democracy, and state authority. Foreign shareholder protection, public health and the environment as a whole, health care, consumer safety and food security, climate change and environment protection, banking regulation and privacy and many others. Some competitors challenge the TTIP on slowness in services than in goods leading to difficulty in opening markets in service areas.

Virtually all studies dealing with the WTO-related aspects of Brexit, the United Kingdom’s (UK’s) envisaged separation from the European Union, tend to focus on the ramifications for merchandise trade. Services trade rarely enters the picture, reflecting an apparently prevailing view that the reallocation of the existing pre-Brexit obligations requires little more than some drafting changes. This article begs to disagree, arguing that there are a variety of complex legal issues involved. These are related, inter alia, to the conceptual broadening of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) beyond conventional cross-border trade to three more types of transaction and its extension, in addition to the treatment of products (services), to that of producers (service suppliers). The competitive conditions of foreign producers that are established within a Member’s territory are thus covered by the Agreement. With this in view, the article points out scenarios under which these producers are adversely affected by the termination of the UK’s single-market status and the ensuing (re-)introduction of restrictions on market access and national treatment under GATS Articles XVI and XVII and/or the (re-)appearance of regulatory impediments in bilateral trade. In turn, this might provide a basis for the home countries to seek compensation. The article also identifies GATS-scheduled limitations that, because of the Most-favoured-Nation principle, cannot be maintained in trade among independent WTO Members. Depending on their nature, the resulting adjustments might lead to compensation claims as well.

The article is devoted to research of fundamental principles of the court case management, it’s entity and place in the civil justice principle system, interrelations with other principles of civil justice, as well as specific of implementation during the course of individual procedural procedures in civil proceedings. The article considers doctrinal scientific approaches regarding the legal nature of principles of the court case management, as well as certain aspects of principle of the court case management understanding as one of the fundamental principles associated with the effectiveness of justice through compliance with standards of civil proceedings, developed for the European Union countries. In the context of conducted research about legal nature understanding of court’s procedural activity during civil proceedings in the doctrine of civil procedural law regarding to assigning ability of attributing it to an independent principle of civil proceedings, the statement was defined: the principle of judicial leadership is a separate functional principle of civil proceedings, which is integrated with the norms of procedural law and in connection with other general principles, such as the principles of access to justice, the rule of law, as well as the sectoral principles of civil proceedings - adversarial, dispositivity, proportionality; their implementation with the goal of discretionary powers by the court within separate differentiated procedural procedures and, at the same time, in combination with other principles, to fulfill the goal of civil justice. To substantiate the above, the norms of the civil procedural legislation of Ukraine were analysed, in which the principle of judicial leadership finds its direct and indirect embodiment. On the basic of theoretical research and national civil procedural legislation review, the scientific position regarding nature of principle of the court case management have been formulated by a following feature extraction. It has been determined that the principle of the court case management is characterised by the following features: 1) it’s in a inextricable interconnection with other principles of civil proceedings, such as proportionality, dispositiveness, adversarial; 2)it’s used as a implementation of principles of civil justice during the execution judicial discretion within the limits of certain differentiated procedural procedures; 3) regarding to functional principles of civil proceedings it reflects legislation realisation as the norm of direct regulatory action by defining the role of the court as civil procedural legal relations member during the civil proceedings - a combination of powers and procedural actions of the chairman in the court session and indirect realisation through the prism of combination with other principles of civil justice. According to the results of the conducted research, respective conclusions have been formulated.

ContentsGreen Chemistry in the International ContextThe Concept of green ChemistryDefinition of green chemistry | Green chemistry: Why now? | The historical context of green chemistry | The emergence of green chemistryThe Content of Green ChemistryAreas of green chemistry | Preliminary remarks | Alternative feedstocks | Benign reagents/synthetic pathways | Synthetic transformations | Solvents/reaction conditionsGreen Chemistry in the International ContextIt has come to be recognized in recent years, that the science of chemistry is central to addressing the problems facing the environment. Through the utilization of the various subdisciplines of chemistry and the molecular sciences, there is an increasing appreciation that the emerging area of green chemistry1is needed in the design and attainment of sustainable development. A central driving force in this increasing awareness is that green chemistry accomplishes both economic and environmental goals simultaneously through the use of sound, fundamental scientific principles. Recently, a basic strategy has been proposed for implementing the relationships between industry and academia, and hence, funding of the research that constitutes the engine of economic advancement; it is what many schools of economics call the "triple bottom line" philosophy, meaning that an enterprise will be economically sustainable if the objectives of environmental protection, societal benefit, and market advantage are all satisfied2. Triple bottom line is a strong idea for evaluating the success of environmental technologies. It is clear that the best environmentally friendly technology or discovery will not impact on the market if it is not economically advantageous; in the same way, the market that ignores environmental needs and human involvement will not prosper. This is the challenge for the future of the chemical industry, its development being strongly linked to the extent to which environmental and human needs can be reconciled with new ideas in fundamental research. On the other hand, it should be easy to foresee that the success of environmentally friendly reactions, products, and processes will improve competitiveness within the chemical industry. If companies are able to meet the needs of society, people will influence their own governments to foster those industries attempting such environmental initiatives. Of course, fundamental research will play a central role in achieving these worthy objectives. What we call green chemistry may in fact embody some of the most advanced perspectives and opportunities in chemical sciences.It is for these reasons that the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has a central role to play in advancing and promoting the continuing emergence and impact of green chemistry. When we think about how IUPAC furthers chemistry throughout the world, it is useful to refer to IUPAC's Strategic Plan. This plan demonstrates the direct relevance of the mission of IUPAC to green chemistry, and explains why there is growing enthusiasm for the pursuit of this new area as an appropriate activity of a scientific Union. The IUPAC Strategic Plan outlines among other goals:IUPAC will serve as a scientific, international, nongovernmental body in objectively addressing global issues involving the chemical sciences. Where appropriate, IUPAC will represent the interests of chemistry in governmental and nongovernmental forums.IUPAC will provide tools (e.g., standardized nomenclature and methods) and forums to help advance international research in the chemical sciences.IUPAC will assist chemistry-related industry in its contributions to sustainable development, wealth creation, and improvement in the quality of life.IUPAC will facilitate the development of effective channels of communication in the international chemistry community.IUPAC will promote the service of chemistry to society in both developed and developing countries.IUPAC will utilize its global perspective to contribute toward the enhancement of education in chemistry and to advance the public understanding of chemistry and the scientific method.IUPAC will make special efforts to encourage the career development of young chemists.IUPAC will broaden the geographical base of the Union and ensure that its human capital is drawn from all segments of the world chemistry community.IUPAC will encourage worldwide dissemination of information about the activities of the Union.IUPAC will assure sound management of its resources to provide maximum value for the funds invested in the Union.Through the vehicle of green chemistry, IUPAC can engage and is engaging the international community in issues of global importance to the environment and to industry, through education of young and established scientists, the provision of technical tools, governmental engagement, communication to the public and scientific communities, and the pursuit of sustainable development. By virtue of its status as a leading and internationally representative scientific body, IUPAC is able to collaborate closely in furthering individual national efforts as well as those of multinational entities.An important example of such collaboration in the area of green chemistry is that of IUPAC with the Organization for the Economical Cooperation and Development (OECD) in the project on "Sustainable Chemistry", aimed at promoting increased awareness of the subject in the member countries. During a meeting of the Environment Directorate (Paris, 6 June 1999), it was proposed that United States and Italy co-lead the activity, and that implementation of five recommendations to the member countries be accorded the highest priority, namely:research and developmentawards and recognition for work on sustainable chemistryexchange of technical information related to sustainable chemistryguidance on activities and tools to support sustainable chemistry programssustainable chemistry educationThese recommendations were perceived to have socio-economic implications for worldwide implementation of sustainable chemistry. How IUPAC and, in particular, its Divisions can contribute to this effort is under discussion. IUPAC is recognized for its ability to act as the scientific counterpart to OECD for all recommendations and activities. Although the initiatives being developed by the OECD are aimed primarily at determining the role that national institutions can play in facilitating the implementation and impact of green chemistry, it is recognized that each of these initiatives also has an important scientific component. Whether it is developing criteria or providing technical assessment for awards and recognition, identifying appropriate scientific areas for educational incorporation, or providing scientific insight into the areas of need for fundamental research and development, IUPAC can play and is beginning to play an important role as an international scientific authority on green chemistry.Other multinational organizations including, among others, the United Nations, the European Union, and the Asian Pacific Economic Community, are now beginning to assess the role that they can play in promoting the implementation of green chemistry to meet environmental and economic goals simultaneously. As an alternative to the traditional regulatory framework often implemented as a unilateral strategy, multinational governmental organizations are discovering that green chemistry as a nonregulatory, science-based approach, provides opportunities for innovation and economic development that are compatible with sustainable development. In addition, individual nations have been extremely active in green chemistry and provide plentiful examples of the successful utilization of green chemistry technologies. There are rapidly growing activities in government, industry, and academia in the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Japan, China, and many other countries in Europe and Asia, that testify to the importance of green chemistry to the future of the central science of chemistry around the world.Organizations and Commissions currently involved in programs in green chemistry at the national or international level include, for example:U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), with the "Green Chemistry Program" which involves, among others, the National Science Foundation, the American Chemical Society, and the Green Chemistry Institute;European Directorate for R&D (DG Research), which included the goals of sustainable chemistry in the actions and research of the European Fifth Framework Programme;Interuniversity Consortium "Chemistry for the Environment", which groups about 30 Italian universities interested in environmentally benign chemistry and funds their research groups;UK Royal Society of Chemistry, which promotes the concept of green chemistry through a "UK Green Chemistry Network" and the scientific journal Green Chemistry;UNIDO-ICS (International Centre for Science and High Technology of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization) which is developing a global program on sustainable chemistry focusing on catalysis and cleaner technologies with particular attention to developing and emerging countries (the program is also connected with UNIDO network of centers for cleaner production); andMonash University, which is the first organization in Australia to undertake a green chemistry program.Footnotes:1. The terminology "green chemistry" or "sustainable chemistry" is the subject of debate. The expressions are intended to convey the same or very similar meanings, but each has its supporters and detractors, since "green" is vividly evocative but may assume an unintended political connotation, whereas "sustainable" can be paraphrased as "chemistry for a sustainable environment", and may be perceived as a less focused and less incisive description of the discipline. Other terms have been proposed, such as "chemistry for the environment" but this juxtaposition of keywords already embraces many diversified fields involving the environment, and does not capture the economic and social implications of sustainability. The Working Party decided to adopt the term green chemistry for the purpose of this overview. This decision does not imply official IUPAC endorsement for the choice. In fact, the IUPAC Committee on Chemistry and Industry (COCI) favors, and will continue to use sustainable chemistry to describe the discipline.2. J. Elkington, < http://www.sustainability.co.uk/sustainability.htm

The article is an attempt based on a generalization of the experience of the European Union (EU), to identify the essential characteristic of supranationality in the context of the interaction of international law with domestic law, to assess the legal nature of the EU and to offer the reader an authorial definition of “supranationality”. The general conclusion of the paper is that supranationality should be understood as an effective form of interstate cooperation and activity within the international organization, based on unity of interests, in which the authority serving these interests receives some degree of autonomy from the participating countries by transferring (conceding) part of their internal powers to it. As a result, its decisions, without prior transformation into domestic law, have a general normative character and direct effect not only on member states, but also on their natural and legal persons, which is ensured by effective enforcement mechanisms. At the same time, the supranational level, which has a considerable number of independent regulatory powers, is hierarchically higher than inter-state level, therefore, its law also has primacy over the national law. Besides, within the framework of the article, particular attention is paid to description of main approaches that characterize the legal essence of the European Union. The author expresses an opinion on the appropriateness of understanding the EU as an international organization of a special kind (sui generis), which combines elements of classical international organizations with supranational features in its functioning.

Background: January 2019, the House of Commons’ Science and Technology Committee sent letters to UK universities admonishing them to achieve compliance with results reporting requirements for Clinical Trials of Investigative Medicinal Products by summer 2019. This study documents changes in the clinical trial policies and Clinical Trials of Investigative Medicinal Product reporting performance of 20 major UK universities following that intervention. Methods: Freedom of Information requests were filed in June 2018 and June 2020 to obtain clinical trial registration and reporting policies covering both Clinical Trials of Investigative Medicinal Products and all other clinical trials. Two independent reviewers assessed policies against transparency benchmarks based on World Health Organization best practices. To evaluate universities’ trial reporting performance, we used a public online tracking tool, the European Union Trials Tracker, which assesses universities’ compliance with regulatory Clinical Trials of Investigative Medicinal Product disclosure requirements on the European Clinical Trial Register. Specifically, we evaluated whether universities were adhering to the European Union requirement to post summary results on the trial registry within 12 months of completion. Results: Mean policy strength increased from 2.8 to 4.9 points (out of a maximum of 7 points) between June 2018 and June 2020. In October 2018 the average percentage of due Clinical Trials of Investigative Medicinal Products that had results available on the European trial registry across university sponsors included in the cohort was 29%. By June 2021, this had increased to 91%, with 5 universities achieving a reporting performance of 100%. All 20 universities reported more than 70% of their due trial results on the European trial registry. Interpretation: Political pressure appears to have a significant positive impact on UK universities’ clinical trial reporting policies and performance. Similar approaches could be used to improve reporting performance for other types of sponsors, other types of trials, and in other countries.

Problem setting. One of the most important tasks of modern science of public management and administration is the further improvement of management technologies, management decisions in banking in particular and the increase of their efficiency and effectiveness. Accordingly, the scientific interest is not only in the study and the analysis of banking legislation of certain countries, but in the adaptation of national legislation to the directives of the European Union. The urgency of improving the mechanism of state regulation of the market for the provision of services for the collection of funds and transportation of currency valuables in the banking system of Ukraine is undeniable, the implementation of which should include the mandatory establishment of real requirements and measures of responsibility of managers of both individual financial institutions and regulatory bodies. Recent research and publications analysis. The organization of central banks of the world, their legal status, main functions, comparative aspects, regulatory activities in the field of the organization of cash circulation and cash collection were studied in the works of L. Voronova, D. Hetmantsev, V. Krotyuk, S. Yehorychev, M. Starynsky, P. Melnyk, S. Laptev, I. Zaverukha. Legal problems of legalization of firearms circulation in Ukraine were studied by А. Kolosok, P. Mitrukhov, P. Fries, S. Shumilenko and others. The works of V. Baranyak, V. Меzhyvy, М. Pinchuk, T. Pryhodko, V. Rybachuk, В. Tychyi, etc. are devoted to the study of legal problems of illegal handling of weapons. However, these works do not reflect the peculiarities of the use of firearms in subdivisions of collection of funds. Native and foreign scholars generally have not paid due attention to the study and the analysis of the existing model of cash circulation in Ukraine, its advantages, risks and disadvantages as well as the effective functioning of the market of collection of funds and transportation of currency valuables in the banking system of Ukraine. Highlighting previously unsettled parts of the general problem. The purpose of this article is to analyze the innovative foreign experience of state regulation of the market of collection of funds and transportation of currency valuables in the banking system of Ukraine (hereinafter – collection of funds) and to justify the need for its implementation in Ukraine. Another important problem in collection activities is the lack of legislative regulation of firearms trafficking as there is no law on weapons in Ukraine, there are only regulations of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, which greatly complicates its regulation by the state according to P. Fries. Paper main body. The market of collection of funds and transportation of currency valuables (hereinafter – the market of collection) is one of the most closed segments of the banking system of any country as a whole. The most popular way to pay for services and goods during the last few years, according to annual surveys conducted by the Swiss central bank, is cash. The important factor is that even with the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the demand for cash and cash flow has increased significantly. The National Bank of Ukraine carries out regulatory activities in accordance with the requirements of the Law of Ukraine “On Principles of State Regulatory Policy in the Field of Economic Activity”. Collection of funds has never been a particularly profitable activity, for the subdivisions of collection of any country along with the staff and transportation costs, that is why to ensure the proper security of cash transportation is a very costly item of the estimate. In this regard, there is an urgent need for the adoption of the Law of Ukraine “On collection of funds and transportation of currency valuables” and “On firearms”, which would define the basic foundations, principles, forms of activities in the field of collection services, rights, duties and responsibilities of all participants in the collection market, in order to increase their reliability, safety and efficiency. In the countries of the European Union (EU), services for the collection and transportation of currency valuables are provided by public and private enterprises. In many EU countries there is no legal definition of the concept ‘collection’. In most cases, collection falls under the general legislation on the basics of security, except for Austria and Germany, which regulate such activities through professional organizations, insurance and collective agreements. Today, five foreign global CIT companies account for almost 60% of the global CIT market for cash collection and cash handling services. They are: – Brinks (USA) – 23%; – G4S (England) – 15%; – Loomis (Sweden) – 12%; – Prosegur (Spain) – 7%; – Garda (Canada) – 4%; – GSLS – 0.01%; – Other regional independent companies – 39%. In six EU countries (Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Sweden, Great Britain and the Netherlands) the presence of firearms during collection of funds is prohibited. In Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain, the presence of a weapon in the performance of professional collection duties is mandatory. Safe collection of funds largely depends on the fast, without delays, safe travel by road. Ukraine needs to reform its transport system to gain access to the European Union’s rail, road, river and air transport markets and to financial resources for building safe infrastructure of high quality. Conclusions of the research and prospects for further studies. Unfortunately, there are no well-known world CIT collection companies in the Ukrainian market of collection services and therefore Ukrainian banks and legal entities have to deal with local CIT companies, the authorized capital of which in some cases may be significantly less than the amount of the collected cash. In accordance with the mentioned above, for the effective functioning of the Ukrainian market of collection of funds and a balanced regulatory policy of the state, we suggest making appropriate changes and additions to the Laws of Ukraine on “Banks and Banking”, “National Bank of Ukraine”. To initiate the development and adoption of the Laws of Ukraine “On Collection and Transportation of Currency Valuables” and “On Firearms” which will ensure equal competitive conditions in the collection market for all its participants, reliable labor protection, social guarantees and rights of employees of collection divisions.

Purpose Morocco is an expanding developing economy in North Africa with increasing bilateral trade relations with larger economies. This paper aims to examine the features of the expanding market economy and the preceding structural reforms initiated by King Mohammed VI. The paper’s primary focus is to study the systematic feature of anti-money laundering and combatting of terrorist financing (AML/CTF). Morocco has emerged as a staunch opponent of terrorism and terrorist financing while garnering joint-investigative operations with European countries against transnational organised crime and money laundering. Design/methodology/approach The paper is divided into two primary series. The first is a view of Morocco’s economy, with a qualitative analysis of significant economic, political and social structural reforms. Second, a qualitative and quantitative analysis of Morocco’s AML and combating of terrorist financing infrastructure is assessed. The qualitative analysis is conducted in two parts; first, by studying the country’s AML/CTF legislation and regulation, and second, by examining the independent international evaluation of the legal structure and its implementation by authorities. The quantitative analysis is conducted by investigating the available statistics relating to money laundering and terrorist financing. Findings The paper finds Morocco to have accomplished essential economic reforms, especially considering greater institutional management and autonomy. Other structural reforms include the reformation of the constitution, a more comfortable business climate, social development projects focusing on enhancing skill labour and connectivity and the development of strong trade capacity. The primary objective discovery concerns the country’s AML/CTF structure, which is found to comply with international standards. Also, efforts enhancing the country’s regulatory environment with low corruption, low risk of money laundering and low risk of terrorist financing have been taken in a series of legislative amendments and programs. The banking sector and Morocco’s Customs agency have reflected the best improvement as per the study in this paper. Practical implications Morocco is witnessing high levels of investment, with year-on-year growth in most existing industrial sectors. The market is also providing for new skilled labour and better trade incentives with the European Union. It is essential for investors, observers and policymakers to understand the market economy reforms and systematic deficiencies in a developing economy. Morocco presents observers with information about policies pre-reform, providing a guide for economic and AML/CTF policy implementation elsewhere. Originality/value The paper concerns itself with two levels of analysis concerning Morocco. The first, broad study, is a review of market economy reforms, which are mostly structural and have assisted in the expansion of the economy greatly. The second objective is specific to examining the country’s AML/CTF structure, which has undergone significant development in legislation, regulation and implementation in the past decade. The paper makes a specific attempt to discuss associate indicators to the AML/CTF network as a part of this study.

Connecting I’ve moved house on the weekend, closer to the centre of an Australian capital city. I had recently signed up for broadband, with a major Australian Internet company (my first contact, cf. Turner). Now I am the proud owner of a larger modem than I have ever owned: a white cable modem. I gaze out into our new street: two thick black cables cosseted in silver wire. I am relieved. My new home is located in one of those streets, double-cabled by Telstra and Optus in the data-rush of the mid-1990s. Otherwise, I’d be moth-balling the cable modem, and the thrill of my data percolating down coaxial cable. And it would be off to the computer supermarket to buy an ASDL modem, then to pick a provider, to squeeze some twenty-first century connectivity out of old copper (the phone network our grandparents and great-grandparents built). If I still lived in the country, or the outskirts of the city, or anywhere else more than four kilometres from the phone exchange, and somewhere that cable pay TV will never reach, it would be a dish for me — satellite. Our digital lives are premised upon infrastructure, the networks through which we shape what we do, fashion the meanings of our customs and practices, and exchange signs with others. Infrastructure is not simply the material or the technical (Lamberton), but it is the dense, fibrous knotting together of social visions, cultural resources, individual desires, and connections. No more can one easily discern between ‘society’ and ‘technology’, ‘carriage’ and ‘content’, ‘base’ and ‘superstructure’, or ‘infrastructure’ and ‘applications’ (or ‘services’ or ‘content’). To understand telecommunications in action, or the vectors of fibre, we need to consider the long and heterogeneous list of links among different human and non-human actors — the long networks, to take Bruno Latour’s evocative concept, that confect our broadband networks (Latour). The co-ordinates of our infrastructure still build on a century-long history of telecommunications networks, on the nineteenth-century centrality of telegraphy preceding this, and on the histories of the public and private so inscribed. Yet we are in the midst of a long, slow dismantling of the posts-telegraph-telephone (PTT) model of the monopoly carrier for each nation that dominated the twentieth century, with its deep colonial foundations. Instead our New World Information and Communication Order is not the decolonising UNESCO vision of the late 1970s and early 1980s (MacBride, Maitland). Rather it is the neoliberal, free trade, market access model, its symbol the 1984 US judicial decision to require the break-up of AT&T and the UK legislation in the same year that underpinned the Thatcherite twin move to privatize British Telecom and introduce telecommunications competition. Between 1984 and 1999, 110 telecommunications companies were privatized, and the ‘acquisition of privatized PTOs [public telecommunications operators] by European and American operators does follow colonial lines’ (Winseck 396; see also Mody, Bauer & Straubhaar). The competitive market has now been uneasily installed as the paradigm for convergent communications networks, not least with the World Trade Organisation’s 1994 General Agreement on Trade in Services and Annex on Telecommunications. As the citizen is recast as consumer and customer (Goggin, ‘Citizens and Beyond’), we rethink our cultural and political axioms as well as the axes that orient our understandings in this area. Information might travel close to the speed of light, and we might fantasise about optical fibre to the home (or pillow), but our terrain, our band where the struggle lies today, is narrower than we wish. Begging for broadband, it seems, is a long way from warchalking for WiFi. Policy Circuits The dreary everyday business of getting connected plugs the individual netizen into a tangled mess of policy circuits, as much as tricky network negotiations. Broadband in mid-2003 in Australia is a curious chimera, welded together from a patchwork of technologies, old and newer communications industries, emerging economies and patterns of use. Broadband conjures up grander visions, however, of communication and cultural cornucopia. Broadband is high-speed, high-bandwidth, ‘always-on’, networked communications. People can send and receive video, engage in multimedia exchanges of all sorts, make the most of online education, realise the vision of home-based work and trading, have access to telemedicine, and entertainment. Broadband really entered the lexicon with the mass takeup of the Internet in the early to mid-1990s, and with the debates about something called the ‘information superhighway’. The rise of the Internet, the deregulation of telecommunications, and the involuted convergence of communications and media technologies saw broadband positioned at the centre of policy debates nearly a decade ago. In 1993-1994, Australia had its Broadband Services Expert Group (BSEG), established by the then Labor government. The BSEG was charged with inquiring into ‘issues relating to the delivery of broadband services to homes, schools and businesses’. Stung by criticisms of elite composition (a narrow membership, with only one woman among its twelve members, and no consumer or citizen group representation), the BSEG was prompted into wider public discussion and consultation (Goggin & Newell). The then Bureau of Transport and Communications Economics (BTCE), since transmogrified into the Communications Research Unit of the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (DCITA), conducted its large-scale Communications Futures Project (BTCE and Luck). The BSEG Final report posed the question starkly: As a society we have choices to make. If we ignore the opportunities we run the risk of being left behind as other countries introduce new services and make themselves more competitive: we will become consumers of other countries’ content, culture and technologies rather than our own. Or we could adopt new technologies at any cost…This report puts forward a different approach, one based on developing a new, user-oriented strategy for communications. The emphasis will be on communication among people... (BSEG v) The BSEG proposed a ‘National Strategy for New Communications Networks’ based on three aspects: education and community access, industry development, and the role of government (BSEG x). Ironically, while the nation, or at least its policy elites, pondered the weighty question of broadband, Australia’s two largest telcos were doing it. The commercial decision of Telstra/Foxtel and Optus Vision, and their various television partners, was to nail their colours (black) to the mast, or rather telegraph pole, and to lay cable in the major capital cities. In fact, they duplicated the infrastructure in cities such as Sydney and Melbourne, then deciding it would not be profitable to cable up even regional centres, let alone small country towns or settlements. As Terry Flew and Christina Spurgeon observe: This wasteful duplication contrasted with many other parts of the country that would never have access to this infrastructure, or to the social and economic benefits that it was perceived to deliver. (Flew & Spurgeon 72) The implications of this decision for Australia’s telecommunications and television were profound, but there was little, if any, public input into this. Then Minister Michael Lee was very proud of his anti-siphoning list of programs, such as national sporting events, that would remain on free-to-air television rather than screen on pay, but was unwilling, or unable, to develop policy on broadband and pay TV cable infrastructure (on the ironies of Australia’s television history, see Given’s masterly account). During this period also, it may be remembered, Australia’s Internet was being passed into private hands, with the tendering out of AARNET (see Spurgeon for discussion). No such national strategy on broadband really emerged in the intervening years, nor has the market provided integrated, accessible broadband services. In 1997, landmark telecommunications legislation was enacted that provided a comprehensive framework for competition in telecommunications, as well as consolidating and extending consumer protection, universal service, customer service standards, and other reforms (CLC). Carrier and reseller competition had commenced in 1991, and the 1997 legislation gave it further impetus. Effective competition is now well established in long distance telephone markets, and in mobiles. Rivalrous competition exists in the market for local-call services, though viable alternatives to Telstra’s dominance are still few (Fels). Broadband too is an area where there is symbolic rivalry rather than effective competition. This is most visible in advertised ADSL offerings in large cities, yet most of the infrastructure for these services is comprised by Telstra’s copper, fixed-line network. Facilities-based duopoly competition exists principally where Telstra/Foxtel and Optus cable networks have been laid, though there are quite a number of ventures underway by regional telcos, power companies, and, most substantial perhaps, the ACT government’s TransACT broadband network. Policymakers and industry have been greatly concerned about what they see as slow takeup of broadband, compared to other countries, and by barriers to broadband competition and access to ‘bottleneck’ facilities (such as Telstra or Optus’s networks) by potential competitors. The government has alternated between trying to talk up broadband benefits and rates of take up and recognising the real difficulties Australia faces as a large country with a relative small and dispersed population. In March 2003, Minister Alston directed the ACCC to implement new monitoring and reporting arrangements on competition in the broadband industry. A key site for discussion of these matters has been the competition policy institution, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and its various inquiries, reports, and considerations (consult ACCC’s telecommunications homepage at http://www.accc.gov.au/telco/fs-telecom.htm). Another key site has been the Productivity Commission (http://www.pc.gov.au), while a third is the National Office on the Information Economy (NOIE - http://www.noie.gov.au/projects/access/access/broadband1.htm). Others have questioned whether even the most perfectly competitive market in broadband will actually provide access to citizens and consumers. A great deal of work on this issue has been undertaken by DCITA, NOIE, the regulators, and industry bodies, not to mention consumer and public interest groups. Since 1997, there have been a number of governmental inquiries undertaken or in progress concerning the takeup of broadband and networked new media (for example, a House of Representatives Wireless Broadband Inquiry), as well as important inquiries into the still most strategically important of Australia’s companies in this area, Telstra. Much of this effort on an ersatz broadband policy has been piecemeal and fragmented. There are fundamental difficulties with the large size of the Australian continent and its harsh terrain, the small size of the Australian market, the number of providers, and the dominant position effectively still held by Telstra, as well as Singtel Optus (Optus’s previous overseas investors included Cable & Wireless and Bell South), and the larger telecommunications and Internet companies (such as Ozemail). Many consumers living in metropolitan Australia still face real difficulties in realising the slogan ‘bandwidth for all’, but the situation in parts of rural Australia is far worse. Satellite ‘broadband’ solutions are available, through Telstra Countrywide or other providers, but these offer limited two-way interactivity. Data can be received at reasonable speeds (though at far lower data rates than how ‘broadband’ used to be defined), but can only be sent at far slower rates (Goggin, Rural Communities Online). The cultural implications of these digital constraints may well be considerable. Computer gamers, for instance, are frustrated by slow return paths. In this light, the final report of the January 2003 Broadband Advisory Group (BAG) is very timely. The BAG report opens with a broadband rhapsody: Broadband communications technologies can deliver substantial economic and social benefits to Australia…As well as producing productivity gains in traditional and new industries, advanced connectivity can enrich community life, particularly in rural and regional areas. It provides the basis for integration of remote communities into national economic, cultural and social life. (BAG 1, 7) Its prescriptions include: Australia will be a world leader in the availability and effective use of broadband...and to capture the economic and social benefits of broadband connectivity...Broadband should be available to all Australians at fair and reasonable prices…Market arrangements should be pro-competitive and encourage investment...The Government should adopt a National Broadband Strategy (BAG 1) And, like its predecessor nine years earlier, the BAG report does make reference to a national broadband strategy aiming to maximise “choice in work and recreation activities available to all Australians independent of location, background, age or interests” (17). However, the idea of a national broadband strategy is not something the BAG really comes to grips with. The final report is keen on encouraging broadband adoption, but not explicit on how barriers to broadband can be addressed. Perhaps this is not surprising given that the membership of the BAG, dominated by representatives of large corporations and senior bureaucrats was even less representative than its BSEG predecessor. Some months after the BAG report, the Federal government did declare a broadband strategy. It did so, intriguingly enough, under the rubric of its response to the Regional Telecommunications Inquiry report (Estens), the second inquiry responsible for reassuring citizens nervous about the full-privatisation of Telstra (the first inquiry being Besley). The government’s grand $142.8 million National Broadband Strategy focusses on the ‘broadband needs of regional Australians, in partnership with all levels of government’ (Alston, ‘National Broadband Strategy’). Among other things, the government claims that the Strategy will result in “improved outcomes in terms of services and prices for regional broadband access; [and] the development of national broadband infrastructure assets.” (Alston, ‘National Broadband Strategy’) At the same time, the government announced an overall response to the Estens Inquiry, with specific safeguards for Telstra’s role in regional communications — a preliminary to the full Telstra sale (Alston, ‘Future Proofing’). Less publicised was the government’s further initiative in indigenous telecommunications, complementing its Telecommunications Action Plan for Remote Indigenous Communities (DCITA). Indigenous people, it can be argued, were never really contemplated as citizens with the ken of the universal service policy taken to underpin the twentieth-century government monopoly PTT project. In Australia during the deregulatory and re-regulatory 1990s, there was a great reluctance on the part of Labor and Coalition Federal governments, Telstra and other industry participants, even to research issues of access to and use of telecommunications by indigenous communicators. Telstra, and to a lesser extent Optus (who had purchased AUSSAT as part of their licence arrangements), shrouded the issue of indigenous communications in mystery that policymakers were very reluctant to uncover, let alone systematically address. Then regulator, the Australian Telecommunications Authority (AUSTEL), had raised grave concerns about indigenous telecommunications access in its 1991 Rural Communications inquiry. However, there was no government consideration of, nor research upon, these issues until Alston commissioned a study in 2001 — the basis for the TAPRIC strategy (DCITA). The elision of indigenous telecommunications from mainstream industry and government policy is all the more puzzling, if one considers the extraordinarily varied and significant experiments by indigenous Australians in telecommunications and Internet (not least in the early work of the Tanami community, made famous in media and cultural studies by the writings of anthropologist Eric Michaels). While the government’s mid-2003 moves on a ‘National Broadband Strategy’ attend to some details of the broadband predicament, they fall well short of an integrated framework that grasps the shortcomings of the neoliberal communications model. The funding offered is a token amount. The view from the seat of government is a glance from the rear-view mirror: taking a snapshot of rural communications in the years 2000-2002 and projecting this tableau into a safety-net ‘future proofing’ for the inevitable turning away of a fully-privately-owned Telstra from its previously universal, ‘carrier of last resort’ responsibilities. In this aetiolated, residualist policy gaze, citizens remain constructed as consumers in a very narrow sense in this incremental, quietist version of state securing of market arrangements. What is missing is any more expansive notion of citizens, their varied needs, expectations, uses, and cultural imaginings of ‘always on’ broadband networks. Hybrid Networks “Most people on earth will eventually have access to networks that are all switched, interactive, and broadband”, wrote Frances Cairncross in 1998. ‘Eventually’ is a very appropriate word to describe the parlous state of broadband technology implementation. Broadband is in a slow state of evolution and invention. The story of broadband so far underscores the predicament for Australian access to bandwidth, when we lack any comprehensive, integrated, effective, and fair policy in communications and information technology. We have only begun to experiment with broadband technologies and understand their evolving uses, cultural forms, and the sense in which they rework us as subjects. Our communications networks are not superhighways, to invoke an enduring artefact from an older technology. Nor any longer are they a single ‘public’ switched telecommunications network, like those presided over by the post-telegraph-telephone monopolies of old. Like roads themselves, or the nascent postal system of the sixteenth century, broadband is a patchwork quilt. The ‘fibre’ of our communications networks is hybrid. To be sure, powerful corporations dominate, like the Tassis or Taxis who served as postmasters to the Habsburg emperors (Briggs & Burke 25). Activating broadband today provides a perspective on the path dependency of technology history, and how we can open up new threads of a communications fabric. Our options for transforming our multitudinous networked lives emerge as much from everyday tactics and strategies as they do from grander schemes and unifying policies. We may care to reflect on the waning potential for nation-building technology, in the wake of globalisation. We no longer gather our imagined community around a Community Telephone Plan as it was called in 1960 (Barr, Moyal, and PMG). Yet we do require national and international strategies to get and stay connected (Barr), ideas and funding that concretely address the wider dimensions of access and use. We do need to debate the respective roles of Telstra, the state, community initiatives, and industry competition in fair telecommunications futures. Networks have global reach and require global and national integration. Here vision, co-ordination, and resources are urgently required for our commonweal and moral fibre. To feel the width of the band we desire, we need to plug into and activate the policy circuits. Thanks to Grayson Cooke, Patrick Lichty, Ned Rossiter, John Pace, and an anonymous reviewer for helpful comments. Works Cited Alston, Richard. ‘ “Future Proofing” Regional Communications.’ Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Canberra, 2003. 17 July 2003 <http://www.dcita.gov.au/Article/0,,0_1-2_3-4_115485,00.php> —. ‘A National Broadband Strategy.’ Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Canberra, 2003. 17 July 2003 <http://www.dcita.gov.au/Article/0,,0_1-2_3-4_115486,00.php>. Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). Broadband Services Report March 2003. Canberra: ACCC, 2003. 17 July 2003 <http://www.accc.gov.au/telco/fs-telecom.htm>. —. Emerging Market Structures in the Communications Sector. 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MLA Style Goggin, Gerard. "Broadband" M/C: A Journal of Media and Culture< http://www.media-culture.org.au/0308/02-featurebroadband.php>. APA Style Goggin, G. (2003, Aug 26). Broadband. M/C: A Journal of Media and Culture, 6,< http://www.media-culture.org.au/0308/02-featurebroadband.php>