London, 30-31 March 2006
European Institute – London School of Economics and Political Science

The workshop aimed to further theoretical and empirical insight into the working of laboratory federalism in three policy areas that are of particular relevance to EU economic governance: policy coordination through social partnership, tax policy and macroeconomic stabilisation.

Read the Workshop Report (including programme and list of participants)

Programme and Presentations (either PDF or PowerPointShows):

Policy coordination and social partnership – in search of a role in EMU

Chair: Iain Begg (LSE)

• Reform in wage-setting and labour market restructuring: what role for social partnership?; Jelle Visser (Amsterdam, EUI)
• The Macroeconomic Dialogue: dialogue instead of action?; Gerhard Huemer (UEAPME)
• The Macroeconomic Dialogue: all talk an no action?; Andrew Watt (ETUI)
• Social partnership in Ireland: what’s left in EMU?; Rory O'Donnell (National Economic and Social Council)
• Social partnership in Slovenia: how useful for EMU?; Tatjana Pajnkihar (Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

Tax policy – governance, innovation and competition

Chair: Waltraud Schelkle (LSE)

• How effective are new forms of governance in tax policy?; Ulrike Kraemer (Exeter)
• Tax competition, tax harmonization and tax innovation; Philipp Genschel (IU Bremen)
• Tax credits for low-income households: how innovative, how transferable?; Ian Mulheirn (UK Treasury)
• Flat rate taxes: how innovative, how transferable?; Mart Laar (MP and former Prime Minister of Estonia)
• The Lisbon Strategy as policy co-ordination - does it promote policy learning? Iain Begg (LSE)
• The approach implicit in the re-launched Lisbon strategy to policy co-ordination; Joe Grice (ONS & Economic Policy Committee)

Macroeconomic stabilisation – the interplay between domestic institutions and the re-formed Pact

Chair: Deborah Mabbett (Birkbeck)

• The new Pact: prioritizing structural reform over fiscal prudence?; Fabienne Ilzkovitz and Lucio Pench (DG Ecfin)
• Multilevel governance in fiscal consolidation and stabilisation: what are the incentives and the constraints?; Waltraud Schelkle (LSE) and Deborah Mabbett (Birkbeck)
• The interaction of national and supranational fiscal surveillance: how much reform is needed?; Peter Wierts (Dutch National Bank)
• Italy - An Internal Instability Story; Fabrizio Ghisellini (Comune di Roma),
• The national stability pact in Italy; Chiara Goretti (Budget Service, Italian Parliament), Gelsomina Vigliotti (Italian Treasury)
• The national stability pact in Germany; William Brunton (Conference of the State Finance Ministers, Bundesrat), Martin Snelting (German Treasury)