wine in the eu September 12, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedI’m listening to the EU Parliament’s live streaming of a public hearing on wine policy in the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development. Wine producer representatives are talking to the committee. I started listening to the English version, but then moved on to the French which somehow seems much more appropriate to discussions of wine (even though the speaker whose intervention I’m currently hearing is from Austria). The Commission proposed reforms of the wine sector in July this year (the proposed new regulation is here). One of the problems the EU is addressing is that Europeans are drinking less wine than they used to do.
The Commission states that the objectives of the reform are to:
– increase the competitiveness of the EU’s wine producers; strengthen the reputation of EU quality wine as the best in the world; recover old markets and win new ones in the EU and worldwide;
– create a wine regime that operates through clear, simple rules – effective rules that balance supply and demand;
– create a wine regime that preserves the best traditions of EU wine production,reinforces the social fabric of many rural areas, and ensures that all production respects the environment.
At the same time the Commission notes that there are issues relating to health, consumer protection, the WTO, and common agricultural policy reform. So it’s business as usual: producer and consumer interests may conflict; culture and economic efficiency may conflict; and the different Member States, wine producers and non-wine producers have their own different views about how to move forward.
cras and other market actors September 11, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedCharlie Mccreevy at the European Parliament today:
I also mentioned last week the role of Credit Rating Agencies in this crisis. They have been very slow in downgrading their credit ratings, their methodology has been weak and not very well explained. They also face a potential conflict of interest; on one hand Credit Rating Agencies provide objective ratings to investors of asset backed securities, on the other they provide advice to banks on how they should structure their lending to get the best rating. The role of credit rating agencies needs to be clearer. Because moreover, their ratings are used as a basis for the calculation of banks’ regulatory capital. We need to know what rating agencies do and what they don’t. I am following up these issues with CESR as well as with our international partners. What we need are clear, robust methodological rules and principles, rigorously applied.
Other market players also need to take their responsibilities seriously. And carry out due diligence. Were firms, and the professionals they employ, constantly assessing the quality of the instruments they were buying and selling? I hope that the Boards of all financial firms will examine their actions and draw firm conclusions. We believe that a “light touch”, principle-based regulation is the best approach for the financial sector. But we need to remain vigilant and draw lessons. All parties need to take their responsibility – and take it seriously.
Finally, I would like to respond to the call for enhanced transparency, in a broad sense, which is so often heard in the debate. To improve our understanding of the mechanism at play in structured finance. To be able to better locate risks. To make certain that risks are well controlled.
toy safety issues spread beyond mattel September 10, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedBEUC, the European Consumers’ Organisation, expressed concern last week about toy safety issues. The European Parliament also addressed consumer protection issues supporting both better regulation with maximum harmonisation and a procedure for collective redress for consumers. Euractiv describes this as being similar to US-style class actions, although the EP’s socialist group press release contrasts MEP Béatrice Patrie’s proposal with US style class actions:
The thinking behind group actions is not simply to mimic the American “class action†model, whose “aggressive touting of consumers by unscrupulous lawyers and awards of punitive damages against economic operators in no way reflects the legal culture in European countries,â€
Meanwhile in the US the Walt Disney Company is to test Disney character toys for lead paint. And retailers, including Wal-Mart and Target, are organising their own safety inspections. And the Second Biennial Sino-U.S. Consumer Product Safety Summit takes place tomorrow, September 11, 2007 in Washington D.C. The notice of the meeting states (in red capital letters):
DUE TO THE OVERWHELMING INTEREST, AND LIMITED SPACE AT THIS EVENT, ONLY THOSE WHO HAVE PRE-REGISTERED WILL BE ADMITTED.
the play's the thing September 10, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedGame links at Play this Thing. WOW movies at WarcraftMovies.com. How to make WOW movies via Spiffworld. And the latest Jonathan Coulton WOW movie from Mike Spiff Booth:
wow soap opera September 9, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedgirls and their accessories 2 September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedI have been watching the expensive handbag phenomenon for a while now. Today at Concurring Opinions Frank Pasquale discusses a Louis Vuitton “patch bag” which retails for some amount over $40,000 (sources seem to vary in the cost they report). Commentators have suggested it is not the most attractive handbag. But as Louis Vuitton only made 24 of them, we’re unlikely to be able to rent one of these, let alone the Chanel bags which will sell for over $250,000…..
From a marketing perspective it may be that stories about such bags make cheaper (but still expensive) bags seem more reasonable in price. But wouldn’t there be more useful ways to spend this money?
girls and their accessories September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedMattel is in the middle of another recall, this time including accessories for Barbie dolls (lead paint again). Seems like it may be safer to experience the phenomenon of Barbie online at Barbiegirls.com (in some ways).
boston stock exchange September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedSEC Press Release: SEC Charges Boston Stock Exchange and Former President James Crofwell With Failing to Police Specialists:
The Commission’s Order against the Exchange and Crofwell finds that the Exchange’s failure allowed hundreds of violations per day to go undetected even after the Commission staff had repeatedly warned the Exchange it needed to improve its surveillance systems.
what happens to better regulation now? September 5, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedCharlie McCreevy, a champion of better regulation, comments on the state of the financial markets and implications for regulation:
The interconnectivity of markets shows how important it is to have a globally convergent approach to regulation, with sound prudential rules and proper investor protection standards. It makes the Commission’s regulatory dialogues with the US and other jurisdictions even more critical. High standards of regulation are necessary throughout global financial markets – given the spill-over effects.
But:
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governance in the uk September 4, 2007
Posted by Bradley in : Uncategorized , comments closedGovernmental suggestions that UK citizens do not need to be consulted about the EU’s reform treaty look particularly odd in the light of the Green Paper on The Governance of Britain, published in July, which states, right at the beginning:
We want to forge a new relationship between government and citizen, and begin the journey towards a new constitutional settlement – a settlement that entrusts Parliament and the people with more power.
The proposals published in this Green Paper seek to address two fundamental questions: how should we hold power accountable, and how should we uphold and enhance the rights and responsibilities of the citizen?
There’s a lot more rhetoric later on. For example:
The time has come to build a consensus about the changes that we can make together to help renew trust and confidence in our democratic institutions, to make them fit for the modern world and to begin properly to articulate and celebrate what it means to be British. Renewing the fabric of our nation is not a one-off project or some meaningless side-show. The aim of the proposals in this paper should be to create a renewed bond between government and the people it serves, bringing people closer to the decision-making process at both the local and national level. By rebalancing some aspects of the way power is exercised, the Government hopes to ensure that individual citizens feel more closely engaged with those representing them; able to have their voice heard, active in their communities and bound together by common ties.