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This book proposes an innovative approach to European Integration by combining economics and political theory in its study of public goods. The contributors review such elements as a neo-medieval governance, the merits of a new European Republic, and, alongside Europe, include South East Asia in its discussions. By addressing different issues within the overarching approach of public goods and the republican paradigm of governance, the book introduces an important new perspective. Chapters stimulate discussion on some of the most pressing issues facing Europe today, written by the leading voices on European economics.

This edited volume proposes an innovative approach to European Integration by combining economics and political theory in its study of public goods. The contributors review such elements as a neo-medieval governance, the merits of a new European Republic, and, alongside Europe, include South East Asia in its discussions. By addressing different issues within the overarching approach of public goods and the republican paradigm of governance, Collignon introduces an important new perspective.--

This book looks at the role of the Association for Monetary Union in Europe's role in the construction of the Euro. It argues that the AMUE played a prominent role in the adoption of a number of proposals related to the single currency and had a guiding influence on the transition from a market-let to an institution-centred approach to monetary union.

Berlin has made the famous distinction between negative and positive liberty. For many liberals, negative liberty is modern individual liberty manifested in markets, while interference by the State is a form of positive liberty. Berlin was also repelled by Rousseau's concept of the general will, which he considered as a form of collectivist holism. The paper argues that this philosophy is a mistaken interpretation of Berlin's two concepts of liberty and of Rousseau's general will. In a simple model of individual and collective choice under conditions of bounded rationality, it is shown that positive and negative liberty are interdependent. The collective choices made under positive liberty can be modeled as the stochastic version of Rousseau's general will, provided that liberal democracy enables the conditions of free public deliberation. In that case, the individual freedom cherished by Berlin is compatible with positive liberty.

International audience ; Berlin has made the famous distinction between negative and positive liberty. For many liberals, negative liberty is modern individual liberty manifested in markets, while interference by the State is a form of positive liberty. Berlin was also repelled by Rousseau's concept of the general will, which he considered as a form of collectivist holism. The paper argues that this philosophy is a mistaken interpretation of Berlin's two concepts of liberty and of Rousseau's general will. In a simple model of individual and collective choice under conditions of bounded rationality, it is shown that positive and negative liberty are interdependent. The collective choices made under positive liberty can be modeled as the stochastic version of Rousseau's general will, provided that liberal democracy enables the conditions of free public deliberation. In that case, the individual freedom cherished by Berlin is compatible with positive liberty.

AbstractEuropean monetary union presents a paradox. On the one hand, despite three years of continuous battering and pounding, the euro still exists. On the other, the crisis has revealed serious flaws in the governance of the Euro Area and it has become clear that the old system of managing the euro macroeconomy is not sustainable. This article attempts to explain this apparent contradiction and how to resolve it.

This article challenges the new revisionist consensus, whereby current account imbalances have caused the euro crisis. In a monetary union, current accounts are not useful indicators for macroeconomic imbalances, because a currency area is not a fixed exchange rate system. It is a payment union and it is therefore more appropriate to analyse the flow of funds and payments between sectors and Member States. Applying the analysis, it turns out that excessive lending in the north has financed the borrowing in the south, thereby contributing to unequal development in the euro area. To remedy this situation, incentives for competitive investment need to be adjusted. The article describes an innovative approach for determining equilibrium unit labour costs as a benchmark for stable and fair wage setting. It then discusses policy implications and recommends better wage coordination between European trade unions.

AbstractImbalances are a dominant feature of the world economy and they are often seen as having contributed to the global financial crisis. A revaluation of the Chinese currency is often recommended to reduce the current account imbalance between the US and China. This article argues that emerging Asia's current account surpluses are a necessary condition for rapid catch‐up growth and should not be eliminated soon; instead the excessive dollar bias in Asian holdings of external claims needs to be reduced, because the problem behind the recent crisis was that the emerging economies have placed their foreign exchange reserves almost exclusively in USD assets and have neglected alternative assets like the Euro and the Yen. A policy proposal for a common Asian peg to a basket of Euro and Yen is made.Policy Implications
 Policies to restore global balances must not create additional tensions for China, Asia, Europe or the United States. A cooperative management of the global economy is recommended.
 Chinese exchange rates policy must be seen in the broad context of the Asian development model. A rapid revaluation or shift to flexible exchange rates would undermine the Chinese development model and deprive the world of an immense source of economic growth.
 The undervaluation of the RMB should only gradually be removed as the Chinese economy improves productivity and catches up to advanced economies' production standards.
 Fixed exchange rates support economic development by reducing uncertainty for investment and trade. Stabilising the exchange rates between major currencies and Asia as a region is important to allow the continuing integration of its developing economies into the world market.
 The US economy needs flexibility in exchange rate movement while it is going through the necessary adjustment of its current account balance, but not Asia. Asia should peg to a basket of euro and yen and Chinese foreign exchange reserves should be marginally shifted into these new reserve currencies. Europe must not protect its industries, but rather seek to stimulate economic growth by inviting Chinese and Asian investment by developing its financial markets.

This paper gives an overview of the causes of the European debt crisis and the consequences for the external relations. It finds that political mishandling has increased uncertainty, which has contributed to a tendency for the euro to become weaker.

Der Kapitalismus hat, so der Verfasser, seine historischen Wurzeln im Finanzsystem. Zusammen mit der Einführung der doppelten Buchführung in der Renaissance, waren es die Erfindung des Bankwesens, die Straffreiheit des Wuchers und die Freiheit, Zins zu verlangen, die die repressive Kultur des Mittelalters beendete und die Individuen befreite: die Revolution, die zwischen dem 17. und dem 19. Jahrhundert in Europa stattfand, war die allmähliche und manchmal gewaltsame Ersetzung von traditionellen Normen der Hierarchie durch das moderne Prinzip des Vertrages. Die ganze politische Philosophie der Moderne beruht auf diesen zwei Werten. Ohne Vertragswirtschaft und Finanzmärkte bleibt Modernität unbegreiflich. Die Zukunft des Kapitalismus ist, so die These, seine Vergangenheit: Kredit und Zins sind der Wachstumsmotor einer modernen Wirtschaft, aber auch die normative Fundierung des Kapitalismus. Wie alle Moralität ist auch die Wirtschaftsmoral des Geldes ambivalent: seine Funktionsbedingungen beruhen auf den Normen von Freiheit und Gleichheit, aber die faktische Realität sind materielle Beschränkung und Ungleichheit. Die systemimmanente Tendenz des Kapitalismus erfordert eine Institution, die sich dieser Tendenz entgegenstellt, soziale Unsicherheiten korrigiert und einen stabilen Rechtsrahmen garantiert. Der moderne demokratische Staat ist letztendlich die Garantie für die dauerhafte Fähigkeit des Kapitalismus. Er bedeutet nicht das autoritäre Überstülpen von traditionellen Werten auf eine liberale Ökonomie, sondern er ist das Instrument, durch welches freie und gleiche Bürger gemeinsam ihre Präferenzen bestimmen und das relative Gewicht von Gleichheit und Freiheit festsetzen. Der demokratische Staat integriert die Externalitäten von Politikentscheidungen, die alle Bürger betreffen. Aber die Gültigkeit moderner Normen garantiert nicht ihre Durchsetzung im tatsächlichen Leben. Europas Bürgern wird eine europäische Regierung versagt, die es ihnen erlauben würde, gemeinsam die politischen Entscheidungen zu treffen, die ihren Wohlstand und zukünftigen Reichtum bestimmen. Es ist an der Zeit, dass sich das ändert. (ICF2)