...PRESS PACK BRIEFING NOTES World Trade Organization 6th Ministerial Conference Hong Kong, China 13–18 December 2005 Contents Press information 3 Snapshot – Doha Development Agenda 5 Agriculture 6 Cotton 11 Trade in services 12 Market access, non-agricultural products 15 Intellectual property (TRIPS) 17 Trade facilitation 23 Rules: ad, scm including fisheries subsidies 25 Rules: regional agreements 28 Dispute settlement 31 Trade and environment 35 Small economies 37 Trade, debt and finance 38 Trade and technology transfer 39 Technical cooperation 40 Least-developed countries 42 Special and differential treatment 45 Implementation issues 47 Electronic Commerce 50 Members and accessions 51 Bananas 55 Statistics 57 Jargon buster - Country groupings 73 Jargon buster – An informal guide to 'WTOspeak' 75 Issued 5 December 2005 NOTE These briefing notes describe the situation as it exists at the time of going to press (mid- November 2005) They are designed to help journalists and the public understand the key issues of the Hong Kong Ministerial Conference. While every effort has been made to ensure the contents are accurate, they are not legal interpretations of the WTO agreements, nor do they prejudice member governments’ positions in the conference and in the negotiations. In addition, some simplifications are used in order to keep the text simple and clear. In particular, the words “country” and “nation” are frequently used to describe WTO members...
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...Eriffs. The Sc ottis h Parli ament and Sc ottish Parliament Informati on Centr e l ogos. SPICe Briefing The Scottish Civil Court System 13 February 2014 14/15 Sarah Harvie-Clark This Briefing provides an overview of the civil court system in Scotland, including a description of the main civil courts and the hierarchy associated with them. It also provides an introduction to the key terminology associated with the civil courts and a brief overview of other bodies and individuals associated with the civil courts system. The Briefing is intended to be useful background for those with an interest in the Courts Reform (Scotland) Bill. For an overview of the system of criminal courts in Scotland see the SPICe Briefing entitled The Scottish Criminal Justice System: the Criminal Courts (McCallum 2011). CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CIVIL JUSTICE SYSTEM 4 THE SCOTTISH CIVIL COURTS AND TRIBUNALS 6 OTHER RELEVANT BODIES AND INDIVIDUALS 12 SOURCES 13 RELATED BRIEFINGS 18 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The justice system in Scotland is split into two distinct parts: the criminal justice system and the civil justice system. The distinction between the two parts of the system is as follows: the criminal justice system exists to prosecute, or otherwise deal with, those who commit crimes. On the other hand, the civil justice system exists to give people and organisations a way to protect and enforce their legal rights...
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...1 AGRICULTURE IN BRAZIL: FROM THE 1980’s TO THE G-20 MAURO MASON DE CAMPOS ADORNO Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements of the Degree of Master by Coursework in International Policy Studies School of Politics Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences La Trobe University Bundoora, Victoria 3083 Australia 2 July 2005 Abstract The Brazilian economy transformed from a state of financial crisis in the 1980’s to become a leading agriculture exporter in the late 1990’s. Economic reforms implemented by the Real Plan were a response to a bankrupt decade of failed economic plans and high inflation rates. In this period agriculture played a key role in the control of the inflation and in the stabilization of the economy. The domestic environment of the Brazilian economy and the role of agriculture helped Brazil to develop a more active role and led it to seek for a leadership position in the international agricultural negotiations. On the eve on the WTO’s Cancun Round of negotiation a new coalition of developing countries formed the G-20. The Group was born from a Brazilian initiative and for the first time a group of developing countries stood up against the developed countries in the agriculture negotiations. 3 Acknowledgments I would like to dedicate this thesis to my mother Ana and my brother Matheus. Who believed in me even when I did not. I love you guys. I would like to thank my Father for the support, during the whole process,...
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...HOW TO BRIEF A CASE [OR–WHY DIDN’T I CHOOSE TO GO TO MEDICAL SCHOOL] By Dana L. Blatt, Esq. You are just about to start law school. You buy all of your required casebooks [they are about two feet thick–only “slightly” intimidating], and you receive your first assignment. You are simply told, “read the first 100 pages in each book and BRIEF all of the cases!” O.K., you know how to read [hopefully], but what does it mean to “brief” a case? You have heard of “briefcases,” but that is something that you carry around. The last time you sang at a karaoke bar someone may have asked you to be “brief,” but instinctively you know that that is not the kind of brief that is being discussed here. And you may even be wearing “briefs.” But, what is a brief of a case? For that matter, what is a case? The purpose of this article is to teach exactly what briefs are, why they are important, and how to draft them. You will learn most of the various ways to brief a case, the basic elements of each brief, and how briefs are used in various contexts. Additionally, you will read sample cases and briefs of those cases in every format. By the time you finish reading this, you will be so sick of briefs, that you will wish this writing were much briefer! So, now let’s get down to business. What is a case? A “case” starts out as a lawsuit between two or more people. The parties to the lawsuit have a trial and one party wins while the other loses (or possibly there is no...
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...ABSTRACT In the recent years China has been seen as a major competition in the international economic market. It has been replacing many western states as the top trading and investment partner in many African states, and for decades it has been one of Africa’s best friends, helping in the decolonization process and building key infrastructure projects on the continent. China has been providing many African governments with cheap loans in exchange for securing their means of accumulating natural resources based on the principle of non-intervention and respect for sovereignty, which gives no strings attached. For more than a decade, diplomatic relations between China and South Africa have been marked a great growing relationship between both states. From a period of no official ties to limited interaction between the South African and Chinese Governments, the relationship has subsequently developed to become one of the closest between African and Asian states. Growing economic engagement, which underpins the warm ties between the two states, has put South Africa amongst China’s top three trading partners on the continent. Moreover, China is an emerging market economy; with a fast track of being the next economic rising superpower in the world and its current relations between it and Africa continue to grow fast with foreign direct investment increasing thirty-fold between 2003 and 2011, from US$491m to US$14.7 billion. In 2012, China pledged US$20 billion of loans to Africa over...
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...TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT A RESOURCE BOOK Edited by Adil Najam Mark Halle Ricardo Meléndez-Ortiz TRADE AND ENVIRONMENT A RESOURCE BOOK Edited by Adil Najam Mark Halle Ricardo Meléndez-Ortiz Trade and Environment: A Resource Book © 2007 International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) and the Regional and International Networking Group (The Ring). Trade and Environment: A Resource Book Edited by Adil Najam, Mark Halle and Ricardo Meléndez-Ortiz ISBN 978-1-895536-99-7 Published by International Institute for Sustainable Development, International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development, The Regional and International Networking Group This publication is available online at http://www.trade-environment.org http://www.iisd.org http://www.ictsd.org http://www.ring-alliance.org Cover photos from iStockphoto. Readers are encouraged to quote and reproduce this material for educational, not-for-profit purposes, provided the source is acknowledged. Printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Trade and Environment: A Resource Book The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD, http://www.iisd.org) contributes to sustainable development by advancing policy recommendations on international trade and investment, economic policy, climate change, measurement and assessment, and natural resources management. Through the Internet, we report on international negotiations and...
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...The Need for Whistleblowing Legislation in Canada: A Critical Defence Jonathan Carson Research Officer The Association of Management, Administrative and Professional Crown Employees of Ontario 1 Dundas Street West Suite 2310, Box 72 Toronto, ON M5G 1Z3 carson@amapceo.on.ca Paper presented to the Canadian Political Science Association Conference, June 2006 The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of AMAPCEO Working Paper – Please do not cite without permission from the author Introduction This paper is about the need for whistleblowing legislation in Canada, at both the federal and provincial levels. The focus of the paper is squarely on the public service. Although certain jurisdictions (for example, the United Kingdom1) have a single disclosure regime covering both the private and public sectors, then general trend throughout the world is for distinct legislation for the two sectors. In Canada, there are already numerous statutory avenues for individuals in both the public and private sectors to blow the whistle; however, the grounds for disclosure are generally quite circumscribed, with the statutes tending to deal only with specific concerns, e.g. occupational health and safety or the environment.2 At present whistleblowing legislation is coming into vogue across Canada, at both levels of government. This paper argues that such legislation should have the modest goal of protecting good faith whistleblowers. This...
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...Discussion Papers in Economics INDIA’S STANCE AT THE WTO: SHIFTING COORDINATES, UNALTERED PARADIGM Amit Shovon Ray* and Sabyasachi Saha January, 2009 Discussion Paper 09-06 Centre for International Trade and Development School of International Studies Jawaharlal Nehru University India * Corresponding author, e -mail: amit.shovon.ray@gmail.com INDIA’S STANCE AT THE WTO: SHIFTING COORDINATES, UNALTERED PARADIGM Amit Shovon RAY ∗ Jawaharlal Nehru University, India and Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), India Sabyasachi SAHA Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), India ∗ Corresponding author, e -mail: amit.shovon.ray@gmail.com INDIA’S STANCE AT THE WTO: SHIFTING COORDINATES, UNALTERED PARADIGM ♣ Abstract: India’s stance at the WTO has undergone a sea change since the beginning of the Uruguay Round. This paper attempts to trace the shifting coordinates of India’s position at the WTO. By focussing on three specific areas of negotiations, namely agriculture, services and TRIPS, the paper presents a theoretical analysis of how India’s stance at the WTO has evolved over time and whether it reflects any paradigm shift. In the light of international relations theory we argue that although the coordinates of India’s stance at the WTO have shifted over time, the underlying ‘neorealist’ position adopted by India remains by and large unaltered. I. Introduction The...
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...Summer 2004 GREAT Boards Published by Bader & Associates Governance Consultants, Potomac, MD BOARDROOM BRIEFING CEO selection: getting it right By Sharon O’Malley By the time board Chairman Freddie Burton convened a 12-member search committee to recruit a new chief executive officer for St. John Hospital and Medical Center two years ago, the facility had been through six CEOs in as many years. This time, he vowed, the Detroit hospital’s trustees would take their time deciding on a new CEO and would make that decision using a process agreed to up front by the facility’s 24-member board of trustees, its medical staff and its parent system, St. John Health. • Developing a profile of the ideal CEO, based on a position description, a plan for the hospital’s near-term future and the priorities for the CEO’s first 12 to 18 months. • Identifying and evaluating candidates. “We seized the opportunity to learn from our mistakes.” Freddie Burton • Making the selection. • Negotiating compensation and other terms. • Supporting the transition. “We seized the opportunity to learn from our St. John Hospital & Medical Center Some boards endeavor to manage the search mistakes,” says Burton, a Wayne County, Mich., process themselves, but more often, they select probate judge, who watched a prior search committee of five an outside search firm to facilitate the process, identify trustees and one doctor select a CEO whom the full board did candidates who fit the ideal...
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...The London School of Economics and Political Science THE ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY IN THE DEMOCRATISATION OF GLOBAL GOVERNANCE INSTITUTIONS: From ‘Soft Power’ to Collective Decision-Making? Saif Al-Islam Alqadhafi A thesis submitted to the Department of Philosophy of the London School of Economics for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, London, September 2007 Declaration I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others (in which case the extent of any work carried out jointly by me and any other person is clearly identified in it). The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of the author. I warrant that this authorisation does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. 2 Abstract This dissertation analyses the problem of how to create more just and democratic global governing institutions, exploring the approach of a more formal system of collective decision-making by the three main actors in global society: governments, civil society and the business sector. The thesis seeks to make a contribution by presenting for discussion an addition to the system of international governance that is morally...
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...Secretariat Marlborough House Pall Mall London SW1Y 5HX United Kingdom info@commonwealth.int www.thecommonwealth.org Acronyms ACP ACTA ARV ASEAN AU CBA CBC CFTC CGF CHOGM CHRI CiO CMAG CMG CMGSS COG CS-DRMS CSFP CSO CYC CYDF CYO CYP EPG EU Gt G20 HIV/AIDS IDEA IEA IMF MDGs MFN SPD TRIPS UNDP WTO African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement Anti-retroviral drugs Association of South-East Asian Nations African Union Commonwealth Broadcasting Association Commonwealth Business Council Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation Commonwealth Games Federation Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative Chairperson-in-Office Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group Commonwealth Media Group Commonwealth Ministerial Group on Small States Commonwealth Observer Group Commonwealth Secretariat’s Debt Recording and Management System Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan Civil Society Organisations Commonwealth Youth Corps Commonwealth Youth Development Fund Commonwealth Youth Orchestra Commonwealth Youth Programme Eminent Persons Group European Union Gigatonnes The Group of 20 major advanced and developing economies. Human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance International Atomic Energy Agency International Monetary Fund Millennium Development Goals Most Favoured Nation Sport for Peace and Development Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual...
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...Secretariat Marlborough House Pall Mall London SW1Y 5HX United Kingdom info@commonwealth.int www.thecommonwealth.org Acronyms ACP ACTA ARV ASEAN AU CBA CBC CFTC CGF CHOGM CHRI CiO CMAG CMG CMGSS COG CS-DRMS CSFP CSO CYC CYDF CYO CYP EPG EU Gt G20 HIV/AIDS IDEA IEA IMF MDGs MFN SPD TRIPS UNDP WTO African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement Anti-retroviral drugs Association of South-East Asian Nations African Union Commonwealth Broadcasting Association Commonwealth Business Council Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation Commonwealth Games Federation Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative Chairperson-in-Office Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group Commonwealth Media Group Commonwealth Ministerial Group on Small States Commonwealth Observer Group Commonwealth Secretariat’s Debt Recording and Management System Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan Civil Society Organisations Commonwealth Youth Corps Commonwealth Youth Development Fund Commonwealth Youth Orchestra Commonwealth Youth Programme Eminent Persons Group European Union Gigatonnes The Group of 20 major advanced and developing economies. Human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance International Atomic Energy Agency International Monetary Fund Millennium Development Goals Most Favoured Nation Sport for Peace and Development Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual...
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...GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS AS LEVEL UNIT TWO GOVERNING THE UK “Never, never, never give up” Winston S Churchill 1874-1965 1 GOVERNING THE UK 50% of AS [25% of A2] UNIT TWO SAMPLE QUESTION Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B in 80 minutes. Spend 40 minutes on Section A and 40 minutes on Section B SECTION A QUESTION ONE PRIME MINISTERIAL POWER “For too long the big political decisions in this country have been made in the wrong place. They are not made around the Cabinet table where they should be, but they are taken on the sofa in Tony Blair’s office. No notes are kept and no one takes the blame when things go wrong. That arrogant style of government must come to an end. I will restore the proper process of government. I want to be Prime Minister of this country not a President (Source: David Cameron, The Times, 5th October 2006) “The Cabinet is the committee at the centre of the British political system. Every Thursday during Parliament, Secretaries of State from all departments as well as other ministers meet in the Cabinet Room in Downing Street to discuss the big issues of the day. The Prime Minister chairs the meeting, selects its members and also recommends their appointment as ministers to the monarch. The present Cabinet has 23 members (21 MPs and two peers). The secretary of the Cabinet is responsible for preparing records of its discussions and decisions”. (Source: From a modern textbook) (a) What...
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...Department of the Parliamentary Library INFORMATION AND RESEARCH SERVICES Current Issues Brief No. 18 2000–01 Outsourcing—For and Against ISSN 1440-2009 Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2001 Except to the extent of the uses permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means including information storage and retrieval systems, without the prior written consent of the Department of the Parliamentary Library, other than by Senators and Members of the Australian Parliament in the course of their official duties. This paper has been prepared for general distribution to Senators and Members of the Australian Parliament. While great care is taken to ensure that the paper is accurate and balanced, the paper is written using information publicly available at the time of production. The views expressed are those of the author and should not be attributed to the Information and Research Services (IRS). Advice on legislation or legal policy issues contained in this paper is provided for use in parliamentary debate and for related parliamentary purposes. This paper is not professional legal opinion. Readers are reminded that the paper is not an official parliamentary or Australian government document. IRS staff are available to discuss the paper's contents with Senators and Members and their staff but not with members of the public. Published by the Department of the Parliamentary...
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...Intellectual Property Rights 2014 1.Intellectual property rights: US set to punish India The Indian embassy in Washington DC too scheduled a briefing by its economic and commerce wings soon after the expected US action. TNN | Feb 10, 2014, 10.28PM IST WASHINGTON: It's not looking good between New Delhi and Washington. Tensions over the Khobragade episode are yet to fully dissipate, but the two sides are locking horns again over intellectual property rights. The Obama administration is scheduled to announce unspecified ''trade enforcement action'' against India on Monday evening (Tuesday am IST) Washington time. United States trade representative (USTR) Michael Froman and general counsel Timothy Reif will hold a news conference to announce action related to India, the USTR said earlier in the day in a head's up to journalists. The Indian embassy in Washington DC too scheduled a briefing by its economic and commerce wings soon after the expected US action. All this comes ahead of a re-scheduled visit to New Delhi of US energy secretary Ernesto Munoz, which was postponed from January because of the Khobragade row. 2.Hurdles in business growth forcing entrepreneurs to mass exodus Krithika Krishnamurthy, ET Bureau Mar 28, 2014, 04.30AM IST * (Starting up in India is easy…) Within the next six months, Bangalorebased technology entrepreneur Jay Krishnan will be heading east in search of a better place to locate his fast-growing business...
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