Volume 67, Issue 3

In the coalition agreement from February 7, 2018, the new German federal government drafts its public pension policy, which has to be evaluated against the background of demographic dynamics in Germany. In this paper, the consequences of public pensions related policy measures for the German public pension insurance are illustrated using a simulation model. In the long run, the intended extensions of benefits would lead to an increase in the contribution rate to the German public pension insurance of about two and a half percentage points. Referring to pension systems of other countries, we discuss measures in order to limit this increase in the contribution rate.

European trade policy with Africa is in deep trouble. We observe a triple policy failure. (1) The EU tries to draw African partner countries into comprehensive deep integration agreements, far more than these countries can arguably support. (2) For trade in goods, safeguard clauses in the EPAs are patchy. They cannot satisfy African needs for smart protection of agricultural and industrial businesses. Facing the refusal of some African governments to sign, the EU has no answer. Ensuing fragmentation of African regional economic communities is a disaster. Rapid repair work of the existing regional EPA drafts looks more promising than a grand solution with the new African Continental Free Trade Area. (3) Negative impact of the EU Common Agricultural Policy on African producers must finally be acknowledged and at least partly compensated. – A deeply divided economic profession delivering trunked analyses with regard to all three complexes is unfortunately of limited help to policy-makers.

There is renewed interest in Europe to deepen trade with Africa in the hope that this will reduce migrant flows. While improved trade with Africa will not reduce but likely stimulate migrant flows, it could promote African development and further European long-term economic interests. To deepen trade, this article argues for further trade integration with North Africa with a long-term EU membership perspective. To further trade with Sub Saharan Africa, it suggests greater use of unilateral trade opening on the part of the EU, including more flexible application of rules of origin.

European trade policy is under pressure to comply with sustainability demands. Trade policy can actively contribute to sustainable development, but under certain conditions, amongst them respect for the level of development, the point of departure of the respective countries and the inclusion of specific provisions for sustainability. Trade policy reaches its limitations in internal political and economic framework conditions in partner countries as well as other processes of globalization. This is also reflected in the trade relationship between the EU and African countries.

This study examines structural differences in the subjective quality of health care in Germany using a newspaper survey. We find that there are significant differences between urban and rural areas as well as between public and private insurance. In rural areas, the provision of general practitioners, specialists and hospitals are considered as worse than in cities. In particular, public insured individuals asses the provision of specialized doctors and hospitals as lower than private insured and criticize long waiting times for appointments and lacking coverage of health care costs by the statutory health insurance.

Der Beitrag untersucht die von der Europäischen Kommission 2016 im Entwurf für eine neue Richtlinie des Rates über eine gemeinsame Körperschaftsteuer-Bemessungsgrundlage vorgeschlagenen Regeln zum Abzug fiktiver Zinsen auf neu gebildetes Eigenkapital. Geprüft wird, ob hiermit die in den meisten Ländern der EU bestehende steuerliche Diskriminierung der Investitionsfinanzierung mit Eigenkapital beseitigt wird. Nach vereinfachten Investitionsrechnungen werden die Unternehmen dazu veranlasst, mehr eigenfinanzierte Investitionen zu tätigen. Mit einer gegenüber dem Kommissionsvorschlag modifizierten Bestimmung des steuerlich relevanten Eigenkapitals wird es möglich, die für die Harmonisierung der Bemessungsgrundlagen so bedeutsame Neutralität des steuerlichen Bewertungsrechts sowie eine steuerliche Gleichbehandlung unterschiedlicher Zeitverläufe von Investitionserträgen zu gewährleisten.