No description available.

As trade among members of the European Union (EU) is now free of tariffs, the harmonization of technical regulations or standards has become an important issue for deeper integration of the internal market. A previous analysis of the completion of the Single Market calculated that in 1996 about 80% of intra-EU trade was been affected by harmonization of technical regulations. A major objective of this thesis is to examine to what extent harmonization of regulations has reduced the so called border effect. After a brief survey of the gravity literature, we propose and test some economic and econometric extensions of the standard gravity model. This model is then applied to total manufacturing as well as to more detailed levels corresponding to different harmonization approaches. We find that harmonization of technical regulations has a positive impact on imports of total manufacturing. However, this hardly explains the importance of border effects within the EU. This result is supported at a more disaggregated level when we distinguish between manufacturing sectors according to the type of EU harmonization including the category where technical barriers do not apply. In addition, sectors where harmonization is of minor importance exhibit smaller border effects. The last part of the thesis examines, with particular reference to EU and enlargement, how environmental regulations at the national and EU level have collided and affected exports. The major findings are that more harmonization has been accompanied by higher levels of domestic environmental regulations in candidate countries. In addition, the level of domestic environmental regulations - when treated endogenously - has a larger negative effect on EU exports. We employ a newly constructed data set that contains information at the three digit level of manufacturing industries. For each industry we identify the dominant harmonization approach used by the European Commission to the removal of technical barriers to trade in the EU.

Natural health products (NHP) have been experiencing strong growth in consumer demand, both domestically and in foreign markets. The nature of NHP and the small sector of the population that used them in the past, has allowed them to slip between the cracks of regulatory bodies. As NHPs have become mainstream and have been marketed and distributed through major agri-food supply chains, governments have had to become more active regulators. New Natural Health Product Regulations came into force in Canada on January 1, 2004 to regulate these product which had been generally regulated under the Food and Drug Act. Canada is not alone in its regulatory reform and other countries have begun to create new and often more rigorous regulations for NHP. It as often the case that domestic regulations have unintended and sometimes trade restricting side effects. The current restructuring and focus on regulations of NHP, and the potential importance of trade within this sector, suggests that a better understanding of the non-tariff barriers that may arise could be important for the development of the industry in Canada and elsewhere. Analysis of trade effects arising from standards and regulations is not an easy task. Non-tariff barriers to trade tend to have product-specific effects making it difficult to find general results. Using a review of current approaches to address technical barriers, an analytical framework has been selected and applied to case studies. The cases studies examined the welfare effects of regulations as they pertain to three products with different characteristics; flax omega-3 supplement, elk velvet, and a probiotic supplement. The case studies identified a range of non-tariff barriers arising from international regulatory divergence. The results suggest that trade barriers are likely to arise in the NHP industry and that they will differ from product to product. As a result, there is unlikely to be a single policy prescription that will facilitate the removal of barriers to international market access. Suggestions are made as to how barriers could be eliminated or reduced through formal trade negotiations or less formal bilateral discussions.

Natural health products (NHP) have been experiencing strong growth in consumer demand, both domestically and in foreign markets. The nature of NHP and the small sector of the population that used them in the past, has allowed them to slip between the cracks of regulatory bodies. As NHPs have become mainstream and have been marketed and distributed through major agri-food supply chains, governments have had to become more active regulators. New Natural Health Product Regulations came into force in Canada on January 1, 2004 to regulate these product which had been generally regulated under the Food and Drug Act. Canada is not alone in its regulatory reform and other countries have begun to create new and often more rigorous regulations for NHP. It as often the case that domestic regulations have unintended and sometimes trade restricting side effects. The current restructuring and focus on regulations of NHP, and the potential importance of trade within this sector, suggests that a better understanding of the non-tariff barriers that may arise could be important for the development of the industry in Canada and elsewhere. Analysis of trade effects arising from standards and regulations is not an easy task. Non-tariff barriers to trade tend to have product-specific effects making it difficult to find general results. Using a review of current approaches to address technical barriers, an analytical framework has been selected and applied to case studies. The cases studies examined the welfare effects of regulations as they pertain to three products with different characteristics; flax omega-3 supplement, elk velvet, and a probiotic supplement. The case studies identified a range of non-tariff barriers arising from international regulatory divergence. The results suggest that trade barriers are likely to arise in the NHP industry and that they will differ from product to product. As a result, there is unlikely to be a single policy prescription that will facilitate the removal of barriers to international market access. Suggestions are made as to how barriers could be eliminated or reduced through formal trade negotiations or less formal bilateral discussions.

No description available.

No description available.

Thesis (M. Ec.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Economics, 1992. / Errata inserted. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 64-66).

Thesis (M.E.T.)--University of Canterbury, 2008. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (p. 139-141). Also available via the World Wide Web.

No description available.

This dissertation attempts to bring clarity and certainty in respect of the regulation of the health and safety aspect within the Namibian mining Industry. At the moment, there is lack of legal clarity in Namibia as to which set of laws or regulations applies to the mining industry in so far as health and safety of employees within the extractive industry is concerned therefore making it difficult for the industry to comply or comprehend its legal obligations. The absence of legal clarity culminated into uncertainty over which state functionaries are entrusted with the responsibility to regulate the health and safety aspect of mining in Namibia. It is observed that the uncertainty which prevails in the Namibian mining industry as to which laws or regulations are applicable in respect of health and safety of employees at work is attributed to and aggravated by the misconception of the Ministry of Mines and Energy which fails comprehend its role due to lack of proper legal advice and thereby assuming status quo. This research has found that Ordinance 20 of 1968 and its regulations were repealed to the extent that it dealt with health and safety of employees on mines and consequently the regulations of 1968 do not find application in Namibia since 1 November 1992. This paper further reveals or identifies the Health and Safety Regulations on the Health and Safety of Employees at Work made under Labour Act 6 of 1992 as the applicable law in this regard notwithstanding the fact that the assignment of the administration of functions under the Health and Safety regulations, is vague and contributes to the uncertainty instead of ameliorating the situation. The ordinance continues to be implemented by the ministry as if it is still applicable and very little is actually implemented under the 2007 Labour Act. Therefore, one can clearly say that in the absence of a new regulatory regime which introduces substantial change, there is nothing to measure against unless the Labour Act Regulations are properly assigned with post assignment directives. / Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Public Law / LLM / Unrestricted