Books by Richard Woodward
"The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is one of the least written ab... more "The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is one of the least written about and least understood of our major global institutions. This book builds a well-rounded understanding of this crucial, though often neglected, institution, with a range of clearly written chapters that:
◦outline its origins and evolution, bringing its story fully up-to-date
◦present a clear framework for understanding the OECD
◦set the institution within the broader context of global governance
◦outline key criticisms and debates
◦evaluate its future prospects.
Given the immense challenges facing humanity at the start of the 21st century, the need for the OECD as a venue where the world’s leading states can discuss, on an informal and ongoing basis, the conundrums of globalization has never been greater. The clarity and rigour of these chapters cut through the layers of misunderstanding and misconception that surround the OECD, often dismissed as a ‘rich-man’s club’, ‘a think-tank’ and ‘a consultative forum’. This book dismantles these labels to provide a holistic understanding of the organization."
"Money, finance and credit are literally the lifeblood of the modern economy. The distribution of... more "Money, finance and credit are literally the lifeblood of the modern economy. The distribution of money and credit are essential to productive investment in trade and industry, to the maintenance of consumer purchasing power and demand, to individuals' social status and standard of living, and ultimately to public order.
This volume provides a wide ranging discussion of both the potential and the problems arising from the application of the multi-level governance literature to the monetary and financial domain. The contributors achieve this through a range of case studies and conceptual discussions of the issues raised by financial and monetary governance, acknowledging that multi-level governance has to take the form of a framework, which recognizes a fluid range of scales, and the significance of non-formal institutional and or social nodes of authority.
Drawing on a range of disciplines such as, economics, politics, IR, geography and sociology/ social anthropology this book demonstrates how International Political Economy can continue to evolve as an inter-discipline, and also how such inter-disciplinarity is a necessity for a well rounded understanding of money and finance."
Papers by Richard Woodward
British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 2022
Selective industrial policy in the UK is conventionally believed to have vanished prior to the gl... more Selective industrial policy in the UK is conventionally believed to have vanished prior to the global financial crisis. This article, in contrast, argues that industrial policy remained an intrinsic, if seldom acknowledged, element of neoliberal statecraft. The basis of this is a subterfuge, conceptualised here as a 'dual industrial policy', which we explore via an empirical focus on the Thatcher governments. Throughout this time actions explicitly endorsed by governments as industrial policy generally corresponded with neoliberalism's hostility to intervention. These actions conveniently distracted attention from a second set of policies which, although never codified by government as industrial policy, were intended to affect the allocation of resources between economic activity. Analysis of official government publications and expenditure reveals that industrial policy expenditure under Thatcher was far higher than customarily reported. The UK's approach has important implications for debates about neoliberal resilience, especially neoliberalism's capacity to conscript apparently contradictory ideas.
British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 2020
Sport is widely acknowledged as an important contributor to the UK’s soft power resources. This a... more Sport is widely acknowledged as an important contributor to the UK’s soft power resources. This article aims to broaden and deepen our understanding of sport and soft power in the UK through a case study of British expeditions to, and the eventual conquest of, Mount Everest. Based on original archival research, the article demonstrates that British state institutions intervened systematically and strategically to expedite, and massage the story of, the ascent of Everest to burnish British prestige and present a favourable image to the world. In doing so, the article provides evidence that sport has been intrinsic to the UK’s diplomatic repertoire and soft power assets for considerably longer than existing accounts discern. Moreover, the Everest case offers important cues for contemporary policymakers. In particular, it demonstrates the need for the UK to project a clear, credible and consistent image if it is to profit from its soft power resources.
The Political Quarterly
Upon becoming Prime Minister, Theresa May installed industrial strategy as one of the principal p... more Upon becoming Prime Minister, Theresa May installed industrial strategy as one of the principal planks of her economic policy. May’s embrace of industrial strategy, with its tacit acceptance of a positive role for the state in steering and coordinating economic activity, initially appears to be a decisive break with an era dating back to Margaret Thatcher in which government intervention was regarded as heresy. Whilst there are doubtless novel features, this article argues that continuity is the overriding theme of May’s industrial strategy. First, despite their reluctance to confess it, like every UK government over the past 40 years May is proposing to intervene selectively to ‘pick winners’. Moreover, the strategy envisages extending assistance to industries in receipt of substantial government resources since the 1970s. Likewise, the backing anticipated for industries identified in May’s strategy is dwarfed by those that are not, most notably the financial services sector. Far from radically rebalancing the structure of the UK economy May’s strategy seems destined to entrench the deindustrialisation with which its governments have grappled for almost a century.
The UK’s ongoing political turbulence has prompted a reprise of debates from the 1970s when many ... more The UK’s ongoing political turbulence has prompted a reprise of debates from the 1970s when many concluded the country was ungovernable. Then the most influential diagnosis conceptualised the UK’s governance problem as one of ‘overloading’ caused by the electorate’s excessive expectations. This article argues that these accounts overlooked another phenomena besieging UK governance during this period. This phenomena was freeloading, the withering of government capacity deriving from the ability of actors to enjoy the benefits of citizenship without altogether contributing to the cost. In the interim these problems have become endemic, not least because of the unspoken but discernible policy of successive governments to turn the UK into a tax haven. High profile scandals involving prominent individuals and corporations plus the ongoing failure to clampdown on them have reinforced the perception that the UK’s political system is geared towards the rich and the powerful at the expense of the marginalised majority.
Since the global financial crisis offshore finance centres (OFCs) have been faced with unpreceden... more Since the global financial crisis offshore finance centres (OFCs) have been faced with unprecedented and unremitting pressure from leading states, international organisations and civil society organisations to enhance the transparency of their tax regimes. Superficially the age of austerity, characterised by large and sustained public deficits and popular revulsion against multinational corporations and rich individuals abusing the tax system, appear to have vaporised the obstacles that previously stood in the way of attempts to deliver a robust global tax transparency regime. The G20s pledge to ‘end the era of banking secrecy’ and the OECD’s boast of orchestrating a ‘revolution’ a global tax transparency prompted excited talk of the ‘end of offshore’. Unfortunately this is considerably at odds with the empirical evidence which has seen OFCs continue to thrive in the era of austerity. This paper will seek to argue that the origins of the offshore financial system lie in demands by leading states, international financial institutions and corporate actors for instruments to manage the instabilities and contradictions intrinsic to the neo-liberal economic project. The resilience of offshore financial centres and tax havens reflects responses to the financial crisis, of which austerity is an integral part, that have perpetuated the neo-liberal model. Although many leading actors have made a rhetorical commitment to a clampdown the reality is that offshore financial instruments are central to the delivery of the austerity policies to which they are likewise pledged. The paper therefore predicts that offshore finance will continue to flourish in the age of austerity.
In April 2009, the G20 pledged to end ‘the era of banking secrecy’. A few short months later Ange... more In April 2009, the G20 pledged to end ‘the era of banking secrecy’. A few short months later Angel Gurria, the OECD Secretary General, boasted of the organisation orchestrating just such a ‘revolution’ in global tax transparency. This and a series of similarly upbeat comments subsequently with accounts variously deriding the initiative as ‘futile’,’ a sham’ and ‘a sad joke’ whose ‘creeping futility’ has served only to legitimise tax avoidance. Many accounts suggest that these problems derive from the OECD’s inability (or unwillingness) to develop a standard requiring automatic information exchange. This paper argues that while automatic information exchange is vital if the OECD regime is ever to clampdown on tax avoidance it will be pointless unless it also addresses the problem of ‘mock compliance’, whereby states pursue the form but not the substance of compliance, that has plagued the initiative throughout. For example, in previous iterations of the regime states the OECD regarded as compliant providing they had provided the necessary legislative framework for information exchange but did not investigate whether such frameworks were effectively implemented. The OECD has sought to eradicate this problem with a new enhanced peer review system which more thoroughly examines a jurisidiction’s ability to collect the necessary information and to exchange it upon request. Over 110 jurisdictions now participate in the OECD’s Global Forum signifying that states, including many without significant financial centres, seem to have arrived at the conclusion that the material or reputational costs flowing from outright defiance of the OECD far exceed the benefits. Nevertheless, full compliance of the OECD would entail greater costs, especially amongst powerful domestic interests upon whom those costs disproportionately fall. The paper argues that the OECD’s enhanced peer review mechanism does not sufficiently raise the costs of non-compliance (mainly because it cannot ascertain levels of compliance with any certainty) and that states will continue to engage in mock compliance to appease powerful domestic concerns.
Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis, Nov 2013
The importance of international organizations to the development and diffusion of international p... more The importance of international organizations to the development and diffusion of international policy norms is widely recognised but is increasingly tempered by an appreciation of the pathologies of policy transfer. Using a case study of the OECD’s campaign to promote transparency in global tax affairs this paper identifies a new and relatively distinctive form of dysfunctional policy transfer. Specifically we argue that international organizations face bureaucratic incentives to promote weak or lowest common denominator standards in order to maximize their prospects of brokering successful international agreements. However the paper also notes that while international organizations may have a short term interest in promoting weak standards, their longer term legitimacy is often tied to the effectiveness of the standards they promote. We argue that this dynamic often leads to incremental policy change
Published in S.Hoque & S.Clarke (eds.) Debating a Post-American World: What Lies Ahead? (Routledge, 2012), Jan 2012
Commentaries on the financial meltdown that began with Lehman Brothers’ collapse in September 200... more Commentaries on the financial meltdown that began with Lehman Brothers’ collapse in September 2008 trace its origins to greedy bankers exploiting lax regulatory practices to take excessive risks through exotic and arcane financial instruments. While not wishing to demur from this analysis this chapter takes issue with the frequent failure to acknowledge that this has come about as a consequence of the (mis)application of state power over the past 50 years (see Helleiner 1994). Starting with the tacit support for the development of the Euromarkets in the 1960s and culminating with the responses to the turmoil of 2008-2010 the chapter describes how and why states, when confronted with a choice of restraining or liberalising markets, have invariably plumped for the latter simultaneously cultivating the ideal conditions for the propagation of financial crises and undermining their capacity to cope with the consequences. Much of this is accounted for by states pursuing national interests, in particular funding deficits and extending the competitiveness of financial services industries, but it also reflects the faith amongst financial policymaking elites in the perspicacity of markets presented by neo-classical and neo-Austrian economic paradigms which insist the state confine itself to the alleviation of market failures. Even ardent proponents accept these ideas have been badly tarnished by the present financial imbroglio. Nevertheless, proposals enumerating a greater role for the state have been quietly junked in favour of ‘market friendly’ reforms. It is argued that the reluctance to dispute these ideas will perpetuate or even exacerbate the problems they seek to address. Here a broader role for the state will be advocated rooted in a political vision which does not assert that the world is composed of self-interested, atomistic individuals and firms motivated solely by profit. In contrast to Hayekian models postulating markets as a discovery process for entrepreneurs to innovate in pursuit of profit and their private good the chapter argues that the democratic process, including at the level of international and global governance, can and should be a discovery process for innovations in pursuit of public goods, not least global financial stability.
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development is a vital, if frequently unnoticed, co... more The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development is a vital, if frequently unnoticed, cog in the machine of global governance. On the organisation’s 50th anniversary this article assesses whether the OECD’s reform programme can secure its future in a changing world.
This chapter sketches the OECD’s role in economic governance, in particular the pursuit of its ob... more This chapter sketches the OECD’s role in economic governance, in particular the pursuit of its obligation to promote policies to maximise economic growth. While the OECD’s work in the economic field evolves its mechanisms of economic governance have barely altered. It is argued that through the use of the soft law mechanisms at its disposal such as surveillance and peer review the OECD exerts a “subtle discipline” over the trajectory of economic governance. These mechanisms can sponsor convergence in national policies and, on occasion, outbreaks of international policy coordination. Ultimately, however, the organization’s impact is conditioned by external actors and internal dynamics. The proliferation of international mechanisms of governance and the internal politics of the OECD may be diluting the its ability to shape the contours of international economic policymaking.
Unlike some of its counterparts, the OECD can claim a relatively enlightened approach to its deal... more Unlike some of its counterparts, the OECD can claim a relatively enlightened approach to its dealings with civil society organisations. Indeed almost from the outset the OECD had formalised arrangements for consulting business groups and trades unions through the Business and Industry Advisory Committee (BIAC) and the Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC). The first half of this chapter examines the relationship between the OECD, BIAC and TUAC. It begins by sketching the role, composition and evolution of BIAC and TUAC before going on to examine the extent of their influence in the OECD. In addition, it will ask if the influence of BIAC has waxed and TUAC waned with the shifting ideological contours of global governance. The second half of the chapter addresses more recent developments in OECD-civil society relations. The failure of the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) in 1998, which some commentators ascribe to the OECD’s inability to effectively integrate civil society groups into the policy making process, convinced the Secretary General of the OECD, Donald Johnston, that action was required. Since then the OECD has overhauled its relationship with civil society groups through increased informal contacts, regular consultations, and joint analytical work and, more rarely, inviting civil society groups to help monitor the implementation of OECD recommendations. In addition, the OECD has launched its Annual Forum where politicians, international bureaucrats, business leaders, and representative of non-governmental organisations can meet to exchange information, ideas and contribute to better policy making. The chapter argues that the Annual Forum has a number of shortcomings and that the OECD has some way to go if it is to assuage the problems that led to the failure of MAI.
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Books by Richard Woodward
◦outline its origins and evolution, bringing its story fully up-to-date
◦present a clear framework for understanding the OECD
◦set the institution within the broader context of global governance
◦outline key criticisms and debates
◦evaluate its future prospects.
Given the immense challenges facing humanity at the start of the 21st century, the need for the OECD as a venue where the world’s leading states can discuss, on an informal and ongoing basis, the conundrums of globalization has never been greater. The clarity and rigour of these chapters cut through the layers of misunderstanding and misconception that surround the OECD, often dismissed as a ‘rich-man’s club’, ‘a think-tank’ and ‘a consultative forum’. This book dismantles these labels to provide a holistic understanding of the organization."
This volume provides a wide ranging discussion of both the potential and the problems arising from the application of the multi-level governance literature to the monetary and financial domain. The contributors achieve this through a range of case studies and conceptual discussions of the issues raised by financial and monetary governance, acknowledging that multi-level governance has to take the form of a framework, which recognizes a fluid range of scales, and the significance of non-formal institutional and or social nodes of authority.
Drawing on a range of disciplines such as, economics, politics, IR, geography and sociology/ social anthropology this book demonstrates how International Political Economy can continue to evolve as an inter-discipline, and also how such inter-disciplinarity is a necessity for a well rounded understanding of money and finance."
Papers by Richard Woodward
◦outline its origins and evolution, bringing its story fully up-to-date
◦present a clear framework for understanding the OECD
◦set the institution within the broader context of global governance
◦outline key criticisms and debates
◦evaluate its future prospects.
Given the immense challenges facing humanity at the start of the 21st century, the need for the OECD as a venue where the world’s leading states can discuss, on an informal and ongoing basis, the conundrums of globalization has never been greater. The clarity and rigour of these chapters cut through the layers of misunderstanding and misconception that surround the OECD, often dismissed as a ‘rich-man’s club’, ‘a think-tank’ and ‘a consultative forum’. This book dismantles these labels to provide a holistic understanding of the organization."
This volume provides a wide ranging discussion of both the potential and the problems arising from the application of the multi-level governance literature to the monetary and financial domain. The contributors achieve this through a range of case studies and conceptual discussions of the issues raised by financial and monetary governance, acknowledging that multi-level governance has to take the form of a framework, which recognizes a fluid range of scales, and the significance of non-formal institutional and or social nodes of authority.
Drawing on a range of disciplines such as, economics, politics, IR, geography and sociology/ social anthropology this book demonstrates how International Political Economy can continue to evolve as an inter-discipline, and also how such inter-disciplinarity is a necessity for a well rounded understanding of money and finance."
harmful tax competition will affect small island economies with offshore financial centres (OFCs). It argues that although there are legitimate concerns about the initiatives, the likelihood that small island OFCs will disappear is remote. A confluence of factors have forced the EU and OECD to dilute their original proposals to the extent that while some marginal OFCs may be driven out of existence, more sophisticated OFCs will be unharmed and may even benefit from this supposed regulatory offensive.