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Liberalization-Privatization Paths: Policies and Politics

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  • Filippo Belloc
  • Antonio Nicita

Abstract

We empirically investigate the political determinants of deregulation policies in six network industries of 30 OECD countries over 1975-2007. We unbundle privatization and liberalization and propose an econometric study in which we allow for the joint adoption of the two policies by governments. We find, contrary to conventional wisdom, that right-wing executives tend to privatize more and to liberalize less, relative to left-wing governments. Thus, we show that ideological cleavages affect the ‘structure’ of deregulation, i.e. the way in which liberalization and privatization are combined. This result may shed new lights on the analysis of the political determinants of market-oriented policy, and suggest new issues for further theoretical and empirical research

Suggested Citation

  • Filippo Belloc & Antonio Nicita, 2011. "Liberalization-Privatization Paths: Policies and Politics," Department of Economics University of Siena 609, Department of Economics, University of Siena.
    • Handle: RePEc:usi:wpaper:609
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    Cited by:

    1. Filippo Belloc & Antonio Nicita & Pier Luigi Parcu, 2011. "Deregulating Telecommunications in Europe: Timing, Path-Dependency, and Institutional Complementarities," RSCAS Working Papers 2011/47, European University Institute.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Liberalization; Privatization; Network Industries; Partisanship.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • L50 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - General
    • P16 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Capitalist Institutions; Welfare State
    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models

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