The determinants of YIc's R&D activity

This paper examines the determinants of young innovative companies’ (YICs) R&D activities taking into account the autoregressive nature of innovation. Using a large longitudinal dataset comprising Spanish manufacturing firms over the period 1990-2008, we find that previous R&D experience is a fundamental determinant for mature and young firms, albeit to a smaller extent in the case of the YICs, suggesting that their innovation behaviour is less persistent and more erratic. Moreover, our results suggest that firm and market characteristics play a distinct role in boosting the innovation activity of firms of different age. In particular, while market concentration and the degree of product diversification are found to be important in boosting R&D activities in the sub-sample of mature firms only, YICs’ spending on R&D appears to be more sensitive to demand-pull variables, suggesting the presence of credit constraints. These results have been obtained using a recently proposed dynamic type-2 tobit estimator, which accounts for individual effects and efficiently handles the initial conditions problem.

IPH response to DHSSPS and Food Standards Agency (NI) Front of Pack Labelling consultation

From 2016, it will be mandatory for most pre-packed food to carry nutrition labelling.  This provides an opportunity to review the provision of additional nutrition labelling that is provided voluntarily on the front of packs.  The Governments across the UK are committed to the provision of nutritional information to help consumers make better informed food choices. Key points from IPH response Obesity and related chronic conditions are already very prevalent and are expected to increase over the next decade, placing greater financial burden on health care services. Helping consumers to make informed choices about their diet is an important aspect of tackling obesity. Providing clear consistent and easy to understand front of pack (FoP) nutrition information is important in helping consumers to make healthy choices. IPH would support FoP nutrition information using the traffic light labelling scheme and High/Medium/Low text. FoP nutrition labelling should be supported by a public information campaign to educate consumers about portion sizes and recommended daily intakes of fat, sugar and salt. IPH would support a nutrition labelling approach which empowers and enables consumers to take responsibility for their own health through informed dietary choices. The FoP traffic light labelling scheme has the potential to encourage healthier product formulation as manufacturers pursue market share. This in turn would contribute to wider availability of healthier products.

Market-Based Instruments for ecosystem services: institutional innovation or renovation?

Recent years have seen widespread experimentation with market-based instruments (MBIs) for the provision of environmental goods and ecosystem services. However, little attention has been paid to their design or to the effects of the underlying pro-market narrative on environmental policy instruments. The purpose of this article is to analyze the emergence and dissemination of the term "market-based instruments" applied to the provision of environmental services and to assess to what extent the instruments associated are genuinely innovative. The recommendation to develop markets can lead in practice to a variety of institutional forms, as we show it based on the example of payments for environmental services (PES) and biodiversity offsets, two very different mechanisms that are both presented in the literature as MBIs. Our purpose is to highlight the gap between discourse and practice in connection with MBIs.

Innovation or Imitation? The effect of spillovers and competitive pressure on firms' R&D strategy choice

This article provides a theoretical and empirical analysis of a firm's optimal R&D strategy choice. In this paper a firm's R&D strategy is assumed to be endogenous and allowed to depend on both internal firms. characteristics and external factors. Firms choose between two strategies, either they engage in R&D or abstain from own R&D and imitate the outcomes of innovators. In the theoretical model this yields three types of equilibria in which either all firms innovate, some firms innovate and others imitate, or no firm innovates. Firms'equilibrium strategies crucially depend on external factors. We find that the efficiency of intellectual property rights protection positively affects firms'incentives to engage in R&D, while competitive pressure has a negative effect. In addition, smaller firms are found to be more likely to become imitators when the product is homogeneous and the level of spillovers is high. These results are supported by empirical evidence for German .rms from manufacturing and services sectors. Regarding social welfare our results indicate that strengthening intellectual property protection can have an ambiguous effect. In markets characterized by a high rate of innovation a reduction of intellectual property rights protection can discourage innovative performance substantially. However, a reduction of patent protection can also increase social welfare because it may induce imitation. This indicates that policy issues such as the optimal length and breadth of patent protection cannot be resolved without taking into account specific market and firm characteristics. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: C35, D43, L13, L22, O31. Keywords: Innovation; imitation; spillovers; product differentiation; market competition; intellectual property rights protection.

Response to the Office of Fair Trading on the Care Home Market (PDF 36 KB)

Response to the Office of Fair Trading on the Care Home Market

Quantitative analysis of image factors in a cultural heritage tourist destination

The tourism consumer’s purchase decision process is, to a great extent, conditioned by the image the tourist has of the different destinations that make up his or her choice set. In a highly competitive international tourist market, those responsible for destinations’ promotion and development policies seek differentiation strategies so that they may position the destinations in the most suitable market segments for their product in order to improve their attractiveness to visitors and increase or consolidate the economic benefits that tourism activity generates in their territory. To this end, the main objective we set ourselves in this paper is the empirical analysis of the factors that determine the image formation of Tarragona city as a cultural heritage destination. Without a doubt, UNESCO’s declaration of Tarragona’s artistic and monumental legacies as World Heritage site in the year 2000 meant important international recognition of the quality of the cultural and patrimonial elements offered by the city to the visitors who choose it as a tourist destination. It also represents a strategic opportunity to boost the city’s promotion of tourism and its consolidation as a unique destination given its cultural and patrimonial characteristics. Our work is based on the use of structured and unstructured techniques to identify the factors that determine Tarragona’s tourist destination image and that have a decisive influence on visitors’ process of choice of destination. In addition to being able to ascertain Tarragona’s global tourist image, we consider that the heterogeneity of its visitors requires a more detailed study that enables us to segment visitor typology. We consider that the information provided by these results may prove of great interest to those responsible for local tourism policy, both when designing products and when promoting the destination.

Current and Future Supply and Demand Conditions in the Labour Market for Certain Professional Therapists

This report aims to provide a comprehensive quantitative assessment of the situation. The three categories of professionals covered are Chartered Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, and Speech and Language Therapists Download the Report here

Predation Potential of the Water Bugs Sphaerodema rusticum on the Sewage Snails Physa acuta

The sewage snail Physa acuta is a serious threat to certain economic plants and to the purification plant of sewage works by rendering the biofilters ineffective. Various attempts are being made to control it. The efficacy of the predacious water bugs Sphaerodema rusticum was judged experimentally, in the laboratory in the potential control of P. acuta. It is revealed that, when supplied separately, the first, second and third instar and the adult S. rusticum did not attack P. acuta belonging to 3.1-8 mm, 5.1-8 mm, 7.1-8 mm and <= 3 mm size classes respectively. In the remaining trials predation rate varied from zero to eight (average 2.3) individuals per predator per day. In experiments with P. acuta belonging to all the size classes supplied together, none, except the first instar S. rusticum, attacked the prey individuals belonging to the lowest (<= 3 mm) size class. The first and second instar S. rusticum, in both trials did not attack P. acuta larger than 4 mm and 5 mm in shell length respectively. The water bugs belonging to the third, fourth, fifth instar and adult stages though preyed upon P. acuta with 3.1-8 mm shell length. The average rate of predation by a single S. rusticum varied from 0.14-3.08 individuals per day depending upon the size of P. acuta and the stage of S. rusticum. A single S. rusticum, irrespective of instar and adult stages, destroyed on average 4.16 P. acuta daily irrespective of sizes. It is estimated that one S. rusticum could destroy 1,360 P. acuta in its life time. The results clearly indicate that the water bug S. rusticum may be used to control the snails P. acuta.

Dynamic product diversity

The goal of this paper is to study the frequency of new product introductions in monopoly markets where demand is subject to transitory saturation. We focus on those types of goods for which consumers purchase at most one unit of each variety, but repeat purchases in the same product category. The model considers infinitely-lived, forward-looking consumers and firms. We show that the share of potential surplus that a monopolist is able to appropriate increases with the frequency of introduction of new products and the intensity of transitory saturation. If the latter is sufficiently strong then the rate of introduction of new products is higher than socially desirable (excessive dynamic product diversity.)

Larval dispersal and predation in experimental populations of Chrysomya albiceps and Cochliomyia macellaria (Diptera: Calliphoridae)

In this study we investigated the larval dispersal associated with larval predation in experimental populations of Chrysomya albiceps and Cochliomyia macellaria. Frequency distribution of sampling units (G test) in the substrate was used to evaluate variation in larval dispersal. An experimental acrylic channel (1 x 0.1 x 0.2 m) covered with wood shavings was used to observe larval dispersal prior to pupation. The acrylic channel was graduated at 0.05 m intervals, each representing a sampling unit; hence, 20 sampling units were set up. A Petri dish containing third instar larvae of single and double species was deposited at one edge of the acrylic channel allowing larvae to disperse. The number of buried pupae (0, 1, 2, …n) present in each sampling unit was recorded. For double species, the number of recovered larvae of C. albiceps was similar to the number initially released on the dish Petri. On the other hand, the number of recovered larvae of C. macellaria was significantly smaller than the initially released number. The results show that C. albiceps attacks C. macellaria larvae during the larval dispersal process. The larval distribution of C. albiceps did not differ significantly from C. macellaria in double species, but it differed significantly in single species. The larval aggregation level of C. macellaria decreased when C. albiceps was present and the larval aggregation level of C. albiceps increased when C. macellaria was present. The implications of such findings for the population dynamics of these species are discussed.

Review of Measures to Reduce Costs in the Private Health Insurance Market 2013

Independent Report to the Minister for Health and Health Insurance Council Click here to download PDF 179KB  

Review of Measures to Reduce Costs in the Private Health Insurance Market 2013

This report was prepared independently by Mr McLoughlin with the insurers support, for consideration by the Minister for Health and the insurers.  All parties were very conscious of the importance of respecting competition law when dealing with issues such as prices and costs. The Phase 1 report contains 32 recommendations under 9 headings as follows: Most of the recommendations in the Phase 1 report could be implemented on an administrative basis, while a small number, if adopted, would require legislation. Some of the key recommendations to drive down costs are can be summarised as follows: Controlling costs in private health insurance Care settings and use of resources Age structure of the market Clinical audit and utilisation management Industry approach to private psychiatry Fraud, waste and abuse Chronic disease management Claims processing Admission and discharge procedures and processes. Most of the recommendations in the Phase 1 report could be implemented on an administrative basis, while a small number, if adopted, would require legislation.

Report to the Minister for Health and Children on Risk Equalisation in the Irish Private Health Insurance Market

Provision for risk equalisation was first made in the Health Insurance Act, 1994, section 12 of which empowered the Minister to prescribe a scheme for risk equalisation. A Risk Equalsiation Scheme was introduced in 2003. In December 2005, the Minister decided, on the Authorityâ?Ts recommendation, which referred to risks now materialising, to commence risk equalisation payments under the Scheme as from 1 January 2006, but in the event the relevant legislation was overturned by the Courts in 2008. Download document here

Review of Measures to Reduce Costs in the Private Health Insurance Market 2014

5.11.2014 This report was prepared independently by Mr McLoughlin with the support of the health insurers, and the Health Insurance Authority, for consideration by the Minister for Health and the insurers.  All parties were very conscious of the importance of respecting competition law when dealing with issues such as prices and costs. The work of the Group has been conducted in two phases, with the first phase report published on 26 December 2013. The Phase 1 report sets out the context, establishment, membership and terms of reference for both phases of the Groups work.  The report also outlines the legislative provisions for private health insurance in Ireland, the objectives of both phases of the review and the approach and methodology followed. Phase 2 of the process focused on the compilation and analysis by the Health Insurance Authority (HIA) of claims data to assess the cost drivers for health insurance, the effects of medical technology and innovations on costs, and claims processing issues.The report and submissions from relevant stakeholders which were examined and considered under the Phase 2 Review can be downloaded below. Download the Review of Measures to Reduce Costs in the Private Health Insurance Market 2014 -  Independent Report to the Minister for Health and Health Insurance Council here. Submissions received HSE Submission to Pat McLoughlin, Chair of Review Group IHAI submission 11 April 2014 IHCA submission to Chair 1 May 2014 Insurance Ireland submission Society of Actuaries in Ireland submission St. Patricks Mental Health Services submission April 2014 St John of Gods Submission