Six years after starting the banking union, the European Union has reiterated its members' commitment to “make further concrete progress on the Banking Union by the end of the year” (Donohoe 2020). EU officials are right not to let Covid-19 derail necessary debates over this objective. But the reinvigorated discussion has become increasingly confused when it comes to dealing with failed banks. There is a danger that the EU could cite experience with the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to make its already fragmented regime even more fragmented. That would be a mistake. A closer look at the FDIC model highlights the value of a unitary process for resolving all deposit-taking banks, no matter how large or small. © 2021. All Rights Reserved.
Economic models on voting usually assume that voters maximize their own material interests. Yet there is convincing evidence that people also tend to care about fairness and the common good. Furthermore, some voters may derive utility from the act of voting in a certain way, independent of whether their vote affects the actual outcome. To evaluate the importance of these motives, we studied voting in student referenda on whether to collectively purchase a public good, such as a regional train ticket. Most students voted in line with their pocketbook interests and reported that their own willingness to pay was more important in their vote choice than others’ willingness to pay.
The coronavirus crisis has caused severe economic, social and health disruptions worldwide. Children and young adults were among those who suffered most from the effects of the pandemic. Schoolchildren and students faced learning losses, and time spent on school activities dropped by about one-half. Likewise, apprentices and young adults in vocational training experienced learning losses due to school closures and reduced in-person training time. With declining enrollment rates in high school and college, the pandemic caused a major and unprecedented disruption in (higher) education. In many OECD countries, youth unemployment increased sharply, especially at the beginning of the pandemic. In addition to all that, mental health deteriorated within the younger population. This shows us how important it is to learn from these negative consequences for a large part of the population and to ensure in the future that no one is left behind in times of crisis. © 2021
