Politická ekonomie, 2025 (vol. 73), issue 6
Articles
Sustainable Buildings and Subsidy Policy: Challenging the Energy Transition Context
Šárka Tomanová, Marian Piecha
Politická ekonomie 2025, 73(6):926-947 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1468 
Reduction in energy demand, application of circular economy principles and implementation of sustainable policies are the key pillars of sustainable development. Buildings and the construction sector are significant consumers of both energy and resources. Therefore, a crucial policy objective is to mediate investments in sustainable renovations to make buildings more energy-efficient, less water-reliant and constructed with less waste. The EU Taxonomy, the bible of sustainability, sets the technical criteria for defining sustainable investments. However, do the criteria introduce a new approach, or is it more of another European attempt to improve...
Politicians' Remuneration and Budgetary Behaviour in Czech Municipalities
Lukáš Hulínský
Politická ekonomie 2025, 73(6):948-966 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1472
This paper aims to bridge a gap in public finance research by investigating the impact of remuneration increases for local politicians on various budgetary indicators in Czech municipalities using the regression discontinuity design method. Building on prior studies from Italy and the Netherlands, this research examines how remuneration influences budgetary behaviour. Focusing on municipalities with populations ranging from 5 to 20 thousand inhabitants, divided by a threshold of 10 thousand, where remuneration increases occur automatically, the analysis reveals significant effects on budget allocations. Particularly notable are increases in current...
Public Debt and Economic Growth in the European Union: Lessons for Post-pandemic Period
Mihaela Simionescu
Politická ekonomie 2025, 73(6):967-985 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1467
Europe's public debt situation is likely to persist in the coming years. This study evaluates the impact of public debt on growth in the EU-27 countries. The analysis, using dynamic panel threshold models, reveals an indirect connection between debt and growth from 1995 to 2023. The research identifies an indirect effect of general and central debt on economic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic. While government effectiveness positively influences growth in the long run, this effect is not observed during the pandemic. To ensure the robustness of our findings, dynamic panel data models and mean group (MG) estimators are employed. The empirical results...
Inflation Persistence in Selected MENA Countries: What Has Changed Since the Advent of the Arab Spring?
Sidi Mohammed Chekouri, Abderrahim Chibi, Mohamed Benbouziane
Politická ekonomie 2025, 73(6):986-1014 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1469
This paper aims to empirically investigate the dynamic behaviour of inflation rates in four countries in the Middle East and North Africa (Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia) based on the assumption that inflation has become more persistent in the aftermath of the Arab Spring. The study analyses whether the inflation dynamics in these countries have exhibited any differences after the Arab Spring period. To do so, we conduct an analysis based on the quantile autoregressive (QAR) unit root approach for before and after the Arab Spring. Our findings indicate that the inflation rates in the studied MENA countries exhibit high persistence in the period...
Evaluation of Sustainable Economic Growth in Nordic Countries Based on the Ecological Growth Model
Yaşar Turna
Politická ekonomie 2025, 73(6):1015-1033 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1473
The structure of the consumer society that has emerged in the world since the 1950s has led to an increase in the impact of economic activities on the environment. Recently, the incidence rates of various diseases have increased, especially in Eastern Europe , owing to environmental pollution and degradation. Therefore, this study aims to explain the impact of economic activities on the environment in Nordic countries using an ecological growth model. This study analyses causality relationships based on data on economic growth, capital accumulation, employment level, energy consumption, carbon dioxide emissions, carbon dioxide emissions, renewable...
An Empirical Analysis of the Disproportionality Theory of Crisis: A Sraffian Approach to the Economic Crisis
Gunwoo Lee
Politická ekonomie 2025, 73(6):1034-1063 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1475
Sraffian economics posits that the production prices are uniquely determined within a specific production framework, serving as the benchmark for maintaining economic reproduction. This study aims to link deviations between Sraffian production prices and market prices to economic disproportionality and investigate these divergences to understand the business cycle. Using input-output matrices of the Korean economy, the study computes these deviations using the Steedman and Tomkins (1998) formula. It then assesses the impact of these price changes on economic activity. VAR methodology analysis shows that increasing deviation, indicating disproportionality,...
Effect of Private and Public Health Spending on Health Status: Market or Government Failure?
Sibel Toptaş, Nazmiye Tekdemir, Pelin Varol İyidoğan
Politická ekonomie 2025, 73(6):1064-1089 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.1474
On the one hand, government intervention in the functioning of the market is inevitable due to market failure reasons such as uncertainty, asymmetric information and externalities; on the other hand, a high share of government in health services may result in government failure on the respective market. To effectively sustain increasing health spendings, it is vital to determine the optimal level for private and public health spending that have a positive effect on the health market. From this point of view, the objective of our study is to empirically evaluate the impact of public and private health spendings on health outcomes for 33 OECD countries...