In Italy, too, partial reform was a likely culprit.

ECONOMIST: Why do the lights keep going out?

Mario Segni, who oversaw two successful referendums paving the way to partial electoral reform in the early 1990s, blamed Silvio Berlusconi, leader of the main opposition on the right, for being too tepid in support of change.

ECONOMIST: Italy��s reformers thwarted

The government has made inroads into some of Poland's worst problems, notably with a tough, if partial, pension reform.

ECONOMIST: Poland's strong economy