2004GIR Government Business Relations, T3/2021

Final Exam

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PART A – SHORT ANSWERS (25 points)

Answer all five short answer questions. Each answer is worth a maximum of 5 points. Answers should be 80-100 words long. Use proper citation for verbatim quotes and for paraphrased passages. Add your reference list at the end. This doesn’t count towards the word limit.

Q 1Why are constitutions important for government business relations?

The constitution plays a vital role for the relationship between government and business as it spells out their relationship, including the regulatory environment, the extent of participation, and the rights accorded to entities in a business environment. The constitution lays down the role of the government as a regulatory body and the rights of individuals in business in relation to the law and the entire environment. By spelling out the rights and expectations of each entity, the constitution gives the government powers while monitoring how it is used in the larger scheme of things.

Q 2What economic policy ideas dominated the period after the second world war?

After World War II, the Keynesian economic policy dominated other schools of thought. The popular belief at the time was that free markets could inevitably create full employment. The Keynesian economics challenged this belief. The idea that aggregate demand would be the most essential driving factor in a given economy was the central tenet of the Keynesian economic theory. Free markets, according to Keynesian economics, do not contain self regulating and balancing steps that contribute to the ultimate aim, that is, full employment. Therefore, government participation is justified by public strategies that aim to achieve the stability of prices and full employment both in the short and long term.

Q 3What are some of the key differences between the developmental and the adversarial models of government business relations (GBR)?

A developmental model of GSR takes on a positive part for the state. It also takes on a cooperative stance, creating a partnership between businesses and governments. The 3 main actors include political parties (entities), businesses, and the bureaucratic process. An example of such includes Japan. In the adversarial model, a regulatory environment is shaped by government involvement. The basic framework of operation is set by the government with rules and an indirect working relationship involving regulatory mechanisms. Businesses do not get everything they need and the relationship with government is adversarial with regular combative interactions. An example of such a model includes the United States.

Q 4Is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) sufficient to solve environmental problems?

CSR and related activities aim to minimize the many damaging effects that business processes have on the environment. However, CSR activities are not sufficient to solve every environmental issue. By focusing on recycling, water usage, energy use, emissions, and waste management, businesses are able to contribute towards a reduction of the damaging impacts. Despite being insufficient, the acceptance of social responsibility has a good impact on pollution prevention, and this result indicates that the said adoption of CSR will help to push the agenda for a more environment-focused future.

Q 5Have indigenous peoples benefitted from globalisation?

Globalization has proven detrimental to Indigenous Peoples. Native principles are particularly susceptible to cultural harm due to the globalization of culture. This is partially due to the fact that Aboriginal populations have deficiency of the requisite power and impact to protect the traditional practices and territory from those with more power and influence. Their lands are regularly taken away for resource extraction, wreaking havoc on traditional ways of life and pushing many indigenous people to relocate to metropolitan areas in search of work. They are required adapt to, and in some cases even replicate, the habits of dominant cultural groups.

PART B- ESSAY (25 points)

Answer one (1) of the following three questions. Your answer should be 400-500 words long. Use proper citation for verbatim quotes and for paraphrased passages. Add your reference list at the end. This doesn’t count towards the word limit.

ANSWER ONE (1) QUESTION

Do you agree that the positives of neo-liberalism outweigh the negatives? Discuss using examples to support your argument.

Neoliberal economics is a word used to define free market economics. People who support neoliberal policies including deregulating prices, free trade, denationalization, smaller forms of government, and adaptable labour market have the same economic ideology as liberalism. In recent years, neoliberalism has been associated with austerity measures and a reduction in government expenditure on social programs in order to reduce the size of the federal government. The EU’s actions in Greece may be used as a textbook illustration of how neoliberalism operates in the modern world. As part of the EU’s reaction to Greece’s financial crisis, the nation was required to undertake significant adjustments in return for a “bailout.” Changes in taxes and expenditure are part of a strategy to bring the federal budget back into balance. Clearly, the disadvantages outweigh the positives in neo-liberalism.

In the domains of economics and social sciences, neoliberalism is a new policy concept. That is, environmental control will be transferred from the government to the private sector. In this country, there are no regulations governing how the environment is governed. Conservative and libertarian economic policies are diametrically opposed. Liberals aim to liberate the economy by removing growth hurdles, whilst conservatives prefer to let the economy run its own course. According to this viewpoint, neoliberalism has a lot of potential to enhance the economy since it prioritizes private ownership, free markets, stable exchange rates, and the expansion of the tax revenue base. One of the finest aspects of neoliberalism is that it does not put nations at risk of recession. As a consequence, firms and manufacturers may offer their products to more nations and enterprises, resulting in higher revenues for everyone involved.

Supporting free markets in sectors such as health and education is incorrect because they are non-profit services. The free market does not operate properly since it ignores and disregards aspects including the education and health sectors in an economy. If a country adopts a free market strategy, it may to increases in the inequalities and underfunding of the most critical institutions in a country for the long-standing monetary progress.

Over the last few decades, neoliberal policies have resulted in rising wealth and income disparities. For example, countries in the world have seen less government involvement in social activities and embraced the concept of free trade leading to more privatization and economic progress. Consequently, competent individuals can earn more money, but low-skilled workers in flexible labour markets are more likely to have their salaries remain constant. Monopolies can produce more money for their owners by depriving customers of their products. There are firms that can keep salary increases under control.

One of the most crucial aspects of neoliberalism is that policies that work well in one place may not work well in another. If a country has the power to lower interest rates, for example, it will reduce the amount of money borrowed by the government. This would benefit the country (fiscal austerity). For example, residing in a nation with a low interest rate, such as Australia, the costs of austerity may well outweigh the advantages. Without an umbrella format that provides a guideline to countries, neoliberalism is essentially flawed and manipulative.