Have Long-Established Patterns of Protectionism Changed During this Crisis? A Sectoral Perspective
During the current sharp global economic downturn much has been made of the scale of government policy responses, whether it be monetary policy (e.g. "quantitative easing"), fiscal policy (e.g. "stimulus packages") or other forms of state interven- tion (including "bailouts"). Indeed it is often remarked that the reason the contemporary crisis has not descended into another Great Depression is precisely because of the scale of some government intervention. This observation, however, need not be as benign as it seems; after all, governments may find themselves under pressure to act from influential sectoral groups, such as company shareholders, employers, trade unions, and the environmental lobby.
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