Effect of Fiscal Policies and Economics on Elections

Effect of Fiscal Policies and Economics on Elections With parliament officially dissolved and British politics moving into a strange period of last-ditch campaigning, gruelling television debates and outrageous publicity stunts (Nick Clegg driving his big yellow bus across the UK and George Osborne making a pizza). It is officially the general election period. Until the House of Commons reforms after May 7th, no member of the public has a representative in parliament. The role of an MP no longer exists. Whilst there are many issues voters take into considerations when deciding to vote, this essay will identify and comments on three economic issues most likely to influence the outcome of the upcoming general election. Furthermore, it will focus on the three main political parties: The Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats. One of the biggest deciders of general elections is the government’s fiscal policies. Fiscal policy involves the government adjusting the levels of taxation and government expenditure in order to influence the level of economic activity. The purpose of such economic tool is to encourage economic growth in a period of a recession, keep inflation low. Fiscal policy has a huge effect on the difference between what the government spends and what is generated. Is it spending more than it is receiving or receiving more than it is spending? In recent years, the government have spent a lot more than it receives. Last year the UKs current budget deficit was 5.5% of GDP, the largest annual deficit since the modern records began in 19481. The Conservatives have sworn to eliminate the deficit by 2018 and secure a budget surplus by 2019-20. They aim to achieve this goal by not increasing tax whilst continuing on their spending cuts. They will increase the point as which you start to pay income tax (income threshold) from  £10,500 to  £12,500, the higher tax rate, 40% would commence at  £50,000 instead of 41,900 and vowed that there will be no increases in VAT. Labour aims to reinstate the controversial 50p top rate of income tax for earnings over  £150,000 whilst reintroducing the 10p rate by scrapping the married couples’ Tax allowance in the bid to cut income tax for 24 million people. Like the conservatives, they have no plans to increase VAT or National Insurance contributions. It appears as if the Conservatives want to remind voters of Labour’s record of high borrowing in office, cautioning Mr Miliband’s spending plans would mean increased borrowing harming the economy. Meanwhile, this is refuted heavily by Labour who believes that the Conservative plans will signify a return to 1930s levels of public services, causing social harm. We may have to look to external events. Could the latest act of the Eurozone crisis – deflation, quantitative easing, and chaos in Greece – work in the Conservatives favour here? The second key economic issue is the unemployment rate. A person is categorised as unemployed if not only out of work, but also actively looking for work. There are two main measures of unemployment. One is based on a survey carried out by the office for National Statistics which shows the average number of people unemployed over a three-month period. This survey is conducted every month however a comparison takes place between separate three-month periods. The second measure is the use of claimant count supplied by the department for Work and Pensions showing the number of people receiving the Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) in a particular month. The figure obtained by first measure is higher than the claimant count as many job seekers do not or cannot claim JSA and a change in benefits rules may move people onto JSA from other benefits. When the international financial crisis hit, the unemployment rate was marginally over 5%2 However it increased to 2.5 million or 8% towards the end of 2009 peaking at almost 2.7 million at the end of 2011, the highest level for 17 years. Unemployment has since fallen to 1.86 million3. According to the ONS, the employment rate now stands at 73.3%, the highest rate recorded by the ONS since they began taking records in 1971. However, many of whom are in part-time work or in the rising zero-hour contract creating instability in people’s income leaving them worse off especially young people. The Conservatives have strongly vowed to introduce a ban on the zero hour contracts stopping people from taking jobs elsewhere as well as creating three million apprenticeships through benefit cuts such as withdrawing JSA from young people after sixth months unless they take part in community project. Meanwhile, labour vows to ban zero contracts as well as guaranteeing a job for the under 25s unemployed for over a year. Similarly with the conservatives, Labour aims to create many apprenticeships for young people. The Lib Dems have also chosen to focus on young The unemployment rate is definitely an economic indicator that voters follow very closely. Although current figures imply that the number of employed people has increased, however living in a city with one the world’s highest cost of living such as London on a part time contract paying minimum wage may look positive to the prime minister. However to the individual in question, this is a problem as you cannot sustain a stable life with such income particularly if you are based in London. Consequently, Labour’s policy of scrapping zero contracts is more likely to be favourable than the Conservations lacklustre effort to deal with this exploitative contract. The final key issue is the NHS. A BBC/Populus poll in January 2015 valued the NHS as the utmost significant issue among voter with many worrying about the decline of the health service. This highlights the government’s failure in providing the health service. The National Health Service has become an international trademark. However, in recent years its efficiency has plummeted drastically. The NHS in England has missed its four-hour AE wait target for the past three months (91.8% of patients were seen in four hours between January and March, below their target of 95%) This performance is their lowest level of performance for a decade3.In winter 2014; there were reports of treatment outside Croydon University Hospital due to overcrowding. The government’s involvement is this market is perhaps causing inefficiency and leading to the misallocation of scarce resources. How can this government failure be tackled? Which party is going to be able to rescue a national treasure ? The Liberal Democrats have pledged to spend an extra  £1bn for the NHS every year heavily focusing on mental health as it will be rewarded half. This is to be funded by making higher earners pay more tax on their share amongst other things. The Conservatives have been trying to avoid the subject as much as possible nonetheless they have also opted to increase its spending by putting an extra  £2bn across the UK with promises to ensure that everyone shall be able to see a GP seven days a week by 2020. Meanwhile Labour who introduced the institution in 1948 have a better relationship with the NHS will commit an extra  £2.5bn a year, with the money coming from three potential sources- the new mansion tax, recuperating money by clamping down on tax avoidance from big corporations and introducing a new tax on tobacco companies. All three main parties have chosen to increase their spending on the institution as a means of correcting this failure. However, is increased spending along going to increase efficiency. Providing more money could in fact cause whether inefficiency as the institution become complacent as they are aware that extra spending is a given. Nonetheless, the Conservative’s effort to avoid this issue is counter-productive as it is giving Labour an edge. However, Labour’s future spending plans are based on projected revenues. In other words, money which may possibly exist at some point in the future thus creating uncertainty. In conclusion, although all three economic issues are very significant, fiscal policy is the most impact and will be the decider. The question all voters will be asking themselves is â€Å"Who do they trust with the government’s money†? Do they trust a government that plans to restore the current budget deficit through further spending cuts? Do we trust a government that aims to achieve the same goal through increased spending? This is becoming as always a subjective judgement. Nonetheless, this general election is going to be the closest we have ever seen. I predict another coalition.

Economic Course Work Essay

The market demand (red line) for oil is highly inelastic, and a large change in price only has a small impact on demand for oil. In essence, you will not drive twice as fast because oil is cheaper, nor can you easily switch from using one type of fuel to another(petrol to diesel) just because its price has changed to be cheaper. The supply of oil is relatively inelastic. This is because investment in the production facilities leads to an increase in supply, but the cost of pumping out the oil is relatively the same (Hillier, 2005). It will cost an oil production facility roughly the same amount to produce at half or full capacity. Maintenance and repairs will only be done if the price of oil is high. In essence, we can say that a small change in the demand and supply curve causes a larger change in the clearing price of oil in Russia. As the cost if oil goes up, the Bus fares will increase as transporters will try to recover the remaining cost from the passenger, thus reducing the demand for buses. This in turn will lead to passengers demanding more of the train services which are not affected by the rise in oil price, thus the shift in the demand curve to the right. Indicating a demand for trains. During world the demand for oil was low, thus the downward shift of the demand curve from D1 to D2. This was a result of consumers looking for alternative sources of fuel energy, since the price for oil was high. Also during the recess, due to the recession, the price of oil went up, thus the upward shift of the supply curve from S1 to S2. The high prices led to more production, thus more supply to capitalize on the prevailing high market prices of oil. iv) Use a demand and supply diagram to show what happens to oil prices when the UK adopts energy efficiency measures and invests in wind and solar energy There will be less demand for oil from the British as they will look for alternative means for energy, thus the downward shift of the demand curve from D1 to D2. Thus further development in alternative energy resources means that there is spread of technology thus the equivalent point shifts to the left. v) What happens to oil prices if high economic growth continues in India and China. India and china are following the traditional economic growth path which requires huge oil production and use. Since the national resources are limited, large scale of imports are necessary. Larger demands, higher price, higher expectation to prices attracts speculators to buy more of the oil, which creates the bubble, higher prices of oil due to increased demand (Copeland et al, 2005). 2. Use demand and supply analysis consider what factors on the demand side and which on the supply side will influence oil prices over the next few years? (50 marks) Prospects in the world economy. The world populations is increasing daily, signaling an increase in the demand for oil to meet some of the basic life energy needs . It is estimated that the population of India and China will grow by 8. 4% and 10% respectively. This alone is a big market (demand) for oil (Market Avenue, 2008). Thus this will affect the price of oil, as the demand will increase, thus a rise in the price of oil. Technological development. The world oil supply will improve with new technologies being propagated everyday to ensure more but efficient production and distribution of oil to the markets. This will lead to more efficient and environmentally friendly oil facilities that will increase the supply of oil at a global level (Market Avenue, 2008). As a result, the price of oil will go up in proportion to the investments put in place to do the renovations and maintenances of the oil production facilities. Global economic political situation as with Iran nuclear issue, in as much as Iran has high reserves oil and gas, it is has a nuclear development programme that is looking at using nuclear technology as an alternative to oil and gas. This has prompted political debates impasse, and sanctions as regards the future of energy resources in the world. Reports by Market Avenue (2008) shows that this affects the price of oil in the sense that Iran has the second largest oil reservoir, next to Saudi Arabia, and thus have a greater control over how their international relations plays out with the world super powers and the OPEC to regulate the supply and price of oil. According to Biswajit et al (2007), alternatives to oil, there are increasing alternatives to oil as a source of energy. Many other alternatives like, solar, propane, nuclear energy, bio diesel, hydrogen, battery and ethanol. All these are alternatives to oil that have been proven to work. Even though their use is still small scale compared to oil, they are emerging as good alternatives oil use. This affects the future of oil use globally as they tend to be more environmentally friendly and cheaper than oil. 3. Describe the structure of the world motor car industry (25 marks) The first producer of a petrol engine driven car was Karl Benz, 1885 Mannheim Germany. Over the years many inventions and different models of cars have come. These include brand names such as Toyota, Hyundai, Range Rovers, Mercedes Benz, Nissan just to mention a few. Globally there are many producers of cars. For ease of reference they have been ranked by country. In the top ten we have China, Japan, USA, Germany, South Korea, Brazil, India, Spain, France, and Mexico respectively. The top ten brand names include Toyota, General Motors, Volkswagen, Ford, Hyundai, PSA, Honda, Nissan, Fiat and Suzuki. This is relation to the number if volumes of vehicles the produced in 2009. Depending on the regions, various cars manufacturers have a specific share in the markets in which they operate in. Example is that Thailand is today, already the second largest globally, pick-up truck market after the U. S. and is ASEAN’s largest automotive market and assembler. In her report, Global Automobile Industry: Changing with Times , Chithra Gopal R. S. , M. Sc (Agri), says that in Thailand today all leading Japanese car producers as well as BMW, Mercedes Benz, General Motors, Ford, Volvo and Peugeot assemble cars along with their legions of suppliers. The country has become the main production base for auto- mobile exports in South East Asia. One of the biggest foreign producers located in Thailand is Toyota with a production totaling more than 300,000 vehicles a year and the number is having an upward trend. General Motors (GM), although a much smaller player in Thailand than Toyota, is also increasing production. The other big auto companies located in Thailand are Isuzu, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Auto Alliance, Honda etc. In recent years, BMW and Daimler Chrysler (Mercedes-Benz) have also increased their investments to gain complete control on local manufacturing and marketing operations, indicating that the auto mobile industry in Thailand has the structure of perfect competition (Biswajit et al. 2007). References Biswajit, N. , Saikat, B. &Rittwik, C. (2007). Asia-Pacific Research and Training Network on Trade Working Paper Series, No. 37, July 2007. Retrieved on 21 August, 2010. From: http://www. unescap. org/tid/artnet/pub/wp3707. pdf. Case, K. & Fair, R. (1999). Principles of Economics, 5th Ed. New York: Prentice-Hall. Copeland, A. , Wendy, D. & Hall, G. (2005). Prices, Production and Inventories, Over The Automotive Model Year, Working Paper 11257, NBER Hillier, B. (2005). The Macroeconomic Debate. Oxford: Blackwell, pp. 7-85. Market Avenue (2008). Major Factors Affecting World Oil Market in 2008. Retrieved on 21 August, 2010. From: (http://www. marketavenue. cn/upload/articles/ARTICLES_1422. htm Parkin, M. & Bade, R. (1982). Modern Macroeconomics. Indiana University press Philip, A & Fischer, S. 1980. Rational Expectations and Economic Policy. Chicago: University of Chicago Press http://www. tradingtoday. com/26-oil-supply-demand, http://www. eco-action. org/dt/oilfut. html).

Is it possible to see Elizabeth Bennet as a feminist heroine?

Elizabeth Bennet is perhaps the least conventional of Austen's characters, and certainly does not conform to what her society expected of her in the way of being submissive. Austen herself admitted that ‘pictures of perfection †¦ make me sick and wicked', and so our lovable protagonist Elizabeth is set apart from the traditional heroine with her independence of mind, and courage to challenge accepted role of women. To the modern day reader her refusal to be the demure, submissive ideal woman of the conduct books written by such a Hannah Moore, insisting ‘girls †¦ hould early acquire a submissive temper and a forbearing spirit' allows her to appear a feminist heroine. By refusing two offers of marriage Elizabeth exercises her only available method of choice, as Henry Tilney of Austen's Northanger Abbey points out ‘Man has the advantage of choice, woman only the power of refusal'. This demonstration of control earns our respect for Elizabeth as a heroine, and it certainly challenges the society's insistence on the significance of class distinction, appealing to the modern reader. Feminist critics Gilbert and Gubar assert that ‘Elizabeth stands out as a young woman who has no intention of following the prescription of restraint and submission for the achievement of happiness'. She demonstrates this with the manner in which she turns down Mr. Collins' proposal, explaining her refusal of his hand in marriage, ‘You could not make me happy, and I am convinced that I am the last woman in the world who would make you so'. Mr. Collins is so shocked by her rationality he believes it can only be due to her modesty; and hopes ‘when I do myself the honour of speaking to you next I shall hope to receive a much more favourable answer'. Her action contradicts entirely the principles set out in the conduct books, and the reaction she receives reinforces the unusualness of our heroine's honesty. Charlotte, however, seems to conform with society's expectations of a young lady, and accepts as though she is presented with no happy alternative, ‘convinced that my chances of happiness with him is as fair, as most people can boast on entering the marriage state'. Austen paints a bleak picture of this marriage for the reader, deeming it ‘impossible' for Charlotte ‘to be tolerably happy', and her position reveals the difficulties facing young women, and the pressure on them to marry. Elizabeth's refusal to submit to this is certainly what sets her apart, with more modern ideas of how women ought to be. When she is around Darcy Elizabeth behaves very differently from the more traditional Bingly sisters, not allowing her herself to be put down. In their discussion over how accomplished young women are, Elizabeth is not afraid to put her own argument forward, and demonstrates her intelligence and rationality by deducing ‘[Darcy] must comprehend a great deal in your idea as an accomplished woman'. Miss Bingly on the other hand simply reiterates what Darcy says, and for this Austen reduces her to ‘his faithful assistant'. Miss Bingly tries to creep towards Darcy, with her flattering tone, whereas Elizabeth is far more straightforward, and spirited. The Bingly sisters had disapproved of Elizabeth since her early entrance to Pemberly, exaggerating her state after walking of having a mucky petticoat and messy hair to call her ‘wild'. Interestingly it seems she is not only referring to how she looked, but also condemning her out of the ordinary behaviour, determined to look down on the people of Meryton. Having been polite to Elizabeth's face Austen reveals the sisters to be false, and unkind. Although Elizabeth does appeal to the reader as a modern heroine, one might argue that Lydia is the sister with the most modern attitude, eloping to a man she lusts after, declaring in her letter that her and Wickham's marriage shall take pace ‘some time or other †¦ it does not much signify when'. However it is clear Austen disapproves of her attitude, and means for the reader to disapprove of her, through the objective narrator; a voice condemning her as ‘always unguarded and often uncivil'. Perhaps it is as punishment that Lydia's marital life shall be unfulfilled, as when Austen exiles Maria Betram in ‘Mansfield Park', for running away with Henry Crawford despite her marriage to Mr. Rushworth – sent to ‘another country, remote and private'. It seems she is also in search of attention, and Gilbert and Gubar's observation that ‘marriage †¦ is the only accessible form of self-definition for girls in her [Jane Austen's] society' helps us to speculate that this may have been her ulterior motive for this relationship. In her letter to Harriett she confirms that she will find their surprise amusing, ‘oh what a great joke it will be! ‘, and her frivolous attitude towards her situation demonstrates her selfishness and compulsive mind, which Elizabeth view kindly. When rationally attempting to deter her father from permitting Lydia to accompany Mrs. Forster to Brighton, her sensible attitude is prominent as she analyses the danger she poses to the Bennets, explaining ‘our importance, our respectability in the world, must be affected by the wild volatility †¦ which marks Lydia's character'. Her key phrase ‘in the world' reminds the reader of the very different world inhabited by the girls, one in which it would not be possible for Lydia's conduct to be deemed acceptable. Elizabeth's attitudes here puts into perspective that although she challenges the assumed role of women in society, Elizabeth is still sensible to the significance of keeping reputation's up, and remains dignified in Austen's ‘world'. Once more exercising her only ‘power', Elizabeth also refuses Darcy's first proposal, despite his having ‘had no doubt of a favourable answer'. This attitude is much like Mr. Collins' expecting, as most men would at the time, an acceptance from girl with notably few prospects (as picked up on by the Binglys), despite his attitude towards the affair communicating his beliefs that it would be ‘a degradation'. She appears to rebel against society's expectations, and her contradiction to Darcy's assumption that a young woman must accept his hand in marriage is almost humorous, lending emphasis to the significance of Elizabeth's choices. When turning him down she tells him in no uncertain terms for why, with a forceful, truthful and compromising response, which uses very plain words like ‘unwillingly' which take her straight to point, and point out a rather painful truth. This demonstrates both her independence and the way she challenges the accepted conduct of a young woman of the time, to be perhaps more considerate of a man's feelings. Elizabeth demonstrates her strength not only by refusing to submit to men, but also through holding her own with Lady Catherine at both Rosings and Longbourn. She declares herself ‘a gentleman's daughter', and as such Darcy's equal, and refutes Lady Catherine's accusation that she has ‘upstart pretentions', refusing to conform to her society's expectation of her not to challenge her class superior. Her forwardness is picked up on by Lady Catherine, who is perhaps actually delivering a compliment, rather than a criticism, when noting ‘you give your opinion decidedly so for so young a person'. Elizabeth also refuses to be humbled just because Darcy earns ‘ten thousand a year', and is intended to marry Lady Catherine's daughters ‘of the same noble line'. In these scenes, Elizabeth appeals very much to the less class-conscious modern reader, and it is here that Vivien Jones sees Elizabeth as an agent for change, arguing ‘the old and new are synthesised in the union of the mercantile Gardiners and the landed gentry'. This suggests her marriage brings about a healthy change in the novel, as Darcy conquers his pride and welcomes the Gardiners to Pemberly. In this way we might regard Elizabeth as a modern heroine – a woman who makes a difference to her society. However, we can not ignore the fact Darcy is as fluent about her ‘inferiority', admitting to having ‘struggled' to suppress his feelings, as he is about his love for her in his initial proposal. Therefore, it seems their marriage shall be still quite traditional; with the woman subservient to her husband. Of course, in Jane Austin's society women were still swearing in their marital vows to ‘love, honour and obey', and so some critics argue that by the end, in choosing to marry Mr. Darcy, ‘Elizabeth conforms in the end to the feminine ideal of the helpmeet'. She is absorbed into Darcy's world, in which she will have little influence at all. But, we must not ignore the fact that it was, in the end her choice for marriage, and although she could not propose when she wanted it, she made sure it did not take place when it didn't suit her. Uniquely, our heroine stands out as a woman who feels she ‘may take liberties with her husband', and to feel this way in such a time must not be overlooked by the modern reader as what is expected. Although Jane Austen herself would never have used the term ‘feminist heroine', there is certainly debate about how she appears to the modern reader. Elizabeth Bennet is certainly appealing as our twenty first century heroine through the intelligence and courage to be independent, and Vivien Jones argues that she has the power to change the social order. However, as Marian Cox observes, ‘though she mocks patriarchal structures, Austen must inhabit them', pointing out that despite Elizabeth's independace, she still must marry, for due to the laws of primogeniture she had no other option of maintaining wealth. This does mean Elizabeth can not be seen as a heroine however, as she still challenges her society, and marries a man she loves which is better than most women of the time.

Critical Examination of Brooks The Formalist Critics

Brooks starts his essay by listing â€Å"articles of faith I could subscribe to† (Brooks 19) and pointing out statements about literary criticism that might go with a formalist criticism. Yet, he questions that list its end, and seems to complain that his that his writings have been largely misunderstood. What his statements have to do with faith in connection with literature is up to the reader, since in one of his articles he specifically mentions, â€Å"literature is not a surrogate for religion† (Brooks 19). He seems to contradict himself on purpose and keep his central thesis hard to reach. In evaluating some of his â€Å"faith articles†, the reader can have a critical examination of his critique of his formalist criticism. His first statement is†¦show more content†¦Criticism that focuses on the biography and psychology of the writer ends up focusing on the process of creating the literature, and not on the work’s structure. Brooks therefore refutes the authors self-confessed intense feelings literary value,† If we heard that Mr. Guest testified that he put his heart and soul into his poem, we would not be very much impressed† (Brooks 21). He mentions that if Hemingway states the same thing, people might be more impressed, but a statement to this sort is not proving any literary value, not even for a famous author. Another, related item he refutes is the feeling of the literary critic, in case he is moved by the work he is reading, this indicates, as well that the work possesses not necessarily a great literary value. Despite contesting several claims, however, Brooks thinks that not all criticism should â€Å"be self-effacing and analytic†, but that the critic, who is probably involved in many activities, needs â€Å"to have a clear idea of what his specific job as a critic is† (Brooks 22). He seems to contradict himself in this statement, as well. Earlier he states that the critic should avoid bringing his own feelings into criticizing the work he is currently working with, yet he states that the same critic should not be only self-effacing and analytic. It seems to be difficult to go the path of not getting involved and yet to retain the qualities toShow MoreRelatedThe Formalist Critics, by Cleanth Brooks1513 Words   |  7 PagesCleanth Brooks writes in his essay â€Å"The Formalist Critics† from 1951 about criticism that formalist critics encounter and tries to show these arguments from his point of view and even indicates common ground with other literary critics. Clea nth Brooks argues that we lose the intrinsically obvious points of works of literature if we view the work through the different lenses of literary theory, however we are always viewing the literary work through a subjective lens, since the author and the criticRead MoreHerbert Spencer Essay13142 Words   |  53 Pagesscience, biology, and philosophy. Herbert Spencer was born in Derby on April 27, 1820. His childhood, described in An Autobiography (1904), reflected the attitudes of a family which was known on both sides to include religious nonconformists, social critics, and rebels. His father, a teacher, had been a Wesleyan, but he separated himself from organized religion as he did from political and social authority. Spencers father and an uncle saw that he received a highly individualized education that emphasized