Mark Thirlwell
(Episode 338; 14 minutes 30) G20 leaders are meeting in Pittsburgh right now. Although they speak out against protectionism many of them are guilty of pursuing it. Tariffs may have been dropped but almost every country has bailed out struggling businesses. Isn’t that just another form of protectionism?
Mark Thirlwell, Director for the International Economy Program at the Lowy Institute for International Policy, says G20 leaders need to put in place arrangements to ensure transparency and to show the cost to their local economy that protectionist measures can introduce. He says the argument over the benefits of free trade is one often not understood by the general community.
Mark Thirwell is co-author, along with Bill Carmichael and Saul Eslake, of a Lowy Institute policy brief “Message to the G20: defeating protectionism begins at home”.
What do you think? Does more need to be done to argue the case for protectionism? Leave a comment in the Talkback section at the end of this post.
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