scholarly journals Free Trade and Empire in the Anglo-Irish Commercial Propositions of 1785

2013 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Livesey
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Free Trade ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Political Reform ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
Institutional Frameworks ◽  
The Right ◽  
Liberal Political Economy ◽  
Open Markets

AbstractWilliam Pitt's 1785 proposal for a free trade area between Britain and Ireland attempted to use free trade as a mechanism of imperial integration. It was a response to the agitation for political reform in Ireland and followed the attainment of legislative independence in 1782. The proposal aimed at coordinating economic and fiscal policy between the kingdoms without imposing explicit political controls. This article establishes that the measure failed because of the lack of consensus around the idea of free trade. Three contrasting ideas of free trade became apparent in the debates around the propositions of 1785: imperial or neomercantilist free trade, Smithean free trade, and national or neo-Machiavellian free trade. Imperial free trade was critical of monopolies but sought to organize trade to the benefit of the imperial metropole; Smithean free trade saw open markets as a discipline that assured efficiency but required imperial institutional frameworks, legally secured, to function. Neo-Machiavellian free trade asserted the right of every political community to organize its trade according to its interests. The article establishes the genealogy of these three positions in pamphlet debates and political correspondence in Britain and Ireland from 1689 to 1785. It argues that majority political opinion in Ireland, with exceptions, understood free trade in a neo-Machiavellian sense, while Pitt was committed to a Smithean ideal. The propositions collapsed because these internal tensions became more evident under the pressure of criticism. Liberal political economy did not of itself offer a route to a British exceptionality that finessed the tensions inherent in empire.

Right to Development Governance in the Advent of the African Continental Free Trade Area

2021 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-178
Author(s):  
Carol Chi Ngang
Keyword(s):  
Free Trade ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Cultural Development ◽  
Competing Interests ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
Right To Development ◽  
Local Initiatives ◽  
African Charter ◽  
The Right ◽  
Functional Mechanisms

AbstractIn this article, I explore the question of whether the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) could provide the framework mechanism for actualizing the right to development in Africa. The imperative for socio-economic and cultural development suggests rethinking the manner in which Africa is governed and, importantly, also the necessity of putting into place functional mechanisms in view of enacting the future that is envisaged for the continent. Article 22(2) of the African Charter enjoins state parties to individually or collectively undertake measures to give effect to the right to development. After several futile endeavours aimed at finding an appropriate mechanism for development, Africa eventually takes a giant stride in establishing the AfCFTA. From a decolonial perspective, I examine the prospects of the AfCFTA, particularly with regard to competing interests that dominate the African development space. At face value, the AfCFTA appears to provide an enabling framework for the nurturing of productive capabilities, the flourishing of local initiatives, the eradication of poverty and expanded opportunities for development. Notwithstanding, I contend that the inherently neoliberal nature of the AfCFTA leaves a further question of whether the free trade area is likely to deliver socio-economic and cultural development benefits to the peoples of Africa.

What Kind of Trade Integration Would the SCO’s Further FTA Be?

2014 ◽  
pp. 63-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Engin Sorhun
Keyword(s):  
Free Trade ◽  
Economic Effect ◽  
Free Trade Area ◽  
Potential Effect ◽  
Trade Integration ◽  
New Members ◽  
Trade Area ◽  
Geographical Bias ◽  
Practical Guidance ◽  
The Right

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), whose the history dates back to “Shanghai five,” was founded in 1996 in order to deal with security and border issues. However, in the course of time, the organization has expanded the cooperation ground: the vision of the organisation has been recently enlarged so as to intensively emphasise economic issues such as forming a free trade area and initiating an economic integration. Since the potential economic effect is ambiguous and initially depends on the actual trade structure among the member countries, it is crucial for policymakers to have the right tools to evaluate the economic effect of such an initiative. The aim of this study is to provide practical guidance to policymakers for determining the potential economic effect of a further Free Trade Area (FTA) to be founded within the SCO. For this purpose, a set of indicators are used to determine the potential effect at regional and industrial levels that a possible regional trade arrangement may yield for the participating countries. It is concluded that there is a geographical bias towards trading among the members. To overcome this, there are two possible solutions for the SCO if it attempts a FTA: It should generate inter-industry and intra-industry trades and initiate new members.

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