ABSTRACT
As has frequently been noted, trade, together with war, constitutes one of the oldest modes of international communication and affects the well-being of an ever larger segment of the world’s population. Moreover, there is a strong presumption that these effects are positive; that international trade, by means of the principle of comparative advantage, can provide benefits way beyond those which individuals or communities in isolation could provide for themselves. But, in practice, we know from hard experience that the shaping of trade policies is one of the most politically contentious of exercises. The reasons are obvious. Favouring free trade over protectionist policies, or vice versa, is likely to have a differential effect on groups within and across national boundaries. Decisions made by policy makers to reduce or increase tariffs on particular goods have thus been amongst the most sensitive of political acts and ones that have been the subject of bitter dispute. Generalized statements about the advantages of free trade are unlikely to be compelling if cheap imports lead to the dole queue. Given this, it is not surprising that, in many political systems over time, political parties have been identified in terms of their orientation towards free trade or protectionist principles.
