ABSTRACT
In the realm of economic policy-making, one of the striking features of the recent period has been a renewed interest in the market and an increasing scepticism about the value of government involvement in the economy. In the UK we tend to associate this revival of economic liberalism with the policies of Mrs Margaret Thatcher's administrations following her first election victory in 1979. This trend towards economic liberalism has been evident around the globe: in the United States, it was associated with President Ronald Reagan (President from 1980–88), and, in the USSR, it was associated with Mr Mikhail Gorbachev's policy of perestroika and glasnost introduced in 1985. In Europe, these ideas can be seen behind some aspects of the move towards European integration, in particular behind the move towards setting up the single European market in 1992.
