Government-Business Relations

The importance of the relationship between government and business is best captured in a rhetorical question: What is more important: strong government, prosperous business or civil society? The question is rhetorical because there is no correct answer. Strong government is necessary to provide a system of law and order; however, without prosperous businesses to pay taxes, it is difficult for government to collect the funds to perform its role. And civil society is necessary to hold governments and businesses to account; but if we take a Hobbesian1 view of human society, civil society cannot exist without strong government undertaking many essential roles, including political representation, public provision, and maintaining law and order, defence, public safety, regulation, infrastructure and trading relations. Of course, in a modern economy, all three institutions are necessary to ensure a society has an appropriate level of stability, security and living standards for its members.