INDUSTRY LEGISLATION
XHANTI PAYI: State regulations need to help, not hinder
‘A key ingredient in regulation must be much more inclusive consultations and robust engagement on how to best achieve common goals’
No reasonable person can argue any longer against the relevance and necessity of government regulation in the economy. Indeed, what is the role of government if it is not to protect our freedoms and safeguard our wellbeing from each other? IMF MD Christine Lagarde put it as such: "Regulation is necessary, particularly in a sector … which exposes countries and people to risk." These days, it’s hard to find an industry exempt from Lagarde’s statement. That said, given the panic we often see across social sectors, regulation has been used rather bluntly — with the potential to cause more harm than good. Despite the need to develop pieces of legislation to protect citizens from the growing sense that corporates — from banks to tobacco and alcohol firms and even pharmaceutical companies — are causing extensive social harm, it is important for authorities to be as prudent as they are forceful.In a society such as SA, government intervention between economic agents and social actors is eve...
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