Objectifs

Contenus

Fiscal policy is, along with monetary policy, one of the main levers of a government’s political economy. Fiscal policy involves using particular fiscal measures, including tax policy, expenditure policy and debt policy, to influence the business cycle. The impact of these various measures on different activity sectors of the State is therefore significant. They also greatly effect households and businesses.

These policies are subject to intense theoretical debates. And the practical repercussions of these debates are monumental. Up until the end of the 1930s, the main goal of public sector financial management was to ensure the financing of public services. Government spending was not then considered a variable able to influence the level of economic activity.

John Maynard Keynes, the famous English economist, modified this idea by highlighting the impact of fiscal policy on the level of economic activity. As a result, since the 1930s, most developed countries have had fiscal stimulus policies during periods of recession or slower growth.

However, beginning with the crisis that followed the oil crisis of 1973, neoclassical theoreticians demonstrated the limits of fiscal policy and, in particular, the harmful effects of recurring deficits and government debt. The current crisis gives us a practical demonstration of this. It confirms the usefulness of having efficient brakes to spending and debt. It is indeed when the State debt level leaves wide room for maneuvering that governments are able to combat macroeconomic fluctuations and promote growth.

Références

ADMINISTRATION FEDERALE DES FINANCES (2019). Principes applicables à la gestion des finances. Berne, AFF [téléchargeable].

LANDAIS B. (1998). Leçons de politique budgétaire. Paris: De Boeck.

LANGDANA F.K. (2002). Macroeconomic policy: Demystifying monetary and fiscal policy. New York: Springer.

MAKIN A.J. (2018). The Limits of Fiscal Policy. New York: Springer Nature, Palgrave Macmilan.

SHAW G.K. (1972). Fiscal Policy. London: Macmillan.

Pré-requis

Evaluation

1ère tentative

Examen:

Sans examen (cf. modalités)  

Evaluation:

Examen organisé par l'IDHEAP

Rattrapage

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Sans examen (cf. modalités)  

Evaluation:

Examen organisé par l'IDHEAP