CANBERRA — Nationalism and protectionism are growing globally. In September, an extremist far-right party took seats in the German parliament for the first time since World War II. It followed historic results for the far-right in the Netherlands, Denmark and Hungary. In France, neither of the traditional parties made the election runoff. In a period of just over two years, between 2013 and 2015, Australia had four prime ministers and trust in politicians was at a record low.
Facing inward on matters of politics has become the focus of the growing far-right parties and distrust of foreigners and foreign investment, and lack of support for foreign aid have been outcomes of protectionist policies.
On September 27, 2017, however, the Lowy Institute launched a new paper titled Choosing Openness: Why global engagement is best for Australia, highlighting the importance of openness and global engagement for both developed and developing countries. Author Andrew Leigh, shadow assistant treasurer, presented the case for the economic benefits openness brings in comparison to sluggish growth and decline that comes with protectionism.