Structural reforms as a tool against fiscal crises

Abstract

Structural reforms are more and more used throughout the world’s economies for many reasons, namely to recover from crises and shield themselves against new ones. This thesis outlines the effect structural reforms could have on fiscal policy, taking into account the theory about fiscal multipliers and the multiplier effect, and the examples of Greece and Portugal, who both signed off bailout programs with structural reform packages, and Canada, where reforms were initiated by the government – with different outcomes, however. There is no original econometric analysis in this thesis, other than references to existing academic papers and analyses, which are listed in the appendix thereof.