Beginning of Essay
Responses by Australian governments to the Great Depression were largely inadequate; however, it is necessary to identify the sources of these inadequacies. Attempts made by the Scullin Government to implement effective policy responses to the problems of the Grea ....

Middle of Essay
.... response to economic circumstances. Banks determined short-term interest rates through their competition for deposits and were key planners in the foreign exchange market during the early years of depression. The fact that Sir Robert Gibson was Chair of the Commonwealth Bank only added to the Governments predicament. Gibson's thoughts on economic policy were conservative, and under existing legislation, he was answerable to no one except the Bank Board, which he dominated. Consequently, the Government lacked the necessary power to significantly influence to the board in favour of their policies. This lack of means was sorely missed during the cri ....