The dominant ideology of the modern western world is that of the free market which, if unregulated, maximises economic wealth and optimises its distribution, according to its proponents. Consequently there is increasing pressure upon governments around the world to throw off the shackles of regulation so that we may all benefit from the prosperity which ensues from the free market. Omitted (whether by ignorance or by design) from the discourse of ideological pressure is the fact that a completely unregulated free market only operates effectively in a situation of perfect competition - in other words never! This is implicitly recognised by governments and supranational bodies by the use of regulation to mitigate some of the undesirable consequences of a free market. So the starting point of this paper is that regulation is designed to inculcate a sense of social responsibility into business activity.At the same time corporate social responsibility (CSR) has come to the forefront of attention by both businesses and by society. Although the definition of CSR is somewhat fluid, over time, as the conceptualisation of CSR has developed, it has become evident that it encompasses a variety of elements ranging from values and philosophies to societal and environmental issues, business strategies and the relationship between business and society. In other words CSR is also about embedding a sense of social responsibility into business activity - but on a voluntary basis and therefore without the need to regulate it into existence. In many ways therefore the CSR debate parallels the ethics versus regulation debate of the past 30 years - a debate which the authors do not intend to engage with in any depth. Instead it is argued that CSR is not just a concern with the societal impact of business activity, nor just a defence against possible future regulation, but also an integral part of citizenship.Because the globalising agenda determined by such organisations as WTO is based on the absence of state regulation and CSR has been devolved entirely to corporations on a voluntary basis the stage has been set for the superordinacy of profit over all other consequences of either corporate or state behaviour and a consequent abdication of responsibility by all. The consequences are well known in the corporate fallout which continues to be manifest as lie after another is exposed. These lies are not subject to sanction however because responsibility - and citizenship - has been abdicated by all who should be responsible. Although one culprit is the corporate, another is the state and this paper argues that it is essential for civil society that the state reclaims its role in ensuring socially responsible behaviour.

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