Technically, Economics is the study of how the forces of demand and supply allocate scarce resources, for consumers, firms and at national level. In practice, it includes all sorts of real issues, such as a tax on sugar, a minimum price for alcohol, the best way of reducing unemployment, whether income tax should be raised or cut and the impact of emerging markets such as India and Nigeria. Students should both be able to write fluent essays and have a good grasp of numeracy. Quantitative skills are an essential aspect of the course, for example calculating and understanding ratios, fractions, percentages, index numbers, averages and graphs.