Your introduction

One of the most pressing problems facing the world today is overpopulation. What policies do you believe governments should adopt to address the causes and effects of this problem?
YOUR INTRODUCTION
The first step is to recognise what the consequences of overpopulation are. Only by doing this can we find an appropriate solution. Perhaps its most important effect is the increased rate at which we are consuming the Earth’s resources such as oil. To combat this, governments need to do more research on alternative and renewable energy supplies so that we do not use up all the oil reserves. Another negative effect of overpopulation is how some countries suffer from a lack of basic necessities such as food. Here, an answer could be greater international co-operation so that countries with a food surplus donate what they do not need to the less fortunate countries.
It is not quite so easy to decide how governments should deal with the causes of overpopulation. The Chinese have adopted legislation that requires parents to pay a special tax if they have more than one child. I doubt, however, whether this solution is realistic in other countries. Another option would be to improve levels of sex education by explaining the difficulties caused by having too many children.Promoting contraception though may be problematic in many regions on cultural and religious grounds.
In conclusion, while it may be possible to find ways to address some of the consequences of overpopulation by international co-operation, it is harder to find policies to deal with its causes. It might be that the only way forward is for different countries to adopt policies that work within their particular culture.

In many countries around the world there is considerable debate about the role of public transport. One suggestion that is commonly put forward is that it should be made free of charge. My belief is that while this policy might be difficult to implement in practice, there are at least two strong reasons for considering it.

The one significant problem with making public transport free of charge is financial. Councils and local governments need sufficient revenue not only to pay bus drivers and other ancillary staff, but also to maintain the transport infrastructure. There is a real danger that allowing people to travel for free would deprivetransport authorities of much needed funds and lead to a lower standard of service.


This financial difficulty in free public transport is counterbalanced by a potential benefit to the environment. The fact that so many people use cars nowadays means that our cities suffer from rising levels of pollution from car exhaust emissions. One way to address this problem would be to encourage more people to usebuses and trains by abolishing fares. If more commuters chose to travel to work on public transport, our cities would almost certainly be cleaner places to live in.
Another way in which free public transport could improve our quality of life relates to congestion. Currently, the trend is for increasing numbers of people to choose to drive to work. This means that in many cases the rush hour is several hours long and it is sometimes almost impossible to travel across a city. It is probable that this level of congestion would be reduced by making public transport free.
My conclusion is then that there are more advantages than disadvantages to free public transport, but this policy may be financially impossible to implement.

Consumers are faced with increasing numbers of advertisements from competing companies. To what extent do you think are consumers influenced by advertisements? What measures can be taken to protect them?
In today’s material world, we are inundated with various forms of advertising. In my view, this can be dangerous as it encourages us to spend without thinking and young people, in particular, need some protection from it.
The first point to make is that advertising does make us spend money we do not need to. There are nowadays so many different ways companies promote their products and services, ranging from television commercials to simple flyers that we cannot escape it. If, for example, you watch a football match on television,you will see the logos of the tournament sponsors. Likewise, if you watch the latest blockbuster movie, very probably you will see a product placed in the film by some advertising agency. The volume of this advertising means that we, as consumers, tend to be profoundly influenced by it and buy without thinking.
It is not easy to decide how to regulate advertising. Clearly, governments ought to restrict advertisements for harmful products such as alcohol and tobacco. They do not have the power, however, to control other forms of advertising. This means we need to use our commonsense when we go to the shops, and ask ourselves whether we really need to make that purchase. Parents should, however, ensure that young people are protected from too much exposure to advertising. This can mean simply explaining that it is not in fact necessary to buy the newest Xbox, or simply turning the television off.
My conclusion is that while we cannot escape advertising or its effects in the modern world, children should be encouraged not to pay too much attention to it.
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As we move into the twenty-first century, it is clear to see that we have become more and more dependent on computers and information technology. This technology now reaches into almost every area of our lives and it is easy to predict that this phenomenon is only going to grow. My personal belief is that this presents a variety of dangers.

It is highly likely that in the future there will be comparatively few aspects of our lives that will not be influenced by computer technology. The probability is that it will control more and more forms of communication, transforming fields such as education and business when video-conferencing platforms become more stable. It might even affect romance with more people forming relationships online.
While there may be benefits to this technological revolution, there are also a number of potential dangers. Perhaps the most serious of these would be that if people rely on computers too much for communication, they could in fact begin to communicate less well. For example, if every member of a family had their own computer screen and smart phone, they might speak less and less often to one another and simply look at a screen. This would be serious because our ability to communicate is an essential part of our humanity.
My conclusion is that the growth of computer technology is inevitable, but that this may not be entirely positive. Just one area in which it is possible to foresee dangers is communication, and if we are going to ensure that computers do not become a negative influence, we need to think carefully how we use them.
(273 words)