Is the word "government" singular or plural? My grammar book tells me government is plural. And if you search on the web, it is not so unusual to be confused. So which of the following two sentences is correct?
The government have been taking necessary steps with a view to alleviating poverty.
Or,
The government has been taking necessary steps with a view to alleviating poverty.
Edit:
My grammar book says that
Some nouns apparently look like singular, but they are actually plural and the verbs after those are also plural. These type of noun are: Peasantry, poultry, cattle, majority, people, public, mankind, government.
My grammar book is written in the native language, so I cannot give the reference.
Best Answer
As an American I definitely thought this was simple. Found this and learned something new myself!
Matching verbs to Collective Nouns
So since you're asking which is used without dispute, then it depends where you are or who you are speaking to.
For American English, it's definitely preferred to be a singular collective noun using singular verbs.
For British English, choosing which to use may depend on the context as this site suggests: