Efficiency, Equality and Public Policy

With A Case for Higher Public Spending

Y. Ng

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2000
• Print ISBN:
  9780333671658
• eBook ISBN:
  9780333992777
• Topic: Economics
• Subtopic: Economic Theory
• Index: Economics

This book provides compelling arguments for the exclusive concern with efficiency ('a dollar is a dollar') in all specific areas of public economic policy, leaving the objective of equality to be achieved through the general tax/transfer system. Public policies should ultimately maximize the sum of individual welfares which should be individual happiness rather than preferences. Relative-income and environmental disruption effects cause a bias in favour of private spending which is no longer conducive to happiness socially. Welfare can be increased more by higher public spending on research and environmental protection, including the perfection of the techniques of brain stimulation to increase happiness.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Contents
• Preface
• 1 Introduction
• Part I: The Foundation of Public Economic Policy
• Part II: How Much Should the Government Spend?
• Appendix A: Electrical Brain Stimulation: a Case Showing the Importance of Public Spending in Research
• Appendix B: Pure Egalitarianism: a Critique
• Appendix C: Economic Growth Increases the Optimal Share of the Public Sector
• Appendix D: Non-Affective Altruism: When the Pareto Principle is Unacceptable
• Appendix E: The Bergson–Samuelson Tradition Implies Individualism, Independence, and Ordinalism
• Appendix F: Inefficiency in Provision May Increase Optimal Public Spending
• Notes
• References
• Name Index
• Subject Index