Abstract
Most would agree that the public wealth could be managed better. This book, however, makes a much more far-reaching claim. Better institutions to govern public wealth can improve democracy and make it easier for politicians and administrators to represent their citizens rather than succumb to pressure from all those striving to share in the spoils of public wealth. In this chapter, we will illustrate how public monopolies can potentially give consumers much better services, if politics was more concerned with citizen welfare and less with protecting SOEs. This also requires that SOEs must be regulated on a par with private firms. One illustration is the way airports, airlines, and traffic control are handled in many countries.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Copyright information
© 2015 Dag Detter and Stefan Fölster
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Detter, D., Fölster, S. (2015). Politicians as consumer advocates instead of quasi-capitalists. In: The Public Wealth of Nations. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137519863_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137519863_5
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-70490-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-51986-3
eBook Packages: Palgrave Business & Management CollectionBusiness and Management (R0)