Efficiency, Equality and Public Policy

Download or read book Efficiency, Equality and Public Policy written by Y. Ng and published by Springer. This book was released on 2000-04-19 with total page 197 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.