Police and Fire Services as Public Goods

Q. Use economics and political theory to explain why the fire and rescue service should be provided by the state. I don’t want the answer….I just don’t understand what this means. This revolves around a fundamental debate in economics – How much should the government intervene in the economy? Ideally, goods and services would be …

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Private, Public and Free Goods defined

free-private-public-good

Definition and explanation of different types of goods Free good – no opportunity cost Private – Good with opportunity cost, rivalry and excludable Public good – non-rivalry, non-excludable Free Good A free good is a good needed by society but available with no opportunity cost. It is a good without scarcity. For example, air is …

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Vaccines and masks as a public good

covid-vaccines-masks

A public good has characteristics of non-rivalry and non-excludability. This means that once the good is provided, everybody benefits, and if one person benefits it doesn’t reduce the amount available to others. Public health can be seen as a public good. If you take precautions to remain healthy and not pass on Covid, you benefit …

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Merit and Demerit Goods

merit-demerit-good

Definition of Merit Good A merit good has two characteristics: People do not realise the true personal benefit. For example, people underestimate the benefit of education or getting a vaccination. Usually, these goods also have a positive externality. Therefore in a free market, there will be under consumption of merit goods. Examples of Merit Goods …

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Definition of Public Good

public-good

A public good has two characteristics: Non-rivalry: This means that when a good is consumed, it doesn’t reduce the amount available for others. – E.g. benefiting from a street light doesn’t reduce the light available for others but eating an apple would. Non-excludability: This occurs when it is not possible to provide a good without …

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Economic goods – definition and examples

economic-good

Definition An economic good is a good or service that has a benefit (utility) to society. Also, economic goods have a degree of scarcity and therefore an opportunity cost. This is in contrast to a free good (like air, sea, water) where there is no opportunity cost – but abundance. Free goods cannot be traded …

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Private Sector vs Public Sector

public-vs-private-sector

Readers Question: Does job creation come from public or private sector? The public sector is government (national and local). Public sector jobs include doctors, police, teachers and civil servants. The private sector is private enterprises – retail, manufacturing, local services. Public sector jobs as a share of total employment UK 23.5% (2013) US 14.6% (2008) …

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