25-07-2021: Annotations regarding the welfare function
Author: E.A. Bakkum
Social welfare functions help to analyze questions regarding the distribution. They give insight in the moral choices of policy formation. The present column discusses several of these functions, and combines them with models of monetary utility, among others those of Ragnar Frisch. They are also compared with the justice theory of Rawls, albeit in the interpretation of Binmore. This knowledge is compared with older texts in the Gazette. Finally, related reports of the CPB and the WRR are discussed .... Read more
14-06-2021: Five years analysis of the welfare state
Author: E.A. Bakkum
The industrialization creates so much wealth, that it leads to the welfare state, The welfare state has a large diversity of forms. The present column describes several models, which try to order the diversity. After a general introduction about group behaviour and the policy mix there is a presentation of: the inclusion model, the paradigm of the radical centre, the trust model, and the three-worlds model. Finally, reports of the CPB and the WRR are discussed .... Read more
20-05-2021: Economic reforms in the Netherlands
Author: E.A. Bakkum
During the cabinets Lubbers and Kok the Dutch economy has recovered miraculously. The present column studies the executed policies of these cabinets, by means of the book A Dutch miracle. It turns out, that corporatism or pluralism was preferred, depending on the policy field. The criticism of the policies is also analyzed. Balkenende and Fortuyn want to replace the corporatism by pluralism, possibly on an organic basis .... Read more
29-04-2021: The recovery of the Dutch economy
Author: E.A. Bakkum
After a deep recession during the early eighties of the last century, the Dutch economy has developed quite well, also in comparison with the European neighbouring states. This is caused by a package of radical social reforms. The present column illustrates this development with the help of economic indicators, such as the economic growth, labour participation, the costs of insurance for the disabled, the participation of older men, the labour productivity, and the investment quote .... Read more
22-04-2021: Models of privatization
Author: E.A. Bakkum
A previous column has analyzed how public goods can be supplied by private enterprises. There the market regulation was also discussed. The present column uses several of these insights in a model. The first model addresses the political phases of privatizations. The second model shows, how a private enterprise can be controled by means of subsidies. The third model discusses the regulation of a natural monopoly by means of its price structure .... Read more