Trying to explain the health system to a kiwi immigrant the other day, it occurred to me that whatever your politics, the current public/private mix of hospitals is terribly inefficient.

The argument for privatising everything seems to be that the private sector is more efficient. But what we currently have, with dual systems for health and education for example, I am damn sure there is more waste in duplicating the bureaucracy and regulation and filtering money through the tax system, political bribes and dinners etc.

I really think it's time to decide once and for all which way is better. Go totally private or go totally public. Stop having a bob each way, and save trillions of dollars for the community.

I want no more of...

Government paying health insurance companies 30% of their premiums.

Government blackmailing citizens to take out private health insurance in the first place via Medicare surcharge.

Government paying private schools any money. The government provides public schools, if you don't like them pay for your own bloody school, and don't expect ANY government money. Hey, they offered you a school, you rejected it.

Government providing 50% of child care companies' revenue.

Government closing surface roads to force consumers into private operators' tunnels.

Government bailing companies out who take the risk in developing transport infrastructure and don't earn as much as they thought they would.

First home owners grants that go straight to developers and real estate agents.

I'm sure others can come up with many more examples of stupidity.

How can it really be more efficient for the government to set up private monopolies left right and centre, and then fund and protect them, or create complicated bureaucracies to administer two systems. Then again the Shell/Coles, Woolies/Caltex voucher scam is pretty inefficient too.

See I can see the merits of privatisation, but governments are so bad at it, lets just forget it. It will give them something to do if they actually provide services, rather than being wined and dined, and spending 2 weeks talking about an MP being drunk and obnoxious at a dinner.

Each Government will make their own policies that people will
either accept or reject. At least with our system - the majority can elect a Government of their choice. With privatisation and Big Business, there is no choice.

Of-course we can always resort to - a feudal system - where privatisation and private companies control how we live.

That's the "American System.' Where those in control of finance (Big Business) control the lives of the majority of the people.

Is that what we really want in Australia?

It's the choice of the elected Government to attribute certain services to private enterprise and if we disagree, with their choice
in a democratic system we can replace the Government. In a privatised
society we would not have that choice.

For example, take "Workchoices" that the previous Government tried to
introduce and the private industry tried to exploit - that Government is no longer in power.

Public-Private Waste will only exist for as long as we allow it. In a
democratic society - the choice is ours.

Usual Suspect

'Go totally private or go totally public. Stop having a bob each way, and save trillions of dollars for the community.'

I don't normally agree with you and your figures may be a little suspect but you are 100% right on this one. The dual system is a failure.

I pretty much agree with all of this, but tried to think of an example where I wouldn't agree because blanket decisions can be so bad sometimes.

Charity. What about charities and other NGOs which do stuff government isn't very good at? Surf life savers for example. These aren't private I know, so I guess I'm saying I'd rather private health insurers sink or swim on their own and the money go to the Salvos or something.

This is why we need a total rationalisation of the Public Service.Govts in reality make few policy decisions in regards to our destiny as voters.It is the PS who are the movers and shakers of our comfort zones.

The PS are unacountable and basically wasteful,self indulgent,hedonistic masters of our destruction.

In NSW workers comp claims in the PS are 3 times that of private enterprise,and basically they cannot be sacked nor do they do physically challenging jobs like construction.

We have the most plentiful over paid PS in the entire country,yet have the worst roads,services,and are over regulated to the point of impotence.

In NSW,we have to ask the question,why do we need Govt at all?

I doubt arjay you understand what some who work for the NSW government do.
While it is easy to say they do not work it is not true.
I remember many who never made it past day one after being handed a shovel.
Consider this.
If the workforce is so bad why are they not sacked?
The truth is they can be sacked and often are.
Another truth is management are the problem not Labour.
I have tried so very hard to inform my old department just of honest facts, you can not get past first line management.
Contracts DO GO to the worst people worst performers, because they pay more in kick backs!
One dreadful bloke gives more than 80% of his work, yes one area manager has that power, to any anti union bid, worst wages and conditions, worst finished jobs.
I support public owner ship but we must see an end to poor management blaming other for their faults.
At present right now the grog in the back of the Ute rules, some front line managers have built homes paid for by bribes if we can not fix that we are not trying.
In My old job they are not trying, one day we will see another NSW rail type scandal uncovered.

Belly,I understand fully what our NSW PS gets up to.I know some personally and it is a joke.Those at the front line have to work but the fat cats do Sweet F--- All.Michael Coster said 2yrs ago that we in NSW have 30,000 too many fat cats.He was silenced by the PS unions,thus we have a state that is both broke and impotent.

Perhaps you are one of the fat cats,so consider doing something for your state and country.Perhaps a job in private enterprise so you you can pay taxes to support your commrades.

ah GREAT! THANKS ARJAY TRULY you and I have crossed verbal swords here for a few years.
Verbal tennis even but you have just served straight aces against your self giving me the latest game.
I am not a government employee, you have served me often because of what I do for a living think about it!
Now my thoughts came from the front line the ground the very bottom the formen who are useless the first line of management who get the job because they are no threat to the next.
Yet I share some of your thoughts, the very fact you such a conservative can use Costa as a tool to hurt Labor proves my point he at least can best serve the party by leaving it.

There is no more reason why governments should be running hospitals than there is reason for them to run hotels, service stations of grocery shops.

The sooner the State gets out of running medical services the better. The medical industry should be able to provide these services to its customers like any other industry, without protection money from the State.

The medical industry is protected to the tune of $60B a year. And you guessed it, it has become a bloated, blood-sucking worm that charges outrageous fees for the services over which it has a monopoly. They say that if you're lucky enough to be in the bone or X-ray business you can turn $10 Grand a day if you put your mind to it, most of which will come out of the public purse.

This protection is dressed up as a subsidy which customers feel they have a right to - so everyone's happy. People are rocking up to hospitals in Commodores and Falcons wanting treatment for free at an average cost to taxpayers of $9,000 a pop; no means test, no delayed payment scheme, not even so much as an account, just thousands of hands slipping into the public pocket and extracting a subsidy for a services that they can either insure against or pay for themselves.

But it's worse than that. If you don't insure yourself and you're happy to wait a couple of months (and squeal while you're waiting) you can get whatever you want done for free. Who was the dill who thought that one up; its unsustainable. Plus it doesn't seem to be doing a very good job. People are becoming more and more unhealthy. Governments are protecting the wrong industry.

What we're witnessing is the protection of an industry that's more precious, sacred and untouchable than the Catholic Church. Not many people can see it, certainly the Productivity Commission can't.

And students keep paying that abominable tax on enterprise, called HECS to pay for their relatives to get a free ride into the surgery.

It's bunkum.