Shadow,
>In the vast majority of cases privatising businesses that are not public goods improves the competence of government.
What evidence do you have for that?
I'd expect evidence (for and against) to be scant, as most governments have long ago privatised everything they don't consider to be public goods (as well as many things they do).

I can see how privatising such businesses may improve the management of such businesses, and hence how a more competent government would be more likely to do so. But I can't see how doing so could actually make a government more competent.

http://tinyurl.com/4ptbvw9l
What a deflecting tosser. It'll be ready in time for the next pandemic. His motives, true colours and incompetence are really coming thru'. In the meantime pretty much all stranded Aussies overseas are in various stages of compassionate need.

From the most recent stats since 29 Mar 2020 http://tinyurl.com/3lg9dxgz

- 3% of HQ arrivals into VIC have COVID (slightly higher than Aust average and NSW at 2.4%)
- notably VIC, QLD and SA taking far less HQ arrivals (per head of population) than NT, NSW and WA
- VIC performing notably worse on Local Infections per HQ arrival (0.54) or HQ infection (18.14)

In summary;
- VIC isn’t carrying their weight of HQ arrivals (thankfully)
- VIC can’t contain COVID in HQ like all other states (18 versus all others less than 1)

and.....with the very, very recent mandating of PCR tests pre-flight the chance of a returnee carrying Covid are even lower, but don't let that figure in, it would destroy the hysterical narrative."The deadly mutant killer strain ate my homework!"

482,500 deaths in the US up to today. Half a million by Sunday.

But let's forget that, let's sink the boot into Andrews. Eight hundred deaths ! In one state ! How could that be ?!

Hopefully, no-one will roll that rock away from your cave entrance, Luciferase, you'll be safe.

Here's my bet: that there will never be such a thing as 'herd immunity'. 99 % vaccinated (and still carrying), with only that 1 % to go, eternally free of the virus ? No, I don't think so.

Joe

Aidan,

A prime example would be when Victoria privatised its power generation. The result was that Victoria earned $bns from the sale of the assets, the assets were then run far more efficiently, lowering the price of electricity to Victorians and paying tax on the profits.

Win, win, win.

Assets that directly compete with private companies should not be publicly owned and operated. The only way these government-owned companies make a profit is by forcing the purchase of their products. Queensland's power generation is a prime example.

There are virtually no examples where government-owned companies can survive without some form of subsidy when competing with private companies.

Public goods are schools, hospitals etc.

Loudmouth said- "Here's my bet: that there will never be such a thing as 'herd immunity'. 99 % vaccinated (and still carrying), with only that 1 % to go, eternally free of the virus ? No, I don't think so."

Answer- Just goes to show that rooms of monkeys can type symphonies. I tend to agree with Loudmouth on this one.

My understanding is Corona is an adaptive virus similar to AIDS- that's why AIDS is so hard to treat- to be fair I need to do more research on the rate of mutation of the Corona virus... Of course the government have a vested interest in keeping the population calm- and that showing that they're in control.

In Dan Andrews case he should have had rotating crack teams doing daily scenario based Corona drills in hazmat suits and stationed at key locations. I hope that the Victorian public act approapriately at the next election.

The US has the issues of ethnic, ideological, and political conflict in addition to Corona to deal with.

I still agree that we need to keep the economy running- the government has a coordination role here vs Keynes during the Great Depression.