Given that young children are under the control of their parents, if the government has an interest in either the … welfare or the productivity of the former, it has no option but to act through the latter. Parents are, in the ordinary sense … of the word, the government’s agents. They are agents also in the sense of Principal-Agent theory if the parental action …

parents, if the government has an interest in the welfare or tax-paying capacity of its future citizens, it has no option but … to condition the decisions of its present citizens. Parents are then, in the ordinary sense of the word, the government …'s agents. They are agents also in the technical sense of Principal-Agent theory if a parental action or personal characterisic …

educational investment undertaken by the child's parents, but also by the social capital of the latter. The optimal policy …