A plethora of arguments from the 'public choice school' suggest that public goods are 'under-supplied' by comparison with public sector provision of more private goods. The implication is that rent seeking by the 'military-industrial complex' serves, in some measure, to offset potential...

This paper tests for differences in the cyclicality of government spending across functional categories. Evidence from 20 OECD countries suggests that procyclicality is more likely in smaller functional budgets, but capital spending is more likely to be procyclical for the larger spending...

When governments intervene in response to the presence of irrationality, merit wants are provided by reference to experts. Neoclassical microeconomic theory says little about why, when, or how such intervention is required. However, literature in experimental economics identifies anomalous...

Procyclical government spending occurs when government expenditures increase at a faster rate than income in an economic upturn but fall at a faster rate in a recession. Voracity effects occur when competition for increased spending proves more effective as national income increases. Public...

It has been shown that the positive correlation between income and electoral turnout is consistent with an opportunity cost argument. The argument highlights the impact of uncertainty costs generated by a broadening of the powers of government. It has implications for equity inasmuch as such...

This paper continues the development of a theoretical foundation for measuring 'altruistic' behaviour with respect to tax versus expenditure preferences in three specific spheres: health, education and welfare payments. Particular emphasis is placed on analysing the choice theoretic calculus...