The Welfare State: Pensions, Health, and Education (The Collected Works of Arthur Seldon)

Seldon, Arthur

ISBN 10: 0865975558 / ISBN 13: 9780865975552

Published by Liberty Fund, 2005

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Synopsis:

Volume 6 of "The Collected Works of Arthur Seldon" examines the failure of state-supported welfare programs to benefit the people most in need of help. The eight articles and one book in this volume encompass almost forty years of criticism of the welfare state. Seldon argues that the welfare state cannot, in the long run, solve the problem of poverty. It is driven by misguided egalitarian views which make it universalist, providing benefits for the middle classes as well as the poor. Because it finances welfare through taxation, it damages incentives to work. Moreover it diminishes motivations to save and to provide for one's family as the state appears to take over such responsibilities. Once "free" welfare services are begun they are very difficult to stop. But, says Seldon, permanent state welfare is unnecessary: as people's incomes rise, most are capable of providing for themselves and their families. In the end, people will revolt against inferior state services and the state will have to retreat.

About the Author: Colin Robinson was a business economist for 11 years. He was then appointed to the Chair of Economics at the University of Surrey in Guildford where he founded the Department of Economics and is now Emeritus Professor. For many years he has been associated with the London-based Institute of Economic Affairs, and from 1992 to 2002 he was the IEAs Editorial Director.

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Welfare State: Pensions, Health, and ...
Publisher: Liberty Fund
Publication Date: 2005
Binding: paperback
Condition: Acceptable