Mr. Granger, you call for privatization. OK, but how do you competently reconcile the meritorious, historically noted disadvantages of privatization? 1.      Privatization breeds a lack of incentive for governments to ensure their public services are running effectively and efficiently. This, in turn, detracts from the incentive to maximize efficiency in nationally-owned companies. 2.      Certain public goods and services should remain in the hands of the government to ensure that everyone in society has access to them (law enforcement, health care, education). This is especially so in the case of industries with strategic national importance.

3.      There is a need for responsible stewardship of social programmes, since market interactions are guided by self-interest, i.e., maximizing profits. Their sole goal is satisfied by serving those who are most able to pay, not the majority, and this is anti-democratic. This also conflicts with the primary aim of governmental social support programmes, i.e., affordability and quality of service.

4.      Privatization is inherently an occasion for corruption. Private companies are motivated by self-interest and could lead to embezzlement and cost-cutting measures undertaken to maximize profits. These profits  often end up in  foreign hands rather than for the common good. In contrast, government officials are bound to uphold ethical standards governed by codes of conduct.

5.      A democratically elected government is accountable to its people through Parliament, and is motivated to safeguard the nation’s assets, including intervening when civil liberties are threatened. This could be subverted by privatization, since private companies have no similar motivation. Also, governments may more easily influence state-owned firms to implement desirable policies for the benefit of the nation as a whole.

6.      According to the Increased Market Efficiency for Public Goods and Services theory, a public organization produces more of a public good/service. A private firm does not provide public goods/services, it provides less to maximize profits. Thus, the public goods/services are provided more efficiently for society as a whole by a public organization.

7.      The public does not have any control or oversight mechanism of private companies, unlike nationally-owned companies.

8.      Private companies face additional burdens of succeeding without government assistance, in contrast to public companies. Thus, jobs could be lost to keep money within the company.
9. Once out of public control, private infrastructures would be difficult to buy back and they may have been allowed to deteriorate, since the company may have cut back on maintenance out of concern for maximizing profits.