Under current EU rules, Britain cannot recreate a railway monopoly. It can, however, follow the lead of other EU countries in bringing more of the rail sector into public ownership.
The Vote Leave campaign’s slogan was ‘take back control’.
EPA/Will Oliver
Two decades ago, the then SA premier, John Olsen, defied a campaign promise and announced plans to privatise the state’s electricity industry. It’s been a high-voltage issue ever since.
Jenni Henderson, La Conversation Canada et Josh Nicholas, La Conversation Canada
Business Briefing: the business of prisons
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Prisons are big business in Australia. Companies not only run entire prisons but provide many of the services. But what does the research say about the impact?
The government appears willing to roll over the contract with the operator of a third of Melbourne’s buses despite poor performance.
Bus Association Victoria, used with permission
No matter whether competitive tendering or negotiation is used, operators that do not meet clear and transparent service benchmarks should be shown the door.
All Australians involved in property transactions will likely be dealing with privatised land title offices in future.
AAP/Paul Miller
Privatisation talk in South Africa shows how state owned enterprises are being used as tools for enrichment by the connected and less as key elements of development.
South Africa needs to decide if it will continue to waste public money on its national carrier, or incur the costs of letting SAA go bankrupt.
Shutterstock
Almost half of eligible households haven’t connected to the NBN. New modelling shows the NBN needs subsidies if we want more people to connect and the economy to benefit from it.
At the Ashwood-Chadstone estate, Port Phillip Housing Association has built high-quality homes, with no visible difference between the 72 private and 206 community housing dwellings.
PPHA
Concerns about the privatisation of public housing estates should not blind us to the benefits of the transfer of public housing to the not-for-profit community housing sector.
Perhaps there might at least now be a pause on further deregulation when it comes to buildings in the UK
Our land-title system originated in the mid-19th century when Sir Robert Richard Torrens campaigned to reform Adelaide’s chaotic deeds-based land system.
National Library of Australia
Sir Robert Richard Torrens – the man behind Australia’s ‘Torrens system’ of land-title registration – was an economic liberal who might have approved of privatising title registries.
Sydney’s bus services are a mix of public and private-operated routes, which complicates any estimates of potential cost savings.
Dean Lewins/AAP
Estimated cost savings for rail and bus franchising from Infrastructure Australia and PwC will have government treasurers salivating. Problem is, the figures are almost certainly far too high.