Nicholas Barr

"We need a welfare state of some sort for efficiency reasons, and would continue to do so even if all distributional problems were solved."

"Education to the extent that it raises an individual's future earnings, increases her future tax payments; in the absence of any subsidy, an individual's investment in education confers a 'dividend' o…"

"A reduction in the liberty of the least well off cannot be justified even if it is to their economic advantage."

"First, the welfare state is not a subject apart, but fits naturally into the framework of economic analysis. Secondly,the theoretical arguments support the existence of the welfare state not only for …"

"Given the external benefits higher education creates, it is efficient that taxpayers subsidies should be a permanent part of the landscape."

"Money income is a flawed measure of individual welfare."

"The crucial point is that any system of health care must constitute a genuine strategy-ad hoc tinkering is a guaranteed road to disaster."

"In a world of certainty, the welfare state has only a small role."