Public or private goods : Redefining res publica Contents: Foreword 1. Introduction 2. Value based demarcation between the public and the private domain Klaas van Egmond Part I: Traditional core tasks of the state: security 3. The fight against money laundering: a public task Joras Ferwerda 4. Natural disasters and (future) government debt Ian Koetsier Part II: New core tasks: social security 5. Multiple pillars: objectives risks and diversification options Ian Koetsier 6. Pension provision: (still) a public task Florian Blank 7. Protection against unemployment a res publica Brigitte Unger 8. More health care or more beer a curious paradox of making some economic tasks a res publica Frans van Waarden 9. ECEC: childcare markets in the Netherlands and England Trudie Knijn and Jane Lewis Part III: Public goods 10. Housing policy and spatial inequality: recent insights from Vienna and Amsterdam Gerlinde Gutheil Knopp Kirchwald and Justin Kadi 11. Funding of protected areas: a purely public task Grazia Bonvissuto 12. The governments role in conserving and financing cultural institutions Michael Getzner 13. The income distribution as a public task: the redistributive preferences of (mis)informed voters Daan van der Linde 14. Conclusions Index. Legitimized by the arguments of efficiency gains public housing pensions unemployment insurance and health care are all being gradually privatized. In many countries even the states night watchmen role of providing security is offered by private prisons and security guards. In the face of these and other developments this book argues that on the basis of efficiency morality and equality there is still an overwhelming need for public intervention the res publica. Public or Private Goods brings together leading scholars from various disciplines including economics sociology political science geography and spatial planning. The book explores core public tasks that the state has traditionally provided but which are increasingly privatized and subsumed into the private sector. For example although the state still funds and regulates core domains it provides fewer and fewer visible goods. The authors show how this apparent invisibility of the state presents serious challenges for both income equality and democracy. This thoughtful interdisciplinary book will appeal to advanced students and academics in political science public sector economics and public finance. It will also provide stimulating reading for politicians policymakers and anyone interested in the provision of public services