Interesting blog bits

BERL on asset sales

• Eric Crampton on BERL and asset sales

  Recall that I've previously argued that the "but the bond financing cost is lower than the flow of dividends" argument is nonsense because it says the government should borrow to invest in the stock market where stock returns are higher than what the government pays in interest; it ignores that stocks are riskier assets than New Zealand government bonds.

• Matt Noland on Bleg: BERL’s report on asset sales

  From this news release I can’t make heads or tails of what was really going on in the BERL report on partial asset sales, which is a pity because I would like to read what they put down – and hopefully learn a bit more about what is going on

• Welly Gnome on Asset Sales, BERL, Green Party

  Today the Green Party used a BERL report commissioned by them as ammunition for an attack on the mixed-market ownership model.

• Groping towards Bethlehem on Consulting on asset sales

  Let’s not be naive about this. The Green Party didn’t go looking for someone to tell them that the government should sell everything and stick to assigning and protecting property rights. If they had, there are economists who would have obliged.

And let me add some Good reasons for not liking the partial asset sales programme