Public SectorA strong public sector gives people better, more reliable and cheaper services and more control of the economy Banking and finance, communications, transport, energy, water, schools, hospitals, prisons and a host of other public assets have been sold off to the private sector, in the name of ‘freeing up’ markets and creating a modern, efficient global economy. A democracy can only ensure that the wealth it creates is used in the interests of all the people — and governments can only truly plan for the facilities and services society needs across generations — if funds are owned and controlled by the people, not in the hands of a profit driven sector. The Communist Alliance is a strong advocate for public ownership of key sectors of the economy. We defend public sector jobs and oppose the sell off of public services, or the contracting out of their management to private corporations. We call for a stronger community participation in and control over public assets and services and for greater workers participation in the management of enterprises. Public ownership of an enterprise or service means ownership by a government on behalf of all the people. This is an alternative to ownership by an individual or a number of shareholders, that is, private ownership. Profitable publicly-owned enterprises are a source of government revenue. Public ownership has provided necessary services such as education, health and transport. Some services cannot be profitable at the same time as meeting universal provision and equity goals. Public transport facilities, such as railways, have been subsidised but are an essential public service. How would health, transport and education be run, if profit was the only consideration? Private enterprise, being motivated solely by the profit motive and operating on a "user pays" basis, cannot offer the same quality of service or provide them on the basis of universality and equity. A largely privately-owned economy places great power in the hands of the unelected private owners who are not accountable to the community. Control of key sectors of the economy can give the government greater control over the economy as a whole, making forms of economic and social planning possible. Successful publicly-owned enterprises show by example that an alternative form of ownership is available and is capable of providing better services at lower charges than could be provided by privately-owned enterprises. The call for a strong public sector and increased public control and ownership of society’s key economic and social assets is a call for a different sort of society – one where people not profits drive economic activity, where co-operation, not exploitation is the norm, and where people can expect to play a broader, more active role in managing their world.
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