Nationalisation is one of those stories for which the punchline is: “Eventually you run out of other people’s money.”

In real life, that running out can take a long time, during which politically connected beneficiaries drain resources from taxpayers and customers. That means the resources acquired to produce the service were worth more than the value of that service to customers. In less polite company, we might refer to that as wealth destruction...

Subscribe now to unlock this article.

Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).

There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.

Cancel anytime.

Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.