The importance of government in the modern economy is enormous though difficult to measure. It is a producer, owner, regulator, subsidizer, and income redistributor, as well as a protector of the consumer and society. There is perhaps no line of economic activity that is not to some degree influenced by government, for it has permeated practically every aspect of economic life. This book covers most aspects of the economics of the public sector in Canada. Its design and structure permits its use as a textbook or a primary supplementary source in a variety of courses on government economic and social policies for which readers require little background in economic theory.
