Comments on: Competition http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/blog/franceprofonde/competition/ Tim King on French politics Thu, 28 Aug 2008 17:07:38 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.5 by: Sergeant Howie http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/blog/franceprofonde/competition/#comment-15737 Mon, 02 Jul 2007 12:03:57 +0000 http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/blog/franceprofonde/competition/#comment-15737 You can indeed have too many choices. Recent developments in psychology and economics have highlighted this. See for example : http://www.apa.org/monitor/jun04/toomany.html However, I agree this article is ridiculous. And so for Sarkozy's insistence on removal of the competition clause (which however was in the Constitution, but not in the previous treaties if I remember well). It is true that prices may have been lower without competition, but as they should have been subsidized by taxes, the result in the end would have been more or less the same (even if we can complexify much more the economic analysis and find arguments for an electricity monopoly, albeit not this one). You can indeed have too many choices. Recent developments in psychology and economics have highlighted this. See for example :

http://www.apa.org/monitor/jun04/toomany.html

However, I agree this article is ridiculous. And so for Sarkozy’s insistence on removal of the competition clause (which however was in the Constitution, but not in the previous treaties if I remember well). It is true that prices may have been lower without competition, but as they should have been subsidized by taxes, the result in the end would have been more or less the same (even if we can complexify much more the economic analysis and find arguments for an electricity monopoly, albeit not this one).

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