Government Provision of Public Goods

Steps:

• Identify public goods as non-excludable and non-rivalrous items that markets fail to provide efficiently.
• Recall that governments supply these to avoid free-rider problems and ensure societal benefit.
• Evaluate options: defence benefits all without exclusion; health, museums, and theatres can involve private alternatives.
• Select the option exclusively reliant on government due to its scale and necessity.

Why A is correct:

• National defence is a classic public good, defined as non-excludable (cannot prevent non-payers from benefiting) and non-rivalrous (one person's protection doesn't reduce another's), per economic theory, making private provision impractical.

Why the others are wrong:

• B: National health often includes private providers like hospitals and insurance, not solely government.
• C: National museums can receive private funding or operate with admission fees alongside public support.
• D: National theatres frequently involve private sponsorships, ticket sales, and commercial productions.

Final answer: A