From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nationalization, also spelled
nationalisation, is the act of taking an industry
or assets into the public ownership of a national
government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private
assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of
government, such as municipalities, being state operated or
owned by the state. The opposite of nationalization is usually privatization or
de-nationalisation, but may also be municipalization. A
renationalization occurs when state-owned assets
are privatized and later nationalized again, often when a different
political
party or faction is in
power. A renationalization process may also be called
reverse privatization.
The motives for nationalization are political as well as
economic. It is a central theme of certain brands of 'state socialist' policy that the means of
production, distribution and exchange, should be owned by the state
on behalf of the people to allow for rational allocation and
operation, and rational planning or control of the economy. Many
socialists believe that public ownership enables people to exercise
full democratic control over the means whereby they earn their
living and provides an effective means of redistributing wealth and
income more equitably.
Nationalized industries, charged with operating in the public
interest, may be under strong political and social pressures to
give much more attention to externalities. They may be obliged to
operate some loss making activities where social benefits are
clearly greater than social costs - for example, rural, postal and
transport services. As an instance, the United States Postal
Service is guaranteed its nationalised status by the
Constitution. The government has recognized these social
obligations and, in some cases, provides subsidies for such
non-commercial operations.
Since the nationalised industries are state owned, the government is responsible
for meeting any debts incurred by
these industries. The nationalized industries do not normally
borrow from the domestic market other than for short-term
borrowing. However, if profitable, the profit is often used as a
means to finance other state services such as social programs and
government research which can help lower the tax burden.
Nationalization may occur with or without compensation to the
former owners. If it takes place without compensation it is a case
of expropriation. Nationalization is
distinguished from property
redistribution in that the government retains control of
nationalized property.
Some nationalizations take place when a government seizes property
acquired illegally. For example, the French government seized the
car-makers Renault because
its owners had collaborated with the Nazi occupiers of France.
Compensation
A key issue in nationalization is payment of compensation to the
former owner. The most controversial nationalizations, known as expropriations, are
those where no compensation, or an amount far below the likely
market value of the nationalized assets, is paid. Many
nationalizations through expropriation have come after revolutions.
The traditional Western stance on compensation was expressed by
United States Secretary of
State Cordell
Hull, during the 1938 Mexican
nationalization of the petroleum industry, that compensation
should be "prompt, effective and adequate." According to this view,
the nationalizing state is obligated under international law to pay
the deprived party the full value of the property taken. The
opposing position has been taken mainly by developing countries,
claiming that the question of compensation should be left entirely
up to the sovereign state, in line with the Calvo Doctrine.
Communist states have held that no compensation is due, based on
socialist notions of private properties.
In 1962, the United Nations General
Assembly adopted Resolution 1803, "Permanent Sovereignty over
National Resources", which states that in the event of
nationalization, the owner "shall be paid appropriate compensation
in accordance with international law." In doing so, the UN rejected
both the traditional Calvo-doctrinist view and the Communist view.
The term "appropriate compensation" represents a compromise between
the traditional views, taking into account the need of developing
countries to pursue reform even without the ability to pay full
compensation, and the Western concern for protection of private
property.
When nationalizing a large business, the cost of compensation is
so great that many legal nationalizations have happened when firms
of national importance run close to bankruptcy and can be acquired by the
government for little or no money. A classic example is the UK
nationalization of the British Leyland Motor Corporation. At other
times, governments have considered it important to gain control of
institutions of strategic economic importance, such as banks or
railways, or of important industries struggling economically. The
case of Rolls-Royce plc, nationalized in 1971,
is an interesting blend of these two arguments. This policy was
sometimes known as ensuring government control of the "commanding
heights" of the economy, to enable it to manage the economy better
in terms of long-term development and medium-term stability. The
extent of this policy declined in the 1980s and 1990s as
governments increasingly privatized industries that had been
nationalized, replacing their strategic economic influence with use
of the tax system and of interest rates.
Nonetheless, national and local governments have seen the
advantage of keeping key strategic assets in institutions that are
not strongly profit-driven and can raise funds outside the
public-sector constraints, but still retain some public
accountability. Examples from the last five years in the United
Kingdom include the vesting
of the British railway infrastructure firm Railtrack in the not-for-profit company Network Rail, and the
divestment of much council housing stock to "arms-length
management companies", often with mutual status.
Notable nationalizations
by country
Argentina
Australia
Bolivia
- 2006 On May 1, 2006, newly elected Bolivian president Evo Morales announces
plans to nationalize the country's natural gas industry; foreign-based
companies are given six months to renegotiate their existing
contracts.
Canada
Channel
Islands
Chile
Cuba
The Castro government gradually expropriated all foreign-owned
private companies after the Cuban Revolution of 1959. Most of
these companies were owned by U.S. corporations and individuals.
Bonds at 4.5% interest over twenty years were offered to U.S.
companies, but the offer was rejected by U.S. ambassador Philip Bonsal, who
requested the compensation up front.[2]
Only a minor amount, $1.3 million, was paid to U.S. interests
before deteriorating relations ended all cooperation between the
two governments.[2]
The United States established a registry of claims against the
Cuban government, ultimately developing files on 5,911 specific
companies. The Cuban government has refused to discuss the
effective and adequate compensation of U.S. claims. The United
States government continues to insist on compensation for U.S.
companies. In 1966-68, the Castro government nationalized all
remaining privately owned business entities in Cuba, down to the
level of street vendors.
Czechoslovakia
- 1948-1990 All manufacturing enterprises.
Egypt
- 1956 On July 26, 1956 Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the
Suez Canal
Company, provoking the United Kingdom, France and Israel to
launch a combined attack on Egypt that was stopped by the U.S. and
the Soviet Union.
France
Nationalization in France dates back to the 'regies' or state
monopolies first organized under the Ancien
Régime, for example, the monopoly on tobacco sales.
Communications companies France Telecom and
La Poste are relics of the
state postal and telecommunications monopolies.
There was a major expansion of the nationalised sector following
World War II.[3]
A second wave followed in 1982.
- 1938 Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer
Francais (SNCF) (originally a 51%
State holding, increased to 100% in 1982)[3]
- 1945 Several nationalizations in France,
including most important banks and Renault.[3]
The firm was seized for Louis Renault's alleged
collaboration with Nazi Germany, although this condemnation
was without judgement and after his death, making this case
remarkable and rare. A later judgement (1949) admitted that
Renault's plant never collaborated. Renault was successful but
unprofitable whilst nationalised and remains successful today,
after having been privatized in 1996.
- 1946 Charbonnages de France, Electricite de France (EdF), Gaz de France
(GdF)
- 1982 A large part of the banking sector and
industries of strategic importance to the state were nationalized
under the new president François Mitterrand and the PS-led
government. Many of those companies were privatized again after
1986.
The Paris regional transport operator, Regie Autonome des Transports Parisiens
(RATP), can also be counted as a nationalised industry.
Germany
The German railways were nationalised after World War I. Partial
privatisation of Deutsche Bahn is currently underway, as
of 2008.
Most enterprises in East Germany were nationalised following
World War II. After reunification, an agency, Treuhand, was established to return them to
private ownership. However, due to structural and economic problems
inherent in the previous regime, many of these had to be
liquidated.
- 2008 Renationalization of the
"Bundesdruckerei" (Federal Print Office), which had been privatized
in 2001.
Greece
Iceland
India
The nationalised banks were credited by some, including Home minister P. Chidambaram, to have helped the Indian
economy withstand the global financial
crisis of 2007-2009.[4][5]
Iran
Ireland
Railways in the Republic of Ireland were nationalised in the
1940s as Coras Iompair
Eireann.
- 2007 On August 3, 2007, the Irish
government were offered a stake in Eircom's copper network infrastructure[6].
Ireland's telephone networks were privatised in 1999.
- 2009 On January 15, 2009, the Irish Government
announced plans to nationalise Anglo Irish Bank in order to secure
the bank's viability.
Israel
- 1983 Nationalization of the major Israeli
banks: Bank Hapoalim, Bank Leumi, Discount Bank, Mezrachi bank due
to the Bank stock crisis that struck Israel in 1983.
Italy
The regime of Benito Mussolini extended
nationalisation, creating the Istituto per la
Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI) as a State holding company for
struggling firms, including the car maker Alfa Romeo. A parallel body, Ente Nazionale
Idrocarburi (Eni) was set up to
manage State oil and gas interests.
Japan
Malta
Mexico
- 1938 The Expropriation of the Petroleum
Industry of Mexico: President Lázaro Cárdenas issued a decree that
the petroleum companies were in rebellion against the government of
Mexico and under the powers granted him under the Expropriation Act
passed by the Congress of Mexico in late 1936 expropriated them.
March 19, 1938 union personnel took conrol of the properties.[7]
- 1982 The nationalization of the Mexican banking system made by President José López Portillo, later in the
Carlos Salinas de Gortari
presidency (1988-1994) a large number of banks were privatized.
The
Netherlands
- 2008 The Dutch State nationalizes the Dutch
activities of Belgian-Dutch banking and insurance company Fortis, which
had come in solvability problems due to the international financial
crisis.
New
Zealand
- 2001 Central government purchased the Auckland
railway network from TranzRail.
- 2003 The Labour Government of New Zealand took
an 80% stake in near-bankrupt national air carrier Air New Zealand
in exchange for a large financial infusion.
- 2004 The rest of the country's rail network is
purchased from Toll New Zealand, formerly known as
TranzRail. A new state owned
enterprise, ONTRACK, was
established to maintain the rail infrastructure.
- 2008 The rolling stock of Toll New Zealand was
purchased by central government, bringing the rail system under
total state ownership and renamed as KiwiRail.
Pakistan
- 1972 On January 2, 1972, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, after the fall of East Pakistan,
announced the nationalisation of all major industries, including
iron and steel, heavy engineering, heavy electricals,
petrochemicals, cement and public utilities.[8]
Philippines
During the administration of Ferdinand Marcos, important companies
such as PLDT, Philippine
Airlines, Meralco and
the Manila Hotel
were nationalized. Other companies were sometimes absorbed into
these government-owned corporations, as well as other companies,
such as Napocor and the Philippine National
Railways, which in their own right are monopolies (exceptions are Meralco and the
Manila Hotel). Today, these companies have been reprivatized and
some, such as PLDT and Philippine Airlines, have been
de-monopolized. Others, like government-formed and owned Napocor,
are in the process of privatization.
Poland
Portugal
After the Carnation Revolution, the Junta de
Salvação Nacional (temporary government) nationalized all the
banking, insurance, petrol and industrial companies. Along with the
telecommunications companies, which were state-owned even before
the Revolution, all the nationalized companies were
reprivatized.
2008: BPN - Banco Português de
Negócios bank nationalised to prevent its collapse.
Romania
- 1948 With the Decree 119 June 1948 the new
Romanian communist regime nationalised all the existing private
companies and their assets in Romania leading to the transformation
of the Romanian economy from a market economy to a planned
economy.
Russia
- 1998 The Yeltsin government began seizing Gazprom assets, claiming that
the company owed back taxes. Privatization of Gazprom from the mid
1990's had been reduced to 38.37% with the intention of achieving
full privatization. However, the stake of the
Russian Government in Gazprom has since been increased to 50% with
Vladimir
Putin's plan to increase the stake to a controlling position.
Gazprom is also buying up both Russian and other international
Utility companies.
South
Korea
- 1946 USAMGIK
nationalized all South Korean private railroad companies and made
Department of Transportation. This now becomes Korail.
Soviet
Union
- 1918 All manufacturing enterprises and many
retailing enterprises.
Spain
- 1941 Spain's railways were nationalised, as RENFE, in the aftermath of the
Spanish Civil War.
- 1983 Nationalization without compensation of
the Spanish Rumasa. Separate
business were later privatized.
Sri Lanka
- 1958 The Government nationalised Bus transport
(creating the Ceylon Transport Board). The
Colombo Port was also nationalised the same year.
- 1961 The local subsidiaries of the foreign
owned petroleum
companies, Caltex, Esso and Shell had formed a cartel, in order
to break which they were nationalised. The Insurance companies and the Bank of Ceylon
were also nationalised in the same year.
- 1971 Graphite mines nationalised.
- 1972 Locally owned Tea and Rubber plantations were nationalised under the Land
Reform law.
- 1975 Sterling plantation companies
(owned by British plantation companies) were
nationalised.
- 2009 Seylan Bank nationalised to prevent its
collapse.
Sweden
- 1939-1948 Nationalisation of most of the
private Railway companies.
- 1957 The mining company LKAB is nationalized. The state had owned 50% of
the corporation's shares, with options to buy the remainder, since
1907.[9]
- 1992 A large part of Sweden's banking sector
is nationalized.[10]
United
Kingdom
The following companies/industries were the subject of
nationalisation in the given year:
- 1868 Nationalisation of inland telegraphs
under the GPO[11]
- 1875 Suez Canal Company - The Egyptian share in
the company was bought out by the British Government.
- 1912 Nationalisation of inland telephone
services under the GPO, apart from Portsmouth, Hull, Guernsey, and Jersey. The Portsmouth telephone service was
nationalised the following year.
- 1916 Liquor Trade - The
nationalisation of pubs and breweries in Carlisle,
Gretna, Cromarty and Enfield under the State Management Scheme; mainly
an attempt to restricting alcohol consumption by armaments factory
workers. The scheme was privatised by asset transfer in 1973.[12]
- 1926 Central Electricity Board
introduced under The Electricity (Supply) Act 1926
established the National Grid and set up a national
standard for electricity supply in the UK.
- 1927 British Broadcasting
Company (a privately owned company) became British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), a public corporation operating under a Royal Charter.
- 1933 London Transport
- 1938 Nationalisation of UK Coal Royalties
under the Coal
Commission[13]
- 1939 British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) later to
become British
Airways (BA) - combining the private British
Airways Ltd. and the state owned Imperial Airways
- 1939 At the outset of World War II, much of
British industry was subjected to State regulation or control,
although not nationalised as such.
- 1943 North of Scotland Hydro-Electricity
Board
- 1946 Coal industry under the National Coal Board
(later British Coal); Bank of England - the latter had had
private shareholders who were bought out by the state.
- 1947 Central Electricity Generating Board and
area electricity boards, Cable & Wireless Ltd - the
latter had had private shareholders who were bought out by the
state.
- 1948 National rail, water transport, some road
haulage, road passenger transport and Thomas Cook & Son under the British Transport
Commission. Separate elements operated as British Railways, British Road Services, and British
Waterways, also national health services created (for England and Wales, for Scotland and for Northern Ireland) taking over a mixture of
previously Local Authority, private commercial and charitable
organisations.
- 1949 Local authority gas supply undertakings in
England, Scotland and Wales
- 1951 Iron and Steel Industry (denationalised
by the following Conservative Government)[14]
- 1967 British Steel
- 1969 National Bus Company,
combining former interests of the British Transport Commission with
others acquired from the British Electric Traction group.
- 1969 Post Office
Corporation created
- 1971 Rolls-Royce (1971) Ltd - The
strategically-important aero-engine part of the recently-bankrupt
Rolls Royce Limited.
- 1973 Local authority water supply undertakings in
England and Wales
- 1973 British Gas Corporation created, replacing
regional gas boards.
- 1974 British Petroleum
- the combination of a 50% stake bought by Winston
Churchill as First Lord of the Admiralty after World War I with
around a 25% stake acquired by the Bank of England from Burmah Oil made the UK
Government directly or indirectly BP's majority shareholder, though
commercial independence was maintained. The shares were all sold
during the 1980s.
- 1975 National Enterprise Board - a
State holding company for full or partial ownership of industrial
undertakings
- 1976 British Leyland Motor Corporation - became
British Leyland upon nationalization. Privatized in 1986
to British
Aerospace.
- 1977 British Aerospace - combining the
major aircraft companies British Aircraft
Corporation, Hawker Siddeley and others. British
Shipbuilders - combining the major shipbuilding companies
including Cammell
Laird, Govan Shipbuilders, Swan Hunter, Yarrow
Shipbuilders
- 1981 British Telecom
created, taking control of telecommunications services from the Post Office
- 1984 Johnson Matthey - purchased for a
nominal sum of £1 by the Thatcher government [15]
- 1997 Docklands Light Railway - John
Prescott announced to the 1997 Labour Party Conference that he had
nationalised this.[15]
- 2001 Railtrack - The owner and operator of the
railway infrastructure, Railtrack, was not nationalised as such.
However, its replacement Network Rail, whilst not a state-owned
company, has no shareholders (company
limited by guarantee) and is underwritten by the state. In
addition prior to this the government began to make use of a
residual shareholding of 0.2% (including voting rights) in
Railtrack Group Plc leftover from the original sale.[16]
- 2008 Northern Rock - announced by Alistair
Darling, Chancellor of the Exchequer on 17 February 2008 as 'a
temporary measure'. The bank will be run at 'arms length' as a
commercial business and sold to a private buyer in the future.[17]
- 2008 Bradford & Bingley (mortgage
book only) - announced by Alistair Darling, Chancellor of the
Exchequer on 29 September 2008. The loans part of the company was
nationalised, while the commercial bank was sold off.[18]
- 2008 In October, the Royal
Bank of Scotland, and the newly merged HBOS-Lloyds TSB was partly nationalised. The
Government took over approximately 60% of RBS (later increased to
70%, then 80%) and 40% of HBOS-Lloyds TSB. This is part of the £500bn bank rescue
package.
- 2009 On 13 November, Directly Operated
Railways, a government company, took over the East Coast Main Line
railway franchise that National Express
had bought in 2007 for £1.4 billion, a sum originally to be paid
over 7 years. The nationalised service operates as East Coast and includes
services from London to York and Edinburgh. It has been stated by the
government that their control is a temporary measure, initially to
last 2 years.
British assets
nationalised by other countries
United
States
- 1917: All U.S. railroads were nationalized as the Railroad
Administration during World War I as a wartime measure, but were
returned to their private owners almost immediately after the
war.
- 1939: Organization of the Tennessee Valley Authority
entailed the nationalization of the facilities of the former
Tennessee Electric Power Company.
- 1971: The National Railroad Passenger
Corporation (Amtrak) is a government-owned
corporation created in 1971 for the express purpose of
relieving American railroads of their legal obligation to provide
inter-city
passenger rail service. The (primarily) freight railroads had petitioned to abandon
passenger service repeatedly in the decades leading up to Amtrak's
formation.
- 1976: The Consolidated Rail Corporation
(Conrail), another government corporation, was created to take
over the operations of six bankrupt rail lines operating primarily
in the Northeast; Conrail was
privatized in 1987. Initial plans for Conrail would have made it a
truly nationalized system like that during World War I, but an
alternate proposal by the Association of American
Railroads won out.
- 1980s: Resolution Trust
Corporation seized control of hundreds of failed S&L.
- 2001: In response to the September
11 attacks, the then-private airport security industry was
nationalized and put under the authority of the Transportation
Security Administration.
- 2008: Some economists consider the U.S.
government's takeover
of the Federal Home Loan
Mortgage Corporation and Federal National Mortgage Association to
have been nationalization.[19][20] The
conservatorship model used with Fannie
Mae and Freddie Mac is looser and more temporary than
nationalization.[21]
- 2009: Some economists consider the U.S.
government's actions with regards to Citigroup to have been a partial
nationalization.[22]
Proposal made that banks like Citigroup be brought under a conservatorship
model similar to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, that some of their
"good assets" be dropped into newly created "good bank"
subsidiaries (presumably under new management), and the remaining
"bad assets" be left to be managed under the supervision of a conservatorship
structure.[21]
The U.S. government's actions with regard to General Motors in
replacing the CEO with a government approved CEO is likewise being
considered as nationalization. [23][24] On
June 1, 2009, General Motors filed for
bankruptcy, with the United States investing up to $50 billion
and taking 60% ownership in the company. President Obama stated
that the nationalization was temporary, saying, "We are acting as
reluctant shareholders because that is the only way to help GM
succeed"[25]
Venezuela
- 2007 On May 1, 2007, Venezuela stripped the world's biggest oil
companies of operational control over massive Orinoco Belt crude
projects, a controversial component in President Hugo
Chavez's nationalization drive.
- 2008 On April 3, 2008, President Hugo Chavez
ordered the nationalization of the cement industry.[26]
- 2008 On April 9, 2008, Hugo Chavez ordered the
nationalization of Venezuelan steel mill Sidor, in which Luxembourg-based Ternium currently holds a 60%
stake. Sidor employees and the Government hold a 20% stake
respectively.[27]
- 2008 On August 19, 2008, Hugo Chavez ordered
the take-over of a cement plant owned and operated by Cemex, an international cement
producer. While shares of Cemex fell on the New
York Stock Exchange, the cement plant comprises only about 5%
of the company's business, and is not expected to adversely affect
the company's ability to produce in other markets. Chavez has been
looking to nationalize the concrete and steel industries of his
country to meet home building and infrastructure goals.[28]
- 2009 On February 28, 2009, Hugo
Chavez ordered the army to take over all rice processing and
packaging plants. [29]
Zimbabwe
- Zimbabwe has
nationalized its food distribution infrastructure.
Other
countries
See also
References
- ^
The Constitutional Centre of
Western Australia | The Role of The High Court
- ^ a
b
Thomas, Hugh (March 1971). Cuba; the
Pursuit of Freedom. New York: Harper & Row. pp. 224,
p252. ISBN
0060142596.
- ^ a
b
c
Myers (1949)
- ^
PSU banks' policies saved
India from financial blushes: Chidambaram
- ^
The importance of public
banking
- ^
Eircom and State in broadband
swap?
- ^
The Expropriation of the
Petroleum Industry of Mexico in 1938
- ^ US Country Studies. "Zulfikar Ali Bhutto"
(PHP). http://countrystudies.us/pakistan/20.htm. Retrieved
2006-11-07.
- ^
A Historic Journey
Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Aktiebolag, April 2006
- ^
Stopping a Financial Crisis,
the Swedish Way
- ^
BBC NEWS | Business | The
lessons of nationalisation
- ^
http://www.historytoday.com/dt_main_allatonce.asp?gid=9859&g9859=x&g9857=x&g30026=x&g20991=x&g21010=x&g19965=x&g19963=x&amid=9859
- ^
SN 1825 -Nationalisation of
the UK Coal Royalties, 1938 : Compensation Payments
- ^
http://www.uksteel.org.uk/history.htm
- ^ a
b
"What was the last
nationalisation?", BBC News, 18 February 2008
- ^
House of Commons Hansard
Written Answers for 12 Feb 2002 (pt 16)
- ^
BBC NEWS | Business | Northern
Rock to be nationalised
- ^
HIGHLIGHTS-Britain
nationalises Bradford & Bingley | Reuters
- ^
US rescue of Fannie, Freddie
poses taxpayer risks
- ^
Diamond and Kashyap on the
Recent Financial Upheavals
- ^ a
b
Baxter,
Lawrence; Brown, Bill; Cox, Jim (February 27 2009), "Finally, A Bridge to
Somewhere", Huffington Post,
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lawrence-baxter-bill-brown-and-james-cox/finally-a-bridge-to-somew_b_170688.html
- ^
Nature of Citi stake
debatable
- ^
Am I the Last Capitalist?
Obama Falters on Rick Wagoner, GM, and the Auto Industry - Mary
Kate Cary (usnews.com)
- ^
“If, in fact, Wagoner
resigned because somebody in government said, ‘You have to resign,’
then I think we have nationalized the auto industry, at least GM,
and I think that’s bad to have the government have a socialized car
industry,” -Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa)
- ^
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/01/AR2009060101480.html
- ^
Al Jazeera English - Americas
- Chavez nationalises cement industry
- ^
Venezuela to nationalize
steelmaker Sidor: union | Reuters
- ^
Venezuela Seizes Cemex -
Forbes.com
- ^
BBC NEWS | Americas | Chavez
sends army to rice plants
Bibliography
On
banks nationalization
- La Porta, Rafael, Florencio Lopez-de-Silanes, Andrei Shleifer,
Government Ownership of
Banks, The Journal of Finance, vol. 57, No. 1 (Feb. 2002),
265-301.
External
links