What does the weight of public spending mean?

The weight of public spending in GDP differs enormously between OECD countries: in 2021, from 25% in Ireland to 59% in France. A high weight of public spending in GDP means that the government plays an important role in choosing the allocation of national income (to a particular type of public spending, to support a particular type of economic agent, etc.). We can then have two views of the effect of a high weight of public spending: A positive view: the government knows better than the private sector which types of spending and investment are useful for the economy in the medium term, the government internalises externalities (climate, economic, etc.); A negative view: the government does not know which investment projects are efficient, its choices are biased by short-term political objectives and by lobbies; a high tax burden creates negative distortions. Comparing OECD countries, we can then simply look at what the weight of public spending is correlated to: Growth, productivity gains, employment rates? Life expectancy? Inequality, poverty? The weight of industry? Labour force skills, the efficiency of the school system? Research and innovation? Fertility? We see that a high weight of public spending is associated with: Low growth, productivity gains and employment rates; Low income inequality (after redistributive policies) and a small proportion of the population below the poverty line. Countries with a high weight of public spending have therefore chosen equity over efficiency.