"What I'm not saying is that all government spending is bad. It's not - far, far from it, but there is no free lunch, as a former colleague of mine used to say. There is no public tooth fairy. Father Christmas does not work on the Treasury staff this year. You can never bail someone out of trouble without putting someone else into trouble"

In this quote, Arthur Laffer is emphasizing the idea that government costs is not constantly a positive thing. He acknowledges that some government costs can be beneficial, however alerts against the belief that there is an endless supply of money. Laffer utilizes the analogy of a "free lunch" to show that there are constantly effects to costs, and somebody will eventually have to spend for it. He likewise resolves the idea of a "public tooth fairy" or a wonderful option to monetary problems. Laffer's final declaration highlights the truth that helping one person or entity through government spending frequently comes at the expenditure of another. In general, Laffer is warning versus negligent and unsustainable government spending.