The future of public services

What will happen to public services in years to come?  Will we still enjoy the "free" facilities that our taxes pay for?  Or will everything be so commercialised and "user-pays" that there becomes nothing to enjoy in the future?

Gone are the days when University courses were free.  In fact, tertiary education is big, international business nowadays.  In fact, there is talk that University fees will go up in price in order to fund education for primary and secondary school children.

Public libraries are something that I have enjoyed, but apparently, the facilities are not there in every country I have lived in.  Now, in this age of e-books and broadband internet being available almost everywhere, will public libraries still be useful in the future?  I appreciate that libraries are useful for more purposes than just the books, but the people who run and fund these facilities may not.

I heard the other day the proposal that people be charged for using the parks; ie. if they take a dog for a walk or go for a jog or something.  I heard that the city councils have rejected the idea, but do you think it might happen someday in the future?

Parking is still free at some times in some places, but no longer in the streets of the big cities anymore, it seems.  Then, as the statistics say that more people are using these streets, there has been talk of reducing the free parking faciltiies.  Even shopping complexes do not all have 3-hour free parking nowadays.

As the trend changes, what other facilities do you think might disappear?  Will you miss these facilties?

What if you have to pay the police if you use their services?  Would that mean that criminals can pay the police so that they don't get caught?  Would the same principle apply to judges and law courts?

As it is, the fire services are asking for money from the insurance companies and the property taxes in order to pay for their services.

What do you think might change?  Do you like the prospect of such user-pay services?