Voices of fiscal rectitude pipe up with ideas about how to fine-tune the first ever Crikey Index of Overgovernment, contained in yesterday’s first Sealed Section:

“Perhaps another interesting take on those numbers is to calculate the ratio of public servants to the size of the state’s economy, or possibly the size of the state budget to the private sector GDP or something like that,” one subscriber suggests.

“You mention ranking the states by population, but you actually get a better fit if you rank them by population density,” another reader writes. “On that basis they’re all in the right order except for Tasmania and the ACT, which both come out as greatly over-governed.”

All further comments will be gratefully received by the Modest Scribbler, christian@crikey.com.au.