A wise man once said “I think of a hero as someone who understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom.” That wise man was Bob Dylan. And while I’m not sure Bob Dylan would identify himself as such, these sentiments reveal a key facet of classical liberal thought: Freedom and responsibility go hand-in-hand.

This week is Money Week, a week to focus on increasing financial literacy and encouraging people to make good financial decisions. Such an initiative has the potential to be worthwhile. It is, after all, an important mechanism for encouraging personal responsibility, and less reliance on fellow taxpayers.

But what is the point of being responsible, when those who exercise self-control over their finances end up subsidising those who don’t?

It is assumed that an education in financial literacy is to help people stop making irresponsible decisions: racking up spiralling debts, deciding to have children when the finances are too tight, not saving sufficiently for retirement, or putting all their retirement savings into dodgy finance companies.

But as financial literacy at a population level increases, will taxpayers still have an obligation to subsidise the lifestyles of others who make poor decisions? Who picks up the bill when people have the education to make responsible decisions, but refuse or fail to use them?

I’m not talking here about people who genuinely fall on hard times, or are victims of unforeseeable circumstances. But personal responsibility matters too, and our support systems cannot easily distinguish between bad luck and bad habits.

The media provides ample stories of individuals and families struggling to make ends meet. There are many individuals in circumstances seeming to warrant extra support.

But what about merit?

After all, to what extent should taxpayers who have chosen to avoid or delay having children be expected to subsidise other peoples’ families? How much should workers who have saved conscientiously for retirement provide for those who have not, or bail out those who invested imprudently? And given the sacrifices in luxuries involved with financial responsibility, what sacrifices should be reasonably expected of those receiving government support?

People are free to make their own decisions about how they wish to spend their lives and money. But they must also be accountable for the consequences.

Financial literacy gives people the analytical tools they need to make good decisions. But unless the incentives for reckless behaviour are ironed out of the government support system, the responsible will continue to subsidise the irresponsible.