Policy Making in Britain: An Introduction

Book Cover......Page 1
Half-Title......Page 2
Title......Page 3
Copyright......Page 4
Contents......Page 5
Figures and tables......Page 7
Contributors......Page 8
Introduction......Page 10
REFERENCES......Page 18
IDEAS, GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC POLICY......Page 20
WHAT IDEAS?......Page 21
LIBERALISM, NEO-LIBERALISM AND COLLECTIVISM......Page 23
POST-WAR CONSENSUS......Page 26
OUTSIDE THE CONSENSUS......Page 28
THE NEW RIGHT AND THATCHERISM......Page 31
ALTERNATIVES TO THATCHERISM......Page 34
POST-THATCHERISM?......Page 35
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 38
POLITICS, GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC POLICY......Page 40
PUBLIC POLICY AND THE BRITISH SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT......Page 43
PARTY POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY......Page 46
GROUPS AND PUBLIC POLICY......Page 48
THE ELECTORATE......Page 51
BRITAIN, EUROPE AND THE WORLD......Page 54
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 55
SLOW TRAIN TO MAASTRICHT......Page 57
ARRIVING AT MAASTRICHT......Page 59
The Treaty......Page 60
What next? The variable geometry thesis......Page 62
The Council of Ministers......Page 63
The European Court of Justice......Page 64
The Economic and Social Committee......Page 65
The core executive......Page 66
Westminster......Page 67
Beyond the Whitehall/Westminster complex......Page 68
The parties......Page 69
Pressure groups......Page 71
The direct approach......Page 72
EUROPE AS A POLITICAL ISSUE......Page 73
No Euro-talk please, we’re British......Page 74
Economic and monetary union......Page 75
Three stages towards monetary union......Page 76
The UK government position......Page 77
The social dimension......Page 78
Problems with the UK government position......Page 80
The ethical question......Page 81
The practical question......Page 82
CONCLUSION: A DECLINING NATION IN A GROWING EUROPE......Page 83
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 84
INTRODUCTION......Page 86
SITUATING LOCAL GOVERNMENT......Page 87
LOCAL GOVERNMENT: CONTEXT AND RESTRUCTURING......Page 90
LOCAL GOVERNMENT AFTER 1979......Page 93
LOCAL EXPENDITURE......Page 96
COMPULSORY COMPETITIVE TENDERING......Page 97
HOUSING......Page 98
THE FUTURE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT......Page 99
The enabling authority......Page 100
Local government and private enterprise......Page 101
CONCLUSION......Page 102
CORE READING......Page 103
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 104
INTRODUCTION......Page 105
EXCHANGE RATE POLICY: THE UK AND THE FUTURE OF THE ERM......Page 106
UNEMPLOYMENT: CAUSES AND CURES......Page 108
International perspectives......Page 110
Implications for UK employment policies......Page 115
THE GLOBAL ECONOMY......Page 118
CONCLUSIONS......Page 121
CORE READING......Page 123
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 124
6 Public expenditure decisions......Page 126
THE STUDY OF UK PUBLIC EXPENDITURE 1962–92......Page 128
Social expenditure......Page 129
Explaining year-on-year changes in capital expenditure......Page 130
Current expenditure 1962–92......Page 132
Expenditure on transfers and subsidies 1962–92......Page 134
CHALLENGES FOR THE 1990S......Page 135
CONCLUSIONS......Page 141
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 143
INTRODUCTION......Page 144
THE POLITICS-ADMINISTRATION DICHOTOMY: IMPROVING THE BUSINESS OF GOVERNMENT......Page 145
Principal-agent theory......Page 147
Clarifying roles......Page 149
Improving the management of government......Page 152
Agencification: implications for political accountability......Page 157
THE UK AGENCY PROGRAMME: A RADICAL DEPARTURE?......Page 160
CONCLUSIONS......Page 163
NOTES......Page 164
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 165
8 Privatisation and water......Page 168
THE PRIVATISATION CONTEXT......Page 169
THATCHER’S LEGACY......Page 173
WATER PRIVATISATION......Page 175
Privatisation in prospect......Page 176
Water and the European Community......Page 177
Water meters......Page 179
WHO GUARDS THE GUARDIANS?......Page 183
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 187
INTRODUCTION......Page 189
The establishment of the National Health Service......Page 190
The NHS and the post-war consensus......Page 192
THE NHS AND THE END OF THE ‘LONG BOOM’......Page 193
The background to the reforms......Page 196
The impact of market-based reforms......Page 198
Community care......Page 201
CONCLUSION......Page 203
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 205
INTRODUCTION......Page 206
STATE OR MARKET?......Page 208
DEPENDENCY AND POLITICS......Page 210
DEPENDABILITY AND PROFITS......Page 215
CAPITAL FOR LABOUR......Page 219
CONCLUSION......Page 222
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 224
The great debate and its consequences 1976–88......Page 226
The reform of vocational education and training......Page 228
Lifetime learning......Page 231
Work-Related Further Education (WRFE): a case study in central government management of vocational education and training......Page 233
Vocational and training policy for the 1990s: the key issues......Page 234
International comparisons......Page 236
CORE READING......Page 239
ADDITIONAL READING......Page 240
INTRODUCTION......Page 241
IMMIGRATION POLICY: ELECTORAL POPULISM OR ‘STATECRAFT’?......Page 243
TORY DISCOURSE: ‘NEW RACISM’ OR CONTINUITY?......Page 244
EUROPEAN IMMIGRATION POLICY: FORTRESS EUROPE OR MIGRATION MANAGEMENT?......Page 248
LABOUR POLICIES: CONFUSION AND UNCERTAINTY?......Page 251
CORE READING......Page 254
SUPPLEMENTARY READING......Page 255
Conclusion......Page 257
REFERENCES AND ADDITIONAL READING......Page 262
Index......Page 263