Government Reorganization Research Articles

LOCAL AUTHORITY E‐GOVERNMENT PARTNERSHIPS IN ENGLAND: A CASE STUDY

This paper uses a case study of an e‐government partnership of ten local authorities to consider how governance structures, financial arrangements and performance management systems may promote or inhibit successful collaborative working. The case is considered within the contexts of continuing new public management reforms including the balance between formal performance measurement indicators imposed by higher authorities and the scope for dialogue in the development of performance management systems. The case supports a view that collaborative working can benefit from a governance structure supporting a consistency of objectives of the partners operating within similar political and regulatory environments. Externally imposed performance indicators are significant to the partner authorities but their influence does not exclude the possibility of more dialogue‐driven performance management systems being developed within the partnership. Sustainability of the partnership is never assured and tensions develop as a result of developing priorities of individual authorities, the possibility of local government reorganisation and changing national policy initiatives.

Rethinking the changing structures of rural local government – State power, rural politics and local political strategies?

There is a notable absence in contemporary rural studies – of both a theoretical and empirical nature – concerning the changing nature of rural local government. Despite the scale and significance of successive rounds of local government reorganisation in the UK, very little has been written on this topic from a rural perspective. Instead research on local political change has tended to concentrate on local governance and local partnerships – on the extra-governmental aspects of the governance system – rather than on local government itself. In contrast, this paper draws upon strategic-relational state theory to explore the changing structures and institutions of rural local government, and analyse how these can be related to the changing state strategies of those groups which are politically powerful in rural areas. In this respect, the paper draws on current and previous rounds of local government reorganisation to illustrate how new objects of governance, new state strategies and new hegemonic projects are emerging as a consequence of such restructuring processes.

Political Entrepreneurs and Public Administration Reform: The Case of the Local Authorities' Unification Reform in Israel

This article examines a specific institutional change in Israel. In 2003 the Israeli Knesset implemented the local authority unification plan, an unprecedented reform in the structure of local authorities in Israel. This article is about a local government reorganization taking place in a unique political culture. This article tries to integrate the role of political entrepreneurs within an Institutionalist and “learning” perspectives to offer an explanation to a local government structure, thus politicians influence and are influenced by a wide range of institutional norms and practices in a complex process of design and determination of institutional change.

Comparative Study on Decision-making Process of Governmental Reorganization: With Special Reference to Large-scale and Small-scale Reorganization

Comparative Study on Decision-making Process of Governmental Reorganization: With Special Reference to Large-scale and Small-scale Reorganization

Repetitive Pattern and Reality of Government Reorganization

Repetitive Pattern and Reality of Government Reorganization

Split‐ticket Voting in Times of Sub‐national Government Reorganisation: Evidence from Denmark

Local government amalgamations may have unintended consequences on electoral behaviour. Using the most recent local elections in Denmark as its case, this article demonstrates that inter‐level split‐ticket voting between three levels (national, regional and local) decreased slightly from 2001 to 2005 – that is, simultaneously with the implementation of a major reform, where many municipalities and all the counties were amalgamated. These amalgamations affect the level of split voting through a process where the local party system operates as an intervening variable: the larger municipalities have a more nationalised local party system, which leads to fewer voters being vote splitters by necessity. The analyses combine general electoral statistics with large voter surveys and benefit from the quasi‐experimental setting offered by the fact that not all municipalities were amalgamated.

A Study of Administrative Reforms in India - With Particular Reference to the RTI Act, 2005

Historical over view of Administrative reforms in India: The year 1858 was a landmark in India’s public administration as the political power was legally transferred to the British Crown from the hands of the East India Company. The first task of the new rule was, to appoint, Rickett to examine the then prevalent administrative system of India. Ricketts report, called “Report on Civil Establishments and Salaries” was submitted in 1866. India after became independent in the year 1947, should have followed the same path. However, in July of that year, the “Secretariat Reorganization Committee” was appointed and it functioned like an Officers’ shortage committee. It warned the government not to take up new activities until additional personnel became available. The Committee also recommended for change of the then existing method of business of the government involving multiplicity of officers. But, before independence, Tottenham Report on the Reorganization of Central Government of 1946 supported a sleek and streamlined secretariat. He was against the post of deputy secretary and recommended waiving of the tenure system of staffing after fifteen or twenty years’ service.

Twenty nine years of experience with physical modelling of geotechnical problems in port structures

At present, centrifuge model testing has become an important tool for investigation of complex geotechnical natures. In 1980, the Port and Harbour Research Institute (PHRI) constructed the Mark I geotechnical centrifuge, whose effective radius was 3.8 m. Since then, the PHRI carried out many tests on fundamental and practical research projects. Unfortunately, since 1989, undesirable vibrations of the concrete pit floor had frequently occurred during the operation of the Mark I centrifuge. Therefore the maximum operative acceleration had to be limited below 50 g for safety reason, which in fact led to serious limitations to research projects to be studied. Consequently, the PHRI had decided to construct a new centrifuge, namely the Mark II. Based on the statistical studies on the actual operation, the major dimensions and capacities of the new centrifuge was decided to be the same as the Mark I. In 1989, the PHRI had started the construction and completed in 1994. In 2001, the PHRI became an independent administrative institution in the administrative reorganization of Japanese Government, and the name of the institute was changed to the Port and Airport Research Institute (PARI). The PHRI and the PARI have conducted more than 1,300 centrifuge operations on various research subjects mainly regarding to ground improvements. Some of them were related to fundamental research topics, while the research subject also included practical research projects associated with specific prototypes. The test results have been applied and reflected to the constructions of various port, harbor and airport facilities in Japan and overseas. This report briefly reviews the summary of the Mark I and the Mark II geotechnical centrifuge facilities and the centrifuge operations experienced in 29 years. Some research subjects studied so far are reviewed to demonstrate usefulness of this modelling technique and the ability of the centrifuge facilities.

China's Accession to the WTO Government Procurement Agreement--Challenges and The Way Forward

Government procurement, whilst important for international trade,1 has been largely excluded from the reach of multilateral regulation under the World Trade Organization (WTO).2 In the absence of multilateral rule, China's trade partners have made considerable efforts, before and after China's WTO accession, to persuade China to become party of the plurilateral WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). After 5 years of intensive discussion, on 28 December 2007, China finally submitted a formal application to become party to the GPA.3 This included an offer of GPA coverage (the so-called ‘Appendix I offer’) and signaled the initiation of China's GPA accession process.4 However, China's initial offer has been regarded as ‘very limited’ and ‘deeply disappointing’ by China's trade partners.5 It is safe to argue that China's GPA accession poses significant challenges for negotiators due to a number of factors. Firstly, the GPA itself, even after its recent revision, is not fully equipped to deal with acceding countries with a large state sector6 and existing GPA Parties have made little progress in extending the coverage commitments following the revision. Secondly, so far as the position of China is concerned, Chinese government structure is complicated and the problem has been aggravated by a new round of central government reorganization completed after the application and the division between the Chinese government and state enterprises is difficult to ascertain, especially with regard to investment, which make coverage negotiations problematic. Furthermore, the legal and institutional frameworks underlying current Chinese public procurement regime remain fragmented and incoherent whilst it is also evident that China has in recent years intensified the use of government procurement as a policy instrument to promote national industrial and environmental policies. These add to the lack of political supports for speeding up the GPA accession and complicate the negotiation and adaptation of domestic legislation. Finally, the structural link between administrative tribunals/judiciary and the local government gives rise to the concern of local protectionism and put the effectiveness of a GPA-compliant supplier review system in question.

Board Enacts Big Reduction in Governance Structure

Board Enacts Big Reduction in Governance Structure

Local Government and the Problem of English Governance

The paper is concerned with the problematic nature of English governance. The discussion begins with reference to the reluctance to engage in debates about English national governance. It then poses a series of questions about the balance to be drawn between localism and regionalism and the fragmentation of local governance in England (in contrast to the rest of the UK), suggesting that local government might provide a solution to the problem through the building of effective patterns of governance from the bottom up. This is contrasted with the various proposed formal and institutional ‘solutions’ to English governance, which are bound to fail. The discussion goes on to consider the problem of the English regions and concludes that the political conditions do not exist for the English regions to be the primary sites for the building of new English governance. After a review of ways in which governance can be built, attention reverts to the local level where it is suggested that the current reorganisation of English local government suggests ways in which the foundations of English governance can be developed locally.

Reorganisation, Reorganisation, Reorganisation: A Critical Analysis of the Sequence of Local Government Reorganisation Initiatives, 1979–2008

There has been a lack of clarity about the principles and desirable outcomes behind the ad hoc reorganisations of local government since 1979 and the gradual journey towards creating unitary councils in England. Yet those reorganisations and the unitary councils that were created as a result have developed form a shared belief between governments, of different political complexion, that unitary local government is preferable to a two-tier or multi-tiered system. The paper explores and challenges the foundations on which the preference for unitary local government has been built. It questions the motivations, claims and objectives of the processes of local government reorganisation that have seen the creation of bigger units of local government and the continual drift towards unitary local government.

New Labour and Joined-up Urban Governance

This article examines New Labour's approach to joined-up government within UK urban policy. In particular, it analyses the government's success in achieving greater degrees of integration in urban governance. It suggests that the growth in the number of multi-sectoral partnership schemes and area-based urban policies under Labour produced tensions with key elements of its joined-up government agenda. The article examines the rationale underpinning the government's approach to 'joined-up governance' and explores the processes by which the government sought to encourage the reorganization of urban governance through the institutional development of strategic and single-purpose partnership bodies. It also highlights the effects of these processes on the ground through an examination of developments in the city of Sheffield. It explores changes in the structure of urban governance in the city in response to national restructuring and local agendas, highlighting the importance of local leadership in providing coherence to urban governance and indicates some democratic tensions that have arisen.

A Critical Perspective on the Central Governmental Reorganization of the Social Service Delivery System for People with Disabilities

A Critical Perspective on the Central Governmental Reorganization of the Social Service Delivery System for People with Disabilities

Slovenia

Slovenia, with an area of 20 000 km2 and a population of 2 million, is one of the smallest members of the European Union. It gained its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. The country has a gross domestic product (GDP) of US$27 300 per capita. (Largely because of its historical links with Western Europe, Slovenia has a higher GPD compared with other countries in transition in Central Europe.) The health budget represents 8.4% of GDP. Slovenia has a low birth rate and an ageing population. It is divided into 210 municipalities; however, the re organisation of government into several separate regions with more administrative and economic autonomy is in progress. The prevalence of mental illness is comparable to that in other European countries, although there are high levels of alcoholism and suicide.

Making Change From Below

<p>In this paper I've tried to spell out what I think we're confronting in attempting to make change in the context of global capitalism. I've used the notion of making change from below because the kind of government organization that made taking it over appear practicable has largely disappeared in a fragmentation of the state at many levels both within Canada and at international levels. Moreover the terrain of struggle has shifted from the directly physical to the contemporary text-mediated relations that pervade our societies. Right now we are also going through a rapid reorganization of governance replacing bureaucratic and professional organization with new managerial forms that subordinate both government and public institutions to the service of global capital. We can, however, find models of making change from below that have been effective. I look first to the Women's Movement, proposing that in addition to the specifics of its achievements, women in Canada are recognized and recognize ourselves as political subjects and agents. I then introduce more current examples of change initiated by non-governmental organizations, including unions. While specific objectives may be achieved, in the longer run these forms of organizing to make change are also important in building people's experience of acting and organizing, in extending connections among activists, and in grounding people's capacities to experience themselves as political subjects. </p>

Understanding the Economic and Social Effects of Academic Clinical Partnerships

Partnerships between medical schools and their clinical associates, which we describe in this article as academic clinical partnerships (ACPs), are powerful economic and social actors through their roles as major employers and procurers of goods and services. A broad spectrum of effects extending beyond the tripartite mission shapes the social contract between ACPs and the communities they serve. The authors present a model for identifying and measuring effects across this spectrum and illustrate the model's application with reference to specific case studies set in the United Kingdom. This model categorizes effects into five different domains: economic, human capital, social capital, knowledge, and place. These different effects express themselves along a spatial scale that varies from the very local to the global. The authors describe the theoretical background for each domain, as well as the methods required to identify and measure effects. These methods range from a quantitative economic impact analysis using extended input-output models to qualitative methods to capture social capital and place effects. The authors demonstrate how leaders in academic medicine can use the model to build a holistic picture of the societal effects of ACPs. Evidence of impact is of value to ACP leaders in engaging with both national and local stakeholders, and the approach is likely transferable to different countries.

The Reorganisation of Local Government: Background and Objectives

New Zealand Journal of GeographyVolume 87, Issue 1 p. 16-20 The Reorganisation of Local Government: Background and Objectives First published: April 1989 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0028-8292.1989.tb00411.xAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume87, Issue1April 1989Pages 16-20 RelatedInformation

The Reorganisation of Local Government: Reform or Rhetoric?

The Reorganisation of Local Government: Reform or Rhetoric?

Political Accountability for Public Spending

This paper argues that legislative incentives to overspend are not confined to local public good provision, but also plague non-targetable (global) public good provision, such as public safety and public health. The channel for the second type of spending is different from the common pool logic, however. To identify this channel I model fragmentation of fiscal power in a political agency setup with legislative bargaining. First, legislators lack common pool incentives when benefits cannot be targeted. Second, fragmentation of agenda power in the legislature weakens voters' control over agenda setters by reducing the value of their office -- weak external accountability. This allows the government to initiate public projects with high unwarranted costs. Third, a check on their behavior is a larger number of legislators, creating internal accountability. I estimate the effects of fragmentation on budget performance by exploiting a state-mandated reorganization of Kentucky county governments at the end of the 1970s that substantially enhanced the power of the office of county executive. I present difference-in-differences estimates using a 1962-1997 panel that contains counties in the neighboring state of West Virginia as the control group. The results indicate that the centralization of executive power has led to significant reductions in several categories of county revenues as well as spending and in improvements in both budget balance and indebtedness position.