Underperforming policy networks : the biopesticides network in the United Kingdom

Loosely integrated and incomplete policy networks have been neglected in the literature. They are important to consider in terms of understanding network underperformance. The effective delivery and formulation of policy requires networks that are not incomplete or underperforming. The biopesticides policy network in the United Kingdom is considered and its components identified with an emphasis on the lack of integration of retailers and environmental groups. The nature of the network constrains the actions of its agents and frustrates the achievement of policy goals. A study of this relatively immature policy network also allows for a focus on network formation. The state, via an external central government department, has been a key factor in the development of the network. Therefore, it is important to incorporate such factors more systematically into understandings of network formation. Feedback efforts from policy have increased interactions between productionist actors but the sphere of consumption remains insufficiently articulated

Political Leadership as Statecraft? Aligning Theory with Praxis in Conversation with British Party Leaders

How should prime ministerial and party leadership be understood and assessed? One leading approach posits that we should assess them in terms of whether they achieve statecraft, that is, winning and maintain office in government. This article supplements and then assesses that theory by drawing from Pawson and Tilley’s (1997) concept of the realistic interview, in which practitioners are deployed as co-researchers to assess and revise theory. Unprecedented interviews with British party leaders were therefore undertaken. The article provides new empirical support for the framework because many of the key generative mechanisms identified within the neo-statecraft model were present in an analysis of the interviews. The interviews also allowed the limitations of the model to be demarcated. Statecraft focusses purely on cunning leadership where the aim is to maximise power and influence. This differs from leadership by conscious where the aim is to achieve normative goals

Reviewing quality of governance:New perspectives and future research

In the concluding chapter, the editors address the central topics of the book as well as some lessons learnt on quality of governance. Public values do matter, but how do they relate (and conflict), with many actors involved in public governance, including at street level and in public-private networks? A broad panorama of values appears to be important for the quality of governance, but the interpretation of the values differs and context is always relevant (macro, meso, and micro). Thus, the work in progress and the chapter define an agenda for future research and offers food for thought for all levels of governance

Cyberspace, Blockchain, Governance:How Technology Implies Normative Power and Regulation

Technologies and their inherent design choices create normative structures that affect governance. This chapter aims to illustrate how blockchain technology in particular introduces new norms into a legal framework. We first analyze the different forms of governance by distinguishing between old and new governance. With a view to code that functions as legal norms, Blockchain technology is particularly suited to create governance structures and mechanisms. However, one needs to be aware of the norms that are implicitly introduced into the legal system by a specific blockchain technology. We look at the blockchain technology that underlies cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. This blockchain introduces a decentralized, transparent, cryptographically locked and thus immutable shared ledger. In summary, these design choices have normative powers over the user and over user interaction. If this is indeed the case, then regulators have to actively assess newly introduced digital ledger technology and other technologies for their effect on the normative and legal system.</p

Forty years studying British politics : the decline of Anglo-America

The still present belief some 40 years ago that British politics was both exceptional and superior has been replaced by more theoretically sophisticated analyses based on a wider and more rigorously deployed range of research techniques, although historical analysis appropriately remains important. The American influence on the study of British politics has declined, but the European Union dimension has not been fully integrated. The study of interest groups has been in some respects a fading paradigm, but important questions related to democratic health have still to be addressed. Public administration has been supplanted by public policy, but economic policy remains under-studied. A key challenge for the future is the study of the management of expectations

'Public administration in an age of austerity' : Positive lessons from policy studies

Peer reviewedPostprin

Public administration in an age of austerity:the future of the discipline

Reflecting changes in the nature of governance, some have questioned whether Public Administration is now an historical anachronism. While a legitimate debate exists between sceptics and optimists, this special issue demonstrates grounds for optimism by indicating the continuing diversity and adaptability of the field of Public Administration. In this introduction, we first sketch the variety of intellectual traditions which comprise the field of modern Public Administration. We then consider institutional challenges facing the subject given considerable pressures towards disciplinary fragmentation, and ideological challenges arising from a new distrust of public provision in the UK. Despite these challenges, Public Administration continues to provide a framework to analyse the practice of government and governance, governing institutions and traditions, and their wider sociological context. It can also directly inform policy reform - even if this endeavour can have its own pitfalls and pratfalls for the 'engaged' academic. We further suggest that, rather than lacking theoretical rigour, new approaches are developing that recognise the structural and political nature of the determinants of public administration. Finally, we highlight the richness of modern comparative work in Public Administration. Researchers can usefully look beyond the Atlantic relationship for theoretical enhancement and also consider more seriously the recursive and complex nature of international pressures on public administration

Teaching politics after the practice turn

The ‘practice turn’ and its associated ontology, epistemology and methodology are now well established in political research. In this article, we identify and explore a corollary pedagogy. After outlining the principal components of practice theory, we compare case- and placement-based approaches to learning, designed to develop skills for use in practice. We introduce and describe our own rather different course, which we designed to develop an understanding of the nature of practice as such. We discuss its scope and dynamics, particularly with regard to power in the classroom, and identify broader opportunities and challenges for the development of practice-based pedagogy

Climate change adaptation, flood risks and policy coherence in integrated water resources management in England

Integrated water resources management (IWRM) assumes coherence between cognate aspects of water governance at the river basin scale, for example water quality, energy production and agriculture objectives. But critics argue that IWRM is often less ‘integrated’ in practice, raising concerns over inter-sectoral coherence between implementing institutions. One increasingly significant aspect of IWRM is adaptation to climate change-related risks, including threats from flooding, which are particularly salient in England. Although multiple institutional mechanisms exist for flood risk management (FRM), their coherence remains a critical question for national adaptation. This paper therefore (1) maps the multi-level institutional frameworks determining both IWRM and FRM in England; (2) examines their interaction via various inter-institutional coordinating mechanisms; and (3) assesses the degree of coherence. The analysis suggests that cognate EU strategic objectives for flood risk assessment demonstrate relatively high vertical and horizontal coherence with river basin planning. However, there is less coherence with flood risk requirements for land-use planning and national flood protection objectives. Overall, this complex governance arrangement actually demonstrates de-coherence over time due to ongoing institutional fragmentation. Recommendations for increasing IWRM coherence in England or re-coherence based on greater spatial planning and coordination of water-use and land-use strategies are proposed