English Councillors and Mayoral Governance: Developing a New Dynamic for Political Accountability

Much has been written about the arrival of directly elected mayors into the English political landscape. The responses of the councillors serving on those councils to the arrival of elected mayors, has by comparison, been neglected. Yet, the construction, by councillors of a new role as the guarantor of local political accountability within mayoral councils, requires councillors to develop new patterns of political behaviour which challenge long‐held assumptions about the role of the councillor as a political representative. The paper reports the findings of research conducted amongst councillors on England's mayoral authorities, which explored how councillors have responded to the arrival of an elected mayor and what mayoral government means for our understanding of the role of the councillor within English local government.     

Decentralising France: How the socialists discovered pluralism

Reversing European trends toward the consolidation of local government and the imposition of stronger central controls, the French Socialist government undertook a major legislative programme to restructure French local government. This experience is examined in the light of early Socialist commitment to municipal Socialism and their return to power in the Fifth Republic using their local power base. Local reform posed three dilemmas for the Socialists: how to avoid turning local government over to the extreme left or autogestion forces in the party; how to meet the economic demands of locally elected officials without losing fiscal and financial control; and how to enhance decision‐making powers of elected officials at all three levels (municipal, département and region) while also achieving managerial reforms. Their pluralist response was a pragmatic blend of political, economic and budgetary concessions. Participation was enhanced by vigorous efforts to revive voluntary associations; contractual arrangements were devised to put economic programmes for unemployed youth, the elderly and industrial assistance more squarely in local hands; and new managerial methods were coupled to limits on prefectoral powers and budgetary initiatives. The reforms offer important new opportunities for the growth of local government while confirming Socialist dedication to republican ideals.     

Integrity Systems and Local Government

Australia's third sphere of government is local government, consisting of about 675 councils nationally, responsible for an average of 6 percent of total public sector expenditure (around $18 billion) annually. This article reviews key integrity issues confronting local government, based on experience in NSW and Queensland. Current issues confirm integrity to be a significant concern manifesting in a large variety of forms, both in council administration and in local government politics. A new generation of responses are increasingly tailored to recognising local government as a permanent, elected sphere of government, accounting directly to the public, while, supported by state regulators, individual councils also pursue better practice in the management of their own administrations.     

Impact of compulsory competitive tendering on the structure and performance of local government systems in the State of Victoria*

Around the world, the public sector is introducing private sector management practices. Abandoning the binary model of public and private sectors the State Government of Victoria introduced the compulsory competitive tendering system under which local government bodies are required to tender out their services to private sector service providers. The aim was to encourage local government bodies to operate in contestable situations so that they can increase efficiency, decrease operating costs, develop clear programme goals and objectives, become responsive to client goals, and improve the quality of goods and services. The article describes how the practice of the compulsory competitive tendering system has introduced major changes to organizational cultures, attitudes of employees, power and authority structures, sytems of decision making, delegation of financial and managerial authority, and the nature of control and accountability. In addition, the article explains the degree of competitiveness and efficiency that local government bodies have achieved and describes how the corporatized structure has helped to achieve the financial objectives. The article also discusses how the role of the elected councils is diminishing under this new management structure and argues that in the absence of a genuine monitoring system and accountability mechanism the local government bodies find it difficult to assert their role as quality service deliverers. This has forced the councils to comply with the requirements of the competition laws which have reduced direct accountability of government to the public. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

City government structure: are some institutions undersupplied?

City councilors have a vested interest in maintaining the local government structure that got them elected. This resistance to change may result in non-optimal supplies of particular local political institutions as cities and metropolitan areas experience changes in population and diversity. Using unique data from the State of Florida, we show that there is an undersupply of cities offering larger council sizes. Our evidence also suggests that there is no undersupply of cities with the mayor-council versus the council-manager form of government or cities with at-large versus district election methods.     

Ties That Bind? Effects of Inter‐level Mobility on MP Attitude to Local Government in Two Scandinavian Countries

The aim of this article is to examine to what degree the movement of elected representatives from local to central level affects the outlook of the ones who move ‘upwards’. Two Scandinavian countries – Sweden and Norway – serve as comparative cases. In both countries a high share of members of parliament (MPs) has served as local councillors before being elected to parliament. According to conventional wisdom, this high share of inter‐level mobility would strengthen ties between government tiers. Hence, parliamentarians with local political background are assumed to have greater confidence in the capacities of local government. It turns out that Sweden corresponds to this assumption, while the Norwegian results to some extent contradict the same hypothesis. In the Norwegian case, MPs who previously held office as local councillors are actually more sceptical towards local government than MPs with no experience from local politics. In the last section of the article a number of explanations for the disparate findings are being discussed. For one, it appears to be a higher level of controversy related to local government in Norway than in Sweden. In turn, this accounts for some of the scepticism being expressed by the very MPs who themselves have held local office. Second, greater financial dependency in the Norwegian case creates incentives for strategic action which, in turn, might undermine confidence between levels of government. These are strategies that are harder to conceal vis‐à‐vis MPs who have themselves gained experience from local politics.     

To PPB or Not PPB – Budgeting in Victorian Local Government

Budgeting is an important element in a public sector organisation's accounting control system. There are a number of budgetary methods that could be used, each with an explicitly different focus. This article investigates possible reasons for Victorian local government selecting line item budgeting, planning programming budgeting (PPB) or a combination of the two. While program budgeting arguably failed in the USA, research shows it was adopted by local government. Australian researchers report similar findings, yet the introduction of program budgeting into local government has not been explored. Four reasons are postulated: (1) PPB will be adopted because of the complexity of the organisation; (2) PPB will be adopted because it is perceived as an aid to planning; (3) line item budgeting will continue to be used because users are familiar with this type of budgeting; and (4) management's support for the adoption of PPB will be a significant factor in its introduction. A questionnaire was distributed to all the local governments in Victoria and 60 percent were returned. The findings reported in this article confirm the reasons postulated.     

Federal Government Reform: Lessons from Clinton’s “Reinventing Government” and Bush’s “Management Agenda” Initiatives

Newly elected presidents oftentimes set out to reform the executive branch. This has been the norm for more than 100 years, and indications are that the next president will follow this pattern. The authors have had firsthand experience over the past 15 years with White House–led government reform efforts. They provide their insights on President Bill Clinton’s reinventing government initiative and President George W. Bush’s management agenda efforts. Based on their experience, they offer lessons to the next president’s team on what they might do to get a reform effort started successfully and how to get reform initiatives implemented and sustained.     

Protecting Local Governments from Arbitrary State and Federal Interference: What Prospects for the 1990s?

The number of local governments in Nigeria has been fixed at453 by the 1989 Constitution. The key purpose of this provisionis to prevent state governments from creating local governmentsand altering local-government boundaries for political purposes.The provision is part of a larger program of localgovernmentreform undertaken by the federal military government to ensurethe integrity and autonomy of democratically elected local governmentsunder the Third Republic. States are limited in their abilityto intervene in local government affairs, and the federal governmenthas certain direct powers and responsibilities for local governments.Whether these reforms will achieve their intended objectives,however, is arguable.     

Learning how to be efficient property owners and accountable governments: the case of Kyrgyzstan's cities

As a result of government decentralization and property devolution from central to local governments, many city governments in transition countries became the largest real property owners in urban areas. For transitional countries lacking sufficient democratic traditions, efficient asset management represents a dramatic and multifaceted challenge. Kyrgyzstan happened to be among the first transitional countries where cities obtained systematic technical assistance in adapting the most advanced methodology of municipal asset management, which was recently developed under the auspices of the World Bank. Based on experience of work within five pilot cities, the article summarizes factors and methods that help develop a sense of strong ownership and internalization of new asset management vision and approaches among local officials and elected members of city councils. The article presents the experience of how the government of Uzgen, a city of about 40,000 people in South Kyrgyzstan, has changed its attitudes and approach regarding management of municipal property. The article demonstrates how two key processes—improving professional aspects of municipal asset management and developing local democracy though public involvement—have been reinforced by each other. One of the main lessons from Uzgen's experience is that municipal property asset management—because it deals with tangible issues—is a perfect focal point for developing local democracy and communication between a local population and its government. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The implementation of decentralization: A case study of district planning in Agra District,Uttar Pradesh,India

Though the literature on decentralization has clarified some issues, it has left unsettled the question of the administrative structure for its implementation: who should take what decisions, and at what level? There are limits to the conventional methods of classification. where answers have been sought in terms of Western experience, participation and management. and a legal perspective has been adopted with decentralization seen in terms of fully elected local governments. semi-autonomous local governments. or coordinating committees. Rather than stress procedures of participation. the substantive content of decision-making needs to he analysed. A classification of rural development programmes provides an alternative model for the reallocation of functions within the system of government to meet development needs. The case of district planning in Agra District. India. illustrates the process of decentralization. underlines its composite character. and shows the importance of the budget in initiating reform in the political-administrative system. Since decentralization is now motivated by different factors than in the past. the requirements of the anti-poverty programmes will move the decision-making process closer to the cutting edge of the village level, with even greater responsiveness to demands from below.     

Constitutional,legal and political problems of local government in Nigeria

The new Nigerian local government system was clearly intended by its creators to be a representative and democractic system of devolution. The speed with which elected councils have been dissolved and replaced by caretaker committees and state appointees contrasts strangely with the constitutional provision that there should be a system of local government by democratically elected local councils. The constitutionality of dissolution has been confused with the constitutionality of further local government reform. Dissolution should be seen as an emergency measure to be used rarely in cases of proven maladministration by a local government. Further reform and reorganization of a state's system of local government should be regarded as a legitimate power of the state legislature. The role given by the Constitution to local government should not be interpreted as entrenching the system. Constitutional amendment is not required should further reform be necessary.     

Slow Change at the Top: ‘Old Hands’ and ‘Accidental Executives’ in New South Wales Local Government

Scholars and practitioners alike have recognised that an increased role for women leaders in Australian local government would strengthen the sector, yet little research to date has examined the career paths of non‐elected officials. This article combines the gender in organisations literature with career theory to examine the career paths of 16 general managers (GMs) in New South Wales. We found that half the participants had linear career paths based entirely within local government and half had boundaryless careers originating outside the sector. This second cohort consisted overwhelmingly of women. Nevertheless, a high incidence of happenstance characterised both career types. Several participants saw themselves pitted against a gendered (i.e. male) group of ‘old hands’ who were resistant to change being driven by ‘accidental executives’, a high proportion of whom were women. The findings have implications for a sector attempting to attract and retain skilled staff, particularly women.     

Local and Regional Governance: Back to Basics

Local government has been transformed in Victoria — forceably amalgamated, stripped for a time of its democratic basis, required by law to embrace contracting out and greater private provision of services. This article describes this dramatic process, considers the implications and identifies a positive future for local and regional government.     

The demand for local government goods

Abstract. This paper analyses the spending preferences of local government elected politicians. It is argued that the median voter model is inappropriate in multi-party systems that provide multiple government services, and that the preferences of the representatives are consequential to local resource allocation. We develop a micromodel in which service demand is conditioned by exogenous public revenue, prices, and demographic factors. We hypothesise that politicians demands are affected by party affiliation, public sector occupation and committee assignment. The estimates of the micro demand functions are based on data pertaining to Norwegian local governments. It is found that the estimated income elasticities correspond approximately with elasticities of output studies. Party affiliation has an impact on demand patterns, while government occupation and committee appointment are major determinants of politicians desired allocation of public services. Further analyses reveal that the numerical strength of parties impacts weakly on the actual service allocation, whereas the representation of government employees has occasional effect. The budgetary allocations are imperfect expressions of the elected council's underlying preferences.     

Public Sector Change,Organisational Culture and Financial Information: A Study of Local Government

Local government has undergone substantial change in Victoria, but the reforms have not necessarily resulted in improved financial management practices. This article examines the organisational culture of a sample of local governments, the critical events which have impacted on them, and their use of accounting, budgetary and financial (ABF) information. We find that despite the change process, organisational culture is not focused on competitive practices, although compulsory competitive tendering remains the most influential event. Consistent with the aims of reform, the quality and use of ABF information has improved over the last decade. This article will be of interest to those in government wishing to implement change programs aimed at increasing financial resource use efficiency.     

Legislating deliberative engagement: Is local government in Victoria willing and able?

Growing dissatisfaction with representative democracy and concomitantly, the increasing expectation that citizens assert more influence over public policy have seen the emergence of more participatory and deliberative forms of governance in public management practice. This article explores the attempt of the state government of Victoria, Australia to legislate for mandatory deliberative engagement as part of its local government strategic planning instruments. The ambition of the reform was significant; however, it was almost unanimously rejected by the local government sector. Based on analysis of the key themes that emerged from the submissions made during the 3-year Victorian Local Government Act Review process, we explore the limitations and barriers to implementing deliberative engagement practice at a local government level. We demonstrate that whilst the promise of participatory democracy might have been compelling, in the case of Victoria there were a series of contextual and capacity considerations that needed to be taken into account before the implementation of such reforms were pursued.     

Representative Government and Network Governance – In Need of 'Co-governance': Lessons from Local Decision Making on Public Schools in Denmark

The article argues for the importance of reconciling the institutions of representative government and network governance by means of a combined structure of 'co-governance', and the need for elected politicians in a role as co-governing guardians of democracy in network governance. Based on an examination of two different cases of interactive governance within the field of school reform at the local level in Denmark, some lessons are drawn as to an appropriate new role for elected politicians in a structure of co-governance.     

The Role,Scope and Scale of Local Government in New Zealand: Its Prospective Future

This article contributes to the current debate as to the role, scope and scale of local government in New Zealand. In 2008, the Nationals Local Government Minister announced his intention to undertake a fundamental review of local government in NZ. This review finally took shape in mid 2011 with the publication of the consultation document ‘Smarter Government, Stronger Communities: towards better local governance and public services’ ( Hide 2011 ). This article adds to the debate by identifying four key themes within the NZ local government system, namely: the legislative framework; managerial capabilities; calibre of elected members and finally democratic deficit and community disengagement. Whilst the first two themes are undoubted strengths, the latter two are equally weaknesses in the local governance system of NZ. Hence the article makes a number of recommendations, seeking to exploit the strengths and to correct the weaknesses in order to create a robust and credible local governance system for NZ.     

An Analysis of Introducing Program Budgeting in Local Government

Program budgeting has been in use for 30 years. It has had a checkered history, being considered alternately a great advancement or an unworkable system. Little has been written about the consequences for the organization that has adopted it. This study was undertaken concerning local government across the State of Victoria, Australia. A questionnaire was sent to all municipalities. There was a 60 percent response rate. Results show that information generated by planning programming budgeting (PPB) is used for decision making but in a limited way. The proposition that PPB will have an impact on the operations of councils is only partially supported.