The Not So Good,the Bad and the Ugly: Over Twelve Years of PPP in Ireland

Public–private partnerships have been adopted extensively in Ireland for over 12 years. This article analyses the practice of PPP procurement at the level of local government. It adopts economic and governance perspectives on PPP which highlight challenges with procurement under PPP such as complexity, uncertainty, hold-up, transparency and accountability. These perspectives provide a basis for an analysis of three cases of PPP procurement. Two cases from the water services sector illuminate problems arising from the complexity of value for money assessment at the ex ante contracting stage. These cases were also characterised by governance problems stemming from central government's role as policy advocate and steward of public funds. The case of PPP to deliver social housing also demonstrated the challenges of procurement under conditions of economic uncertainty and difficulties with achieving appropriate levels of risk transfer. All three cases demonstrate the value of stakeholder consultation in terms of meeting the governance challenges faced when adopting PPP.     

Taking the Leap: Voting,Rhetoric, and the Determinants of Electoral Reform

The Second Reform Act ushered in the age of democratic politics in the United Kingdom by expanding the voting franchise and remedying legislative malapportionment. Analyzing parliamentary debates and divisions, we investigate why reform successfully passed the House of Commons in 1867. We consider why reform passed under a minority Conservative government yet failed under a majority Liberal government despite no election or change in membership. Though partisanship is most influential for parliamentary voting, it is an incomplete explanation given the absence of modern party institutions. Rather, we argue that the narrowed scope of debate under the Conservatives was crucial in passing reform.     

Multi-stakeholder public policy and governance in China: an analysis

In this article, public policy is put into a multi-stakeholder rather than adversarial perspective: we argue that there is a role for multi-stakeholder involvement in both the development and implementation of public policy; these are separate processes that can involve different patterns of stakeholder involvement (stakeholders have different skills and levels of interest in public policy) in either one or both the development and implementation phases. We need new models, approaches and examples of such multi-stakeholder public policy, and in this Special Issue, we focus on China, where such research is only slowly emerging. We present and analyse six papers that fall naturally into three categories: (1) corporate social responsiveness and societal relationships; (2) public affairs (particularly reputation management) and citizen involvement; and (3) public-management-oriented, data-based analyses. These articles, taken together, increase our understanding of multi-stakeholder research and practice, but equally as important, they give us insights into how Chinese public policy academics research and report public policy. This window into academic research and thinking offers us an opportunity to expand and deepen our understanding of public policy and its implications for public affairs in China. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An evaluation of <Emphasis Type="Underline">Payton v. New York</Emphasis>

The Supreme Court decision in Payton v. New York (1980) is evaluated. In this cose, the. Court remanded to the trial level tribunal a case in which an arrest was made and evidence was seized without a warrant. The author discusses the case thoroughly and compares the decision to other cases which dealt with the warrantless arrest and seizure of evidence. The author questions if the Court is becoming “too technical” in its interpretation of the 4th Amendment and poses once again the perennial question; “Where is the line drawn between protecting the nights of society from criminals and protecting the rights of criminals from judicial interpretation?”     

Obstacles to desegregating public housing: Lessons learned from implementing eight consent decrees

Between 1992 and 1996 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) settled a number of legal cases involving housing authorities and agreed to take remedial action as part of court‐enforced consent decrees entered into with plaintiffs. These housing authorities faced significant obstacles that impaired their ability to comply swiftly and fully with all of the elements in the desegregation consent decrees. The obstacles fell into two broad categories: contextual obstacles (racial composition of waiting lists and resident populations, lack of affordable rental housing, and inadequate public transportation), and capacity and coordination obstacles (conflict among implementing agencies and ineffective monitoring by HUD). Findings presented here highlight the sizable potential delay between the time a legal remedy is imposed and when plaintiffs in public housing segregation disputes realize any benefits. They also reinforce the argument that implementation problems will be legion when policies impose a significant scope of required changes on a large number of actors who must collaborate, yet are not uniformly capable or sympathetic to the goals being promoted. © 2003 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.     

Equilibrium in fiscal choices: Evidence from a budget game

This is an applied study about the stability of collective decision-making in fiscal matters and the features of individual preferences which are sufficient to reach a social ordering. It is based on data about citizens' preferences collected through a budget game played by a sample of voters in Turin, a large Italian city. By simulating a series of individual choices, a social ordering of the municipal budget items is arrived at. The role played by restricted (i.e., single-peaked, single-caved etc.) preferences to avoid cycles in choice simulations is then assessed.     

Taphonomic Effects of Vulture Scavenging*

Abstract: From July through September 2007, three pig carcasses (Sus scrofa), weighing between 27 and 63 kg were placed outside in a grassy area in central Texas. A surrounding fence prevented entrance by terrestrial scavengers, while allowing avian scavengers unrestricted access. A fourth pig carcass served as a control for the rate of decomposition and was placed in a cage that prevented terrestrial and avian animal access. Modification of the carcasses was recorded through the use of two motion‐sensing digital cameras and daily on‐site observations. American black vultures (Coragyps atratus) and turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) waited c. 24 h before beginning to scavenge and completely skeletonized the carcasses in 3 to 27 h of feeding, leaving scratches on the bones. The accelerated rate of decomposition and the signature markings on the bones should be considered when interpreting taphonomic events and determining an accurate postmortem interval at vulture‐modified scenes.