CONTROLLING LOCAL GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE: THE CASE OF NORTHERN IRELAND

The purposes of this paper are twofold, namely to outline the basic features of local government finance in Northern Ireland and to discuss how this financial system has been affected by the concerns of central government to control public expenditure. It will be argued that there has been no radical revision of the local government financial system but that central government used traditional methods of moral suasion and capital controls to induce councils to restrict their spending. The reasons for this include the small size of local expenditure and the political risks involved in further curbing local government in Northern Ireland.     

Governance in the UK Public Sector: the Involvement of the Governing Board

Governing boards are a prominent feature of many public sector organizations today. These boards have been modelled on the private sector board of directors. Like company boards, one of their main functions is to provide strategic leadership and policy direction for the organization. The role of managers and chief executives is to implement this. This paper examines the extent of involvement of one public sector board, the school governing body, in strategic activity. Using empirical evidence from a number of semi-structured interviews conducted in schools, its findings indicate that governing bodies are not involved at a high level in strategy within schools. Rather, headteachers are more likely to be undertaking this activity. Reflections are made about the relevance of the 'board of directors' model for both governing bodies and the public sector more generally.     

The United Nations International Criminal Tribunals: The Former Yugoslavia, Rwanda and Sierra Leone, William A. Schabas

The United Nations International Criminal Tribunals: The FormerYugoslavia, Rwanda and Sierra Leone is the first book entirelydevoted to these three United Nations jurisdictions, providinga comprehensive account of their respective mandates and ofthe main characteristics of their work. The author, William A. Schabas, Director of the Irish Centrefor Human Rights in Galway and former Commissioner