Mark Thatcher
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199245680
- eISBN:
- 9780191715273
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199245680.003.0010
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Economy
This chapter shows how and why policy forms of internationalisation helped to undermine well-entrenched institutions in France, Germany, and Italy that had survived previous attempts at reform. ...
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This chapter shows how and why policy forms of internationalisation helped to undermine well-entrenched institutions in France, Germany, and Italy that had survived previous attempts at reform. Policy makers feared regulatory competition from Britain after its reforms of 1984 while EU regulation from 1988 offered occasions for change, arguments to legitimate reform, and opportunities for national champions to become international ones. Aided by these two international factors, governments and national suppliers formed broader reform coalitions that were able to overcome strong resistance and introduce sweeping institutional changes, notably privatisation of incumbent suppliers, termination of monopolies, and delegation of powers to independent sectoral agencies. Thus, by 2005, France, Germany, and Italy had broken with deeply-rooted domestic institutions that protected national suppliers from competition. Instead, they had adopted an institutional model of a liberalised market with private suppliers and independent regulatory agencies, which was similar to that in Britain but reached through a different route.Less
This chapter shows how and why policy forms of internationalisation helped to undermine well-entrenched institutions in France, Germany, and Italy that had survived previous attempts at reform. Policy makers feared regulatory competition from Britain after its reforms of 1984 while EU regulation from 1988 offered occasions for change, arguments to legitimate reform, and opportunities for national champions to become international ones. Aided by these two international factors, governments and national suppliers formed broader reform coalitions that were able to overcome strong resistance and introduce sweeping institutional changes, notably privatisation of incumbent suppliers, termination of monopolies, and delegation of powers to independent sectoral agencies. Thus, by 2005, France, Germany, and Italy had broken with deeply-rooted domestic institutions that protected national suppliers from competition. Instead, they had adopted an institutional model of a liberalised market with private suppliers and independent regulatory agencies, which was similar to that in Britain but reached through a different route.
Mark Thatcher
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199245680
- eISBN:
- 9780191715273
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199245680.003.0013
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Economy
Postal services seem an unlikely case for internationalisation. Postal institutions have deep national roots. Few transnational technological and economic developments have taken place, neither the ...
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Postal services seem an unlikely case for internationalisation. Postal institutions have deep national roots. Few transnational technological and economic developments have taken place, neither the US nor Britain liberalised or even privatised their state-owned post offices and the scope for international regulatory competition is low. The main form of internationalisation has been EU regulation between the mid-1990s and 2005. Nevertheless, from the late 1990s, significant institutional alterations were made, as postal operators became more commercial organisations and expanded overseas. EU regulation provided both pressure for change and justifications for it. The case of postal services underlines the role of EU regulation even in the absence of transnational technological and economic pressures, or prior reforms in the US or Britain through its legal requirements, and more importantly, its indirect influence through being used by actors in the domestic policy process.Less
Postal services seem an unlikely case for internationalisation. Postal institutions have deep national roots. Few transnational technological and economic developments have taken place, neither the US nor Britain liberalised or even privatised their state-owned post offices and the scope for international regulatory competition is low. The main form of internationalisation has been EU regulation between the mid-1990s and 2005. Nevertheless, from the late 1990s, significant institutional alterations were made, as postal operators became more commercial organisations and expanded overseas. EU regulation provided both pressure for change and justifications for it. The case of postal services underlines the role of EU regulation even in the absence of transnational technological and economic pressures, or prior reforms in the US or Britain through its legal requirements, and more importantly, its indirect influence through being used by actors in the domestic policy process.
Mark Thatcher
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199245680
- eISBN:
- 9780191715273
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199245680.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Economy
Between 1986 and 2005, rapid and sweeping changes broke with long-standing sectoral institutions for securities trading in France, Germany, and Italy. Stock exchanges were privatised, legal ...
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Between 1986 and 2005, rapid and sweeping changes broke with long-standing sectoral institutions for securities trading in France, Germany, and Italy. Stock exchanges were privatised, legal monopolies ended, and regulatory powers transferred to independent regulatory authorities. Policy forms of internationalisation were crucial in these changes. Policymakers feared regulatory competition due to new institutional arrangements in Britain, while also looking to Britain as a successful example of reform. But a second, more important factor was detailed sectoral EU regulation which increased fears of securities trading moving elsewhere and provided occasions and arguments for change. The two forms of internationalisation aided the formation of strong reform coalitions between governments and the managements of incumbent suppliers, and provided arguments to legitimate changes. By 2005, the three countries had adopted similar institutional outcomes to Britain, but following a different route, showing that policy forms of internationalisation can lead to similar outcomes through nationally-specific routes.Less
Between 1986 and 2005, rapid and sweeping changes broke with long-standing sectoral institutions for securities trading in France, Germany, and Italy. Stock exchanges were privatised, legal monopolies ended, and regulatory powers transferred to independent regulatory authorities. Policy forms of internationalisation were crucial in these changes. Policymakers feared regulatory competition due to new institutional arrangements in Britain, while also looking to Britain as a successful example of reform. But a second, more important factor was detailed sectoral EU regulation which increased fears of securities trading moving elsewhere and provided occasions and arguments for change. The two forms of internationalisation aided the formation of strong reform coalitions between governments and the managements of incumbent suppliers, and provided arguments to legitimate changes. By 2005, the three countries had adopted similar institutional outcomes to Britain, but following a different route, showing that policy forms of internationalisation can lead to similar outcomes through nationally-specific routes.
Mark Thatcher
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199245680
- eISBN:
- 9780191715273
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199245680.003.0009
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Economy
This chapter argues that Britain followed its own distinct route to reform in telecommunications, in similar fashion to securities trading. Despite large-scale failures of supply, arising in part ...
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This chapter argues that Britain followed its own distinct route to reform in telecommunications, in similar fashion to securities trading. Despite large-scale failures of supply, arising in part because of transnational technological and economic developments, only limited changes were introduced in 1969 and thereafter inertia reigned. This position altered dramatically in the 1980s. A determined government pushed through privatisation of the incumbent operator, British Telecom, ended its monopoly and transferred important regulatory powers to a newly created independent sectoral regulatory agency. The policies were initiated for domestic reasons, but thereafter examples of institutions in the US were used selectively to legitimate new arrangements. Hence, as in securities, the US example was important in the policy process but EU regulation played very little role in British decisions.Less
This chapter argues that Britain followed its own distinct route to reform in telecommunications, in similar fashion to securities trading. Despite large-scale failures of supply, arising in part because of transnational technological and economic developments, only limited changes were introduced in 1969 and thereafter inertia reigned. This position altered dramatically in the 1980s. A determined government pushed through privatisation of the incumbent operator, British Telecom, ended its monopoly and transferred important regulatory powers to a newly created independent sectoral regulatory agency. The policies were initiated for domestic reasons, but thereafter examples of institutions in the US were used selectively to legitimate new arrangements. Hence, as in securities, the US example was important in the policy process but EU regulation played very little role in British decisions.
Graeme Gill
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199544684
- eISBN:
- 9780191719912
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199544684.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory, Democratization
This chapter looks at the origins of the post-Soviet bourgeoisie. It analyses the way it emerged during perestroika, and especially the role of the party state and its resources in both the shaping ...
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This chapter looks at the origins of the post-Soviet bourgeoisie. It analyses the way it emerged during perestroika, and especially the role of the party state and its resources in both the shaping of the new class and in the resources it had available to it. The importance of the Komsomol, the nomenklatura, Gorbachev's policy program, and privatization are explained in order to view the three overlapping stages of the emergence of the new class. The origin of a section of the bourgeoisie is also to be found outside the state sector, and this is outlined, especially the role of criminal activity in this. The question of the social integration of this group is also explored.Less
This chapter looks at the origins of the post-Soviet bourgeoisie. It analyses the way it emerged during perestroika, and especially the role of the party state and its resources in both the shaping of the new class and in the resources it had available to it. The importance of the Komsomol, the nomenklatura, Gorbachev's policy program, and privatization are explained in order to view the three overlapping stages of the emergence of the new class. The origin of a section of the bourgeoisie is also to be found outside the state sector, and this is outlined, especially the role of criminal activity in this. The question of the social integration of this group is also explored.
Michael Moran
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199247578
- eISBN:
- 9780191601996
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199247579.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, UK Politics
This chapter argues that the system of privatisation regulation reflects the age of hyper-innovation in British government. The onset of hyper-innovation played a key role in the collapse of a club ...
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This chapter argues that the system of privatisation regulation reflects the age of hyper-innovation in British government. The onset of hyper-innovation played a key role in the collapse of a club world that had pre-democratic origins. It presents an account of rail regulation, which represents the first great crisis of the regulatory system, and its failure in this crisis. It considers the wider issues of business regulation, showing how the fragility of this wider system has interacted with the fragile system for governing privatisation.Less
This chapter argues that the system of privatisation regulation reflects the age of hyper-innovation in British government. The onset of hyper-innovation played a key role in the collapse of a club world that had pre-democratic origins. It presents an account of rail regulation, which represents the first great crisis of the regulatory system, and its failure in this crisis. It considers the wider issues of business regulation, showing how the fragility of this wider system has interacted with the fragile system for governing privatisation.
Mike Feintuck and Mike Varney
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748621668
- eISBN:
- 9780748670987
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748621668.001.0001
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Media Studies
Regulation of the media has traditionally been premised upon claims of ‘the public interest’, yet the term itself remains contested and generally ill defined. In the context of technological ...
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Regulation of the media has traditionally been premised upon claims of ‘the public interest’, yet the term itself remains contested and generally ill defined. In the context of technological development and convergence, as well as corporate conglomeration, traditional ‘public service’ values in British broadcasting are challenged by market values. With such ongoing trends continuing apace, regulators must increasingly justify their interventions. The communication industries' commercialisation and privatisation pose a fundamental threat to democratic values. This book argues that regulators will only successfully protect such values if claims associated with ‘citizenship’ are recognised as the rationale and objective for the regulatory endeavour. While such themes are central to the book, this second edition has been substantially revised and updated to take account of matters such as European Directives, the UK's Communications Act 2003, the process of reviewing the BBC's Charter and relevant aspects of the reform of general competition law.Less
Regulation of the media has traditionally been premised upon claims of ‘the public interest’, yet the term itself remains contested and generally ill defined. In the context of technological development and convergence, as well as corporate conglomeration, traditional ‘public service’ values in British broadcasting are challenged by market values. With such ongoing trends continuing apace, regulators must increasingly justify their interventions. The communication industries' commercialisation and privatisation pose a fundamental threat to democratic values. This book argues that regulators will only successfully protect such values if claims associated with ‘citizenship’ are recognised as the rationale and objective for the regulatory endeavour. While such themes are central to the book, this second edition has been substantially revised and updated to take account of matters such as European Directives, the UK's Communications Act 2003, the process of reviewing the BBC's Charter and relevant aspects of the reform of general competition law.
Jay Ginn
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9781861343383
- eISBN:
- 9781447302421
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781861343383.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Gender and Sexuality
An emerging consensus sees British pension policy as unravelling. Yet the gender impact of expanding private pension provision and relying increasingly on means-testing has been largely overlooked. ...
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An emerging consensus sees British pension policy as unravelling. Yet the gender impact of expanding private pension provision and relying increasingly on means-testing has been largely overlooked. This book examines key issues such as: how pension choices over the lifecourse are structured by gender, class, and ethnicity; the impact of changing patterns of partnership and parenthood on pension building; the distributional impact of privatising pensions; questions about individualisation of rights, survivor benefits, a citizen's pension, and means-testing; and the EU dimension – comparing alternative strategies for improving gender equity.Less
An emerging consensus sees British pension policy as unravelling. Yet the gender impact of expanding private pension provision and relying increasingly on means-testing has been largely overlooked. This book examines key issues such as: how pension choices over the lifecourse are structured by gender, class, and ethnicity; the impact of changing patterns of partnership and parenthood on pension building; the distributional impact of privatising pensions; questions about individualisation of rights, survivor benefits, a citizen's pension, and means-testing; and the EU dimension – comparing alternative strategies for improving gender equity.
Jean-Marie Baland and Jean-Philippe Platteau
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780198290612
- eISBN:
- 9780191601613
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198290616.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
This book focuses on the efficient and equitable management of local or village-level natural resources. It is divided into two parts. Part 1 provides an in-depth analysis on the optimal use of ...
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This book focuses on the efficient and equitable management of local or village-level natural resources. It is divided into two parts. Part 1 provides an in-depth analysis on the optimal use of natural resources. It dwells on the “tragedy of the commons”, which attributes inefficient resource use to the absence of well-defined property rights. Non-cooperative game theory is used to examine the impact of human interactions on resource management, and discusses the implications of the privatisation of common property resources. In Part 2, the main lessons drawn from Part 1 are compared against evidence obtained from field settings, particularly traditional village societies in developing countries.Less
This book focuses on the efficient and equitable management of local or village-level natural resources. It is divided into two parts. Part 1 provides an in-depth analysis on the optimal use of natural resources. It dwells on the “tragedy of the commons”, which attributes inefficient resource use to the absence of well-defined property rights. Non-cooperative game theory is used to examine the impact of human interactions on resource management, and discusses the implications of the privatisation of common property resources. In Part 2, the main lessons drawn from Part 1 are compared against evidence obtained from field settings, particularly traditional village societies in developing countries.
John Kay
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198292227
- eISBN:
- 9780191596520
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198292228.003.0014
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Microeconomics
The stake‐holding view of the nature and purposes of corporations applies most forcefully to monopoly public utilities. This chapter analyses some of the problems of utility regulation and proposes a ...
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The stake‐holding view of the nature and purposes of corporations applies most forcefully to monopoly public utilities. This chapter analyses some of the problems of utility regulation and proposes a stake‐holding alternative. In this context, the purpose of a privatized utility should be to serve its customers, and its obligations to shareholders exist only to the extent necessary to ensure that the company can meet its primary purpose.Less
The stake‐holding view of the nature and purposes of corporations applies most forcefully to monopoly public utilities. This chapter analyses some of the problems of utility regulation and proposes a stake‐holding alternative. In this context, the purpose of a privatized utility should be to serve its customers, and its obligations to shareholders exist only to the extent necessary to ensure that the company can meet its primary purpose.
Gordon L. Clark
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- August 2004
- ISBN:
- 9780199261765
- eISBN:
- 9780191601248
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199261768.003.0009
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Financial Economics
This chapter focuses on the debates over the privatisation of Social Security in the United States. It is argued that privatisation alone will not improve Social Security’s finances nor raise returns ...
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This chapter focuses on the debates over the privatisation of Social Security in the United States. It is argued that privatisation alone will not improve Social Security’s finances nor raise returns on employees’ payroll tax contributions. Private accounts will shift the financial risk of the basic pension to the individual and sow the seeds for unravelling the US social insurance system.Less
This chapter focuses on the debates over the privatisation of Social Security in the United States. It is argued that privatisation alone will not improve Social Security’s finances nor raise returns on employees’ payroll tax contributions. Private accounts will shift the financial risk of the basic pension to the individual and sow the seeds for unravelling the US social insurance system.
Jean‐Marie Baland and Jean‐Philippe Platteau
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780198290612
- eISBN:
- 9780191601613
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198290616.003.0010
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
This chapter presents some conclusions on the privatisation of common property resources. It argues that the property rights school confuses property regimes in which a resource is free for the ...
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This chapter presents some conclusions on the privatisation of common property resources. It argues that the property rights school confuses property regimes in which a resource is free for the taking, with other regimes where access to, and the use of resources are subject to strong internal regulations. More scientific thinking is needed to refine the different arguments on the impact of a particular property regime on the nature and forms of innovative activities, and on the role of the State.Less
This chapter presents some conclusions on the privatisation of common property resources. It argues that the property rights school confuses property regimes in which a resource is free for the taking, with other regimes where access to, and the use of resources are subject to strong internal regulations. More scientific thinking is needed to refine the different arguments on the impact of a particular property regime on the nature and forms of innovative activities, and on the role of the State.
Michael Ironside and Roger Seifert
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199240753
- eISBN:
- 9780191696862
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199240753.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Business History
Throughout the 1980s Mrs. Thatcher dominated political life in the UK and Thatcherism became the shorthand for a series of political initiatives all over the world. Most accounts of these years have ...
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Throughout the 1980s Mrs. Thatcher dominated political life in the UK and Thatcherism became the shorthand for a series of political initiatives all over the world. Most accounts of these years have concentrated on the economics of free markets and privatisation. This book takes a different stance through a detailed analysis of the responses of The National and Local Government Officers Association (NALGO) members, activists, leaders, and officials to the government’s public sector reform and restructuring programme. Employees in health, local government, and education faced cuts in funding, compulsory competitive tendering, internal markets, and new management practices associated with human resource management (HRM) and total quality management (TQM). Others in the gas, water, electricity, and transport industries faced wholesale privatisation.Less
Throughout the 1980s Mrs. Thatcher dominated political life in the UK and Thatcherism became the shorthand for a series of political initiatives all over the world. Most accounts of these years have concentrated on the economics of free markets and privatisation. This book takes a different stance through a detailed analysis of the responses of The National and Local Government Officers Association (NALGO) members, activists, leaders, and officials to the government’s public sector reform and restructuring programme. Employees in health, local government, and education faced cuts in funding, compulsory competitive tendering, internal markets, and new management practices associated with human resource management (HRM) and total quality management (TQM). Others in the gas, water, electricity, and transport industries faced wholesale privatisation.
Sarah Waters
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- May 2021
- ISBN:
- 9781789622232
- eISBN:
- 9781800341586
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3828/liverpool/9781789622232.003.0005
- Subject:
- Sociology, Occupations, Professions, and Work
Chapter four examines the suicide crisis at France Télécom, situating this in the shift to a new finance-driven management model, following the company’s privatisation, whereby the search for ...
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Chapter four examines the suicide crisis at France Télécom, situating this in the shift to a new finance-driven management model, following the company’s privatisation, whereby the search for shareholder value became the overarching strategic goal of the company. I draw on scholarship on financialisation and in particular, the rise of shareholder value, examining its impact on the changing status and conditions of labour. Suicides were not an aberration in an otherwise smooth-functioning system, but the consequence of systemic processes that sought to remove labour from the workplace as an obstacle to extraneous financial goals. The chapter examines the structural transformations of the company which transformed the perceived value of the individual worker and considers the new expulsionary management tactics that characterised the Next restructuring plan. The chapter draws on testimonial material, including suicide letters and witness statements drawn from a legal case taken by a work inspector against the company in 2010 which culminated in the recent criminal trial against the company’s former bosses. An analysis of this testimonial material allows us to reconstruct the causal connections that link structural transformations in the company to the acute suffering that triggered an act of self-killing.Less
Chapter four examines the suicide crisis at France Télécom, situating this in the shift to a new finance-driven management model, following the company’s privatisation, whereby the search for shareholder value became the overarching strategic goal of the company. I draw on scholarship on financialisation and in particular, the rise of shareholder value, examining its impact on the changing status and conditions of labour. Suicides were not an aberration in an otherwise smooth-functioning system, but the consequence of systemic processes that sought to remove labour from the workplace as an obstacle to extraneous financial goals. The chapter examines the structural transformations of the company which transformed the perceived value of the individual worker and considers the new expulsionary management tactics that characterised the Next restructuring plan. The chapter draws on testimonial material, including suicide letters and witness statements drawn from a legal case taken by a work inspector against the company in 2010 which culminated in the recent criminal trial against the company’s former bosses. An analysis of this testimonial material allows us to reconstruct the causal connections that link structural transformations in the company to the acute suffering that triggered an act of self-killing.
James Foreman-Peck and Robert Millward
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198203599
- eISBN:
- 9780191675881
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198203599.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History, Economic History
Britain led the way for much of the world with industrial privatisation during the 1980s. Yet the historical origins of the process that was being reversed have rarely been examined. This is a study ...
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Britain led the way for much of the world with industrial privatisation during the 1980s. Yet the historical origins of the process that was being reversed have rarely been examined. This is a study of public and private ownership in industries such as railways, gas, water, electricity, and telecommunications. Industries such as these rely upon a substantial physical distribution network that ‘channels’ their service from source to destination. They thus raise distinctive problems for government policy, as their requirement for some sort of unified system is incompatible with the coexistence of a number of competing service suppliers. Yet competition has been the traditional guarantee of ‘fair’ and minimum prices in British industrial policy. This tension between experience and ideology provoked a variety of government policies over the last two centuries. This book provides an economic history of the network industries, which continue to play an important role in the British economy. It traces the development of various institutional arrangements from the early 19th century until the end of the 1980s, and provides quantitative estimates of their performance.Less
Britain led the way for much of the world with industrial privatisation during the 1980s. Yet the historical origins of the process that was being reversed have rarely been examined. This is a study of public and private ownership in industries such as railways, gas, water, electricity, and telecommunications. Industries such as these rely upon a substantial physical distribution network that ‘channels’ their service from source to destination. They thus raise distinctive problems for government policy, as their requirement for some sort of unified system is incompatible with the coexistence of a number of competing service suppliers. Yet competition has been the traditional guarantee of ‘fair’ and minimum prices in British industrial policy. This tension between experience and ideology provoked a variety of government policies over the last two centuries. This book provides an economic history of the network industries, which continue to play an important role in the British economy. It traces the development of various institutional arrangements from the early 19th century until the end of the 1980s, and provides quantitative estimates of their performance.
Stuart Hodkinson
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781526141866
- eISBN:
- 9781526144713
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9781526141866.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Urban and Rural Studies
As the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire has slowly revealed a shadowy background of outsourcing and deregulation, and a council turning a blind eye to health and safety concerns, many questions ...
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As the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire has slowly revealed a shadowy background of outsourcing and deregulation, and a council turning a blind eye to health and safety concerns, many questions need answers. Stuart Hodkinson has those answers. Safe as Houses weaves together Stuart’s research over the last decade with residents’ groups in council regeneration projects across London to provide the first comprehensive account of how Grenfell happened and how it could easily have happened in multiple locations across the country. It draws on different examples of unsafe housing either refurbished or built by private companies under the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) to show the terrible human consequences of outsourcing and deregulation that have enabled developers, banks, and investors to profiteer from highly lucrative, taxpayer-funded contracts. The book also provides shocking testimonies of how councils and other public bodies have continuously sided with their private partners, doing everything in their power to ignore, deflect, and even silence those who speak out. The book concludes that the only way to end the era of unsafe regeneration and housing provision is to end the disastrous regime of self-regulation for good. This means strengthening safety laws, creating new enforcement agencies independent of government and industry, and replacing PFI and similar models of outsourcing with a new model of public housing that treats the provision of shelter as ‘a social service’ democratically accountable to its residents.Less
As the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire has slowly revealed a shadowy background of outsourcing and deregulation, and a council turning a blind eye to health and safety concerns, many questions need answers. Stuart Hodkinson has those answers. Safe as Houses weaves together Stuart’s research over the last decade with residents’ groups in council regeneration projects across London to provide the first comprehensive account of how Grenfell happened and how it could easily have happened in multiple locations across the country. It draws on different examples of unsafe housing either refurbished or built by private companies under the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) to show the terrible human consequences of outsourcing and deregulation that have enabled developers, banks, and investors to profiteer from highly lucrative, taxpayer-funded contracts. The book also provides shocking testimonies of how councils and other public bodies have continuously sided with their private partners, doing everything in their power to ignore, deflect, and even silence those who speak out. The book concludes that the only way to end the era of unsafe regeneration and housing provision is to end the disastrous regime of self-regulation for good. This means strengthening safety laws, creating new enforcement agencies independent of government and industry, and replacing PFI and similar models of outsourcing with a new model of public housing that treats the provision of shelter as ‘a social service’ democratically accountable to its residents.
DAGMAR RACZYNSKI
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199242191
- eISBN:
- 9780191697050
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199242191.003.0011
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental, Public and Welfare
Over the past decade, Chile has developed a sound economy and experienced social development, which are manifested through the decline in poverty rates, an increased employment level, and a greater ...
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Over the past decade, Chile has developed a sound economy and experienced social development, which are manifested through the decline in poverty rates, an increased employment level, and a greater efficiency in income distribution. Social policies in Chile are discussed here in three major sections: the first looks at the period when there is heightened government intervention; the second turns towards the era when neoliberals insisted upon a shift towards minimal state regulation and reliance on target mechanisms; and finally it examines the regime when the combined efforts of the state and the civil societies were acknowledged. After identifying major components of the phases in social policies, the chapter examines particular reforms on the health sector privatisation, primary and secondary education, and public and private relationships employed during the neoliberal and present time frames.Less
Over the past decade, Chile has developed a sound economy and experienced social development, which are manifested through the decline in poverty rates, an increased employment level, and a greater efficiency in income distribution. Social policies in Chile are discussed here in three major sections: the first looks at the period when there is heightened government intervention; the second turns towards the era when neoliberals insisted upon a shift towards minimal state regulation and reliance on target mechanisms; and finally it examines the regime when the combined efforts of the state and the civil societies were acknowledged. After identifying major components of the phases in social policies, the chapter examines particular reforms on the health sector privatisation, primary and secondary education, and public and private relationships employed during the neoliberal and present time frames.
Deepak Nayyar
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199254033
- eISBN:
- 9780191698187
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199254033.003.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
The United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions were created in an altogether different context. The countries that created tehm wanted to improve the living conditions of their people through ...
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The United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions were created in an altogether different context. The countries that created tehm wanted to improve the living conditions of their people through rapid industrialisation and to participate in a more democratic world where the structure of governance treated nations as equal partners. In the pursuit of these objectives, the role of the nation state was perceived as critical everywhere. The perspectives on the management of economies in the industrialised world and strategies of development in the developing world, or in the erstwhile socialist bloc, are now very different. There were a few voices of dissent at the time, but it was, in effect, the development consensus of that era. The widespread acceptance of this approach, it would seem, represented a new consensus in thinking about development that came to be known as the Washington consensus. Privatisation, liberalisation, and globalisation have gathered momentum. This process has placed new players centre stage in the world economy.Less
The United Nations and the Bretton Woods institutions were created in an altogether different context. The countries that created tehm wanted to improve the living conditions of their people through rapid industrialisation and to participate in a more democratic world where the structure of governance treated nations as equal partners. In the pursuit of these objectives, the role of the nation state was perceived as critical everywhere. The perspectives on the management of economies in the industrialised world and strategies of development in the developing world, or in the erstwhile socialist bloc, are now very different. There were a few voices of dissent at the time, but it was, in effect, the development consensus of that era. The widespread acceptance of this approach, it would seem, represented a new consensus in thinking about development that came to be known as the Washington consensus. Privatisation, liberalisation, and globalisation have gathered momentum. This process has placed new players centre stage in the world economy.
Grzegorz W. Kolodko
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198297437
- eISBN:
- 9780191685354
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198297437.003.0010
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
Two risks are involved in privatisation: first, the requirement to come up with the highest possible revenue demands quick selling outcomes and the compromise of potentially long-run developments; ...
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Two risks are involved in privatisation: first, the requirement to come up with the highest possible revenue demands quick selling outcomes and the compromise of potentially long-run developments; and second, such endeavour might precipitate social pressures, economic controversies, and political tensions. Despite the positive contributions of privatisation to profit maximisation, cost minimisation, and other production and transaction concerns, another issue pertaining to the proper distribution of wealth are considered in this chapter. With all the strengths and weaknesses of privatisation, an individual or a firm may decide to slow down unless restructuring occurs. Other areas to consider consist of the methods of distribution, the allocation of income, the pursuance of increased business productivity, and the distinctions between equity and equality along with their corresponding target outputs.Less
Two risks are involved in privatisation: first, the requirement to come up with the highest possible revenue demands quick selling outcomes and the compromise of potentially long-run developments; and second, such endeavour might precipitate social pressures, economic controversies, and political tensions. Despite the positive contributions of privatisation to profit maximisation, cost minimisation, and other production and transaction concerns, another issue pertaining to the proper distribution of wealth are considered in this chapter. With all the strengths and weaknesses of privatisation, an individual or a firm may decide to slow down unless restructuring occurs. Other areas to consider consist of the methods of distribution, the allocation of income, the pursuance of increased business productivity, and the distinctions between equity and equality along with their corresponding target outputs.
Grzegorz W. Kolodko
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198297437
- eISBN:
- 9780191685354
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198297437.003.0007
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
Consistent and creditworthy organisational design is crucial in the furtherance and success of transformation in all aspects of a certain country. Transition is viewed as a means to reinvent a system ...
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Consistent and creditworthy organisational design is crucial in the furtherance and success of transformation in all aspects of a certain country. Transition is viewed as a means to reinvent a system and as a device to formulate developmental techniques. Apparently, excessive or slow pacing implementation of reforms will both induce detrimental consequences especially to economic soundness. That is why some of the countries practicing postsocialist propositions consider carrying out gradual levels of liberalisation and privatisation in order to provide adequate time for institutions to adapt to the new mechanisms. With this, organisations along with their staff are enhanced. In contrast, with an improper institutional design and transition-by-chance inclination, there could be massive market failure, termed as ‘informal institutionalisation’ and ‘crony capitalism’.Less
Consistent and creditworthy organisational design is crucial in the furtherance and success of transformation in all aspects of a certain country. Transition is viewed as a means to reinvent a system and as a device to formulate developmental techniques. Apparently, excessive or slow pacing implementation of reforms will both induce detrimental consequences especially to economic soundness. That is why some of the countries practicing postsocialist propositions consider carrying out gradual levels of liberalisation and privatisation in order to provide adequate time for institutions to adapt to the new mechanisms. With this, organisations along with their staff are enhanced. In contrast, with an improper institutional design and transition-by-chance inclination, there could be massive market failure, termed as ‘informal institutionalisation’ and ‘crony capitalism’.
