All emerging system of urban governance? A review of policy, practice and prospects for the future
Citation:
Deiric O Broin, 'All emerging system of urban governance? A review of policy, practice and prospects for the future', Centre for Urban and Regional Studies. Trinity College Dublin, & the Faculty of the Built Environment, Dublin Institute of Technology. Bolton Street, Journal of Irish Urban Studies, Vol.2 (Issue 2), 2003, 2003, 37-52Download Item:
Abstract:
The profound changes in state structures and relationships that have affected the workings
of many European liberal democracies in the last decades of the twentieth century have had
important implications for the ways in which decisions are taken, implemented and
assessed by the state. The emergence of the consumer and environmental movements has
focused attention on issues of quality, sustainability and services responsiveness. The
introduction of market mechanisms has necessitated improvements in service specification
and the ongoing development of commonly understood perforrnance measures and the
involvement of new actors in decision-making processes have challenged many of the
principles and practices of public administration and service delivery at a local level.
This article considers claims that these changes have resulted in a new system of
governance emerging at a local level. The article then focuses on the relationship between
local government and the local development sector in the context of an emerging system
of local governance. It considers the experiences of the interaction between local
government and local development agencies, in particular the area partnerships, as they
pertain to the development of new forms of decision-making at local level. The article
suggests that despite the establishment of new structures and agencies to support the
emergence of a system of local governance, these developments are by themselves
insufficient to secure effective local governance. Accordingly, it recommends that a more
robust form of local government should seek to use its community leadership role to embed
appropriate systems of accountability and seek to 'join up' local action (Sullivan, 2003,
354).
Author: O Broin, Deiric
Publisher:
Centre for Urban and Regional Studies. Trinity College Dublin, & the Faculty of the Built Environment, Dublin Institute of Technology. Bolton StreetType of material:
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Journal of Irish Urban StudiesVol.2 (Issue 2), 2003
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Urban geography -- IrelandMetadata
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