Speaking truth to power demands diplomatic skills. This book looks at the way advice, which is needed by all executives, is provided to the summit of government in twelve advanced industrialized countries (Australia, Belgium, Britain, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Sweden, and the US). It examines the increasing pressures for centralization as core executives confront the differentiation and pluralization of government and the interplay of constitutional, political, and institutional factors.

The system for allocating public expenditure to the nations and regions of the UK has broken down. Money goes to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland by the notorious Barnett formula, but this is collapsing and cannot last long. Money goes to the English regions by poorly-understood formulae that work badly. People in every region think that the system is unfair to them. The Fiscal Crisis of the United Kingdom suggests how the system could be fixed, drawing lessons from Australia and Canada. It recommends a Territorial Grants Commission.

Why did Britain's economic policy revolution in the 1960s achieve so little? Drawing on the latest political science theories of policy networks and policy learning, Hugh Pemberton outlines a new model of economic policy making and then uses it to interrogate recently-released government documents. In explaining both the radical shift in policy and its failure to achieve its full potential, this book has much to say about the problems of British governance throughout the whole of the postwar period.

This is the first serious study to analyze Labour's approach to the Civil Service. It offers a theoretically engaged, empirically rich analysis drawing from over 300 interviews with key actors to explore the 'New Labour' effect on Whitehall. It considers 1997 transition process and the extent to which reform has improved public service delivery.

What is the power of the Treasury in controlling the policies and development of the welfare state? Drawing on in-depth interviews with officials of the Treasury and the spending departments, this book traces the developing role of the Treasury in setting social policy, especially under Gordon Brown's chancellorship.

The book uses a biographical approach to analyse the potential for, forms of, and constraints upon bureaucratic leadership in modern government. Case studies, written by experts in the different fields, assess the impact of particular officials operating in Whitehall, the United States federal government, the health service, local government, and Europe. The book brings together an innovative methodology with a wide policy coverage.

Draws on previously inaccessible family archives to penetrate the anonymity and public reticence of one of Britain's great twentieth century civil servants. Gowers was highly influential in public policy throughout his long civil service career, which began in 1903 and culminated in running London's civil defence throughout the Second World War.

Having lost an election, been thrown out by their party, or retired on grounds of ill-health, what do former British prime ministers do? In the first book to look at the lives, political roles and influence of former prime ministers, Kevin Theakston offers a comprehensive analysis of all the former prime ministers from Robert Walpole in the 18th century to Tony Blair today. This lively and informative book will appeal to those interested in British history as well as in contemporary politics. "You are very ex as an ex-prime minister," it has been said. "The telephone goes and immediately you...

How can we strengthen the capacity of governments and parties to manage arrivals and departures at the top? Democracy requires reliable processes for the transfer of power from one generation of leaders to the next. This book introduces new analytical frameworks and presents the latest empirical evidence from comparative political research.