Archive for the ‘Twenty years ago’ Category
Aucoin: How NPM went wrong
In an influential 1990 Governance article, Peter Aucoin argued that New Public Management wrestled with a tension between empowering public servants and tightening political control over them. In the current issue of Governance, Aucoin argues that in many cases the drive for political control has won out, producing what he calls the New Political Governance (NPG). NPG has four features: the harnessing of administration to a “continuous campaign” for reelection; the rise of political staff as a “third force” in governance; the politicization of senior administrative appointments; and an expectation of public service loyalty to the government of the day. Open access to the article.
Peter Aucoin passed away in July 2011. This article was in the final stages of review at Governance at the time. The editors are pleased to publish it in recognition of Professor Aucoin’s service to the journal and the field of public administration.
The current issue also includes two comments on Aucoin’s article. Jonathan Boston of Victoria University of Wellington asks how many of the elements of NPG are really new. And J.R. Nethercote of Australian Catholic University acknowledges the pressure of accelerated news cycles and continuous campaigns, but suggests that Westminster systems do correct themselves after excesses of politicization. Read the commentaries.
Twenty years ago in Governance: “The Irish economy is a mess”
“The Irish economy, quite simply, is a mess,” Anthony G. Cahill wrote in the April 1989 issue of Governance. In his overview of Ireland’s economy and politics, Cahill speculates about the likely impact of the country’s integration into the European common market. His skepticism about the country’s ability to transform its political economy initially seemed to be refuted by a period of rapid growth that caused many to call Ireland the “Celtic Tiger.” But the years of optimism are over. As the Irish Times editorialized in January 2009: “We have gone from the Celtic Tiger to an era of financial fear with the suddenness of a Titanic-style shipwreck, thrown from comfort, even luxury, into a cold sea of uncertainty.” Read Cahill’s article — Ireland looks toward 1992 (but remembers 1948, 1916, 1798, 1782, and 1688) (2.2, pages 213-220) — in the Governance archives.
