In defence of councillors is an unashamed defence of local representative democracy and of those elected to serve as councillors from the often ill-informed, ill-judged and inaccurate criticism made by the media, government and public, of councillors' personal, political and professional roles.By using qualitative research from a number of related projects, the book examines the roles, functions and responsibilities of councillors and the expectations placed upon them by c...

This book, now available in paperback, is the result of national research conducted amongst England’s directly elected mayors and the councillors that serve alongside them. It is the first such major publication to assess the impact on local politics of this new office and fills a gap in our understanding of how the Local Government Act 2000 has influenced local governance. The book also draws from a range of research that has focused on elected mayors - in England and overseas - to set ou...

Drawing on classical and emerging research perspectives, this comprehensive book provides an up-to-date review of local government in Europe.Featuring an impressive range of contributors from both eastern and western Europe, the book addresses three main topics: territorial reforms, democratic empowerment of citizens and the role of local leadership, as well as new trends in local finances.Acknowledging their inherent diversity, the book examines the ways that local governm...

This book challenges the notion that bigger local government is always better. Whilst the central government in Britain has often supported increases in local government size, the book argues that this has been detrimental, and has caused the erosion of distinctive community identities that were previously represented by local authorities empowered to make significant local choices about services and future strategy. Drawing from national and international evidence, it offers an alternativ...

The book explores the claim that English local government exists in one of the most centralised relationships with national government. Such a position fundamentally undermines any notion of local self-government and makes the term ‘government’ in local government a misnomer. The book will examine how the erosion of the autonomy, powers, roles, functions and responsibilities of English local government came about, the arguments of centralisers and localisers to support their view of the co...

Directly elected mayors are political leaders who are selected directly by citizens and head multi-functional local government authorities. This book examines the contexts, features and debates around this model of leadership, and how in practice political leadership is exercised through it.The book draws on examples from Europe, the US, and Australasia to examine the impacts, practices, and debates of mayoral leadership in different cities and countries. Themes that recur througho...

Planning is not a technical and value free activity. Planning is an overt political system that creates both winners and losers. The Planning Polity is a book that considers the politics of development and decision-making, and political conflicts between agencies and institutions within British town and country planning. The focus of assessment is how British planning has been formulated since the early 1990s, and provides an in-depth and revealing assessment of both the Major and...

The House of Commons is increasingly held in contempt by the British public. From attending parties during the Covid-19 lockdown to taking payment for lobbying, MPs undermine their credibility by acting as if the rules they set for others should not apply to them. Still far from representative of the country they govern from the ancient and crumbling Palace of Westminster, MPs appear detached from the lives led by their constituents – conducting their business according to rules and proced...

Nick Tiratsoo and Jim Tomlinson describe and assess the Labour Party's development of a policy of improving industrial efficiency. They concentrate on the debates and initiatives of the wartime period and subsequent implementation of policy under Attlee. The book modifies existing historiography in two ways - it shows that the Labour Party of 1945-51 was concerned mainly with industrial modernization, not with creating the Welfare State, and it tackles the consequently necessary re-evaluat...

At the height of the Scottish Independence debate, After Independence offers an in-depth and varied exploration of the possibilities for Scotland, from both pro and anti-independence standpoints. Drawing together over two dozen leading minds on the subject, After Independence offers a comprehensive and balanced analysis of Scotland's current and prospective political, economic, social and cultural situation. Brought together in an inclusive, accessible and informative way, After Independen...

A Nation Changed? Provides the first detailed and wide-ranging analysis of the SNP in office. It looks at how Scotland has changed and not changed during that time, and the challenges that lie ahead. The book examines the SNP's record, its role as a government and as a party, detailed policy issues such as education and health, the Brexit conundrum and independence.Offering insights and suggestions for further action and reform, A Nation Changed? brings together a...

Since first publication in 1982, Howard Elcock's Local Government has established a reputation as a comprehensive and unbiased account of how British local government really works. This respected textbook has been completely revised and rewritten for its third edition, to take account of changes in local government and in the circumstances in which it operates. The third edition examines new management structures and accountabilities that follow the policy initiatives of the centr...