Over recent decades, local governments in Europe have come increasingly under pressure facing a multitude of old and new challenges. Consequently, a wave of political and administrative reforms aimed at coping with these pressures has changed local governance in many nations. Local governments are not only responsible for efficient administration, high-quality services and a legally correct execution of laws, but also for ensuring legitimacy, democratic participation, accountability and trust – often under the conditions of austerity. This volume presents research findings of an international project on local public sector reforms in 31 countries and derives advice for policymakers to shape the future of local governments in Europe. The authors address basic reform areas and key features of local governance like autonomy, performance and participation. The book targets academics, students and practitioners interested in (the future of) local government.
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Bibliographic data
Copyright year
2017
ISBN-Print
978-3-8487-3756-7
ISBN-Online
978-3-8452-8063-9
Publisher
Nomos, Baden-Baden
Series
Modernisierung des öffentlichen Sektors ("Gelbe Reihe")
Autonomy, Performance, Participation: Lessons from the Comparative Study of Local Public Sector Reforms Pages 11 - 22 Christian Schwab, Geert Bouckaert, Sabine Kuhlmann Download chapter (PDF)
Chapter 1: Autonomy and Austerity: Re-Investing in Local Government Pages 23 - 52 Andreas Ladner Download chapter (PDF)
Chapter 2: Improving Local Service Delivery: Increasing Performance through Reforms Pages 53 - 78 Trui Steen, Filipe Teles, Harald Torsteinsen Download chapter (PDF)
Chapter 3:Participation and Democratic Accountability: Making a Difference for the Citizens Pages 79 - 100 Bas Denters Download chapter (PDF)
Conclusion: Lessons and Advice for Future Local Government in Europe Pages 101 - 112 Christian Schwab, Geert Bouckaert, Sabine Kuhlmann Download chapter (PDF)
