The Politics Of Public Private Partnerships In Western Europe

This comprehensive book provides a unique comparative policy analysis of public-private partnerships (PPPs) in 14 Western European countries – from Scandinavia to Greece – bringing together important insights from government and politics as well as economics and institutional analysis. Thomas Krumm focuses on political drivers for policy change in favour of PPPs, and the supportive and limiting socioeconomic and institutional conditions. Using comparative data, he charts key policies and actors involved in supporting collaboration between the State and private business organisations across Western Europe. Students and scholars of public policy, regulation and comparative politics, among other disciplines, will find this book to be useful in their research or teaching. It will also be of substantial interest to PPP practitioners, and other specialists in the subject.

Public-Private partnerships are an increasing aspect of the delivery of public policies and services across the world. This book is the first to draw upon a range of disciplines to offer theoretical perspectives upon their analysis as well as a range of case-studies of their management from around the world. It also offers a number of frameworks fo

`Its strength lies in combining theoretical insights with an impressive range of empirical material. The analysis is subtle and multi-layered.... This is a timely and important book' - Political Studies `Local governance have gained massive attention among scholars and practitioners during the past several years. Peter John's book fills a void in the literature by tracing the historical roots of local governance and by placing his findings in a comparative perspective' - Professor Jon Pierre, University of Gothenburg, Sweden `Peter John has produced a fascinating and stimulating book in which he assesses current developments in urban politics and local government in Europe and suggests how these changes are leading to different patterns of sub-national territorial politics in the EU today. What he has to say is of important interest to all students of local government; comparative politics and of territorial politics more generally' - Michael Goldsmith, University of Salford `this book offers a fascinating comparative analysis... themes such as New Public Management, globalisation, regionalism and privatisation will be relevant to numerous courses in government, politics, public administration and public policy' - West European Politics This text provides a comprehensive introduction to local government and urban politics in contemporary Western Europe. It is the first book to map and explain the change in local political systems and to place these in comparative context. The book introduces students to the traditional structures and institutions of local government and shows how these have been transformed in response to increased economic and political competition, new ideas, institutional reform and the Europeanization of public policy. At the book's core is the perceived transition from local government to local governance. The book traces this key development thematically across a wide range of West European states including: Belgium, France, Greece, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom.

Urban governance in most western democracies has seen various forms of public-private concerted actions becoming increasingly important instruments for local governments. These new features of urban governance are often seen as local governments trying to enhance their "capacity to act" by fusing their capabilities with those of other major societal actors. At the same time such transgressions of the border between the public and the private spheres of society make local governments more susceptible to political pressures from those actors. This volume looks at the historical development and present performance of public-private partnerships for local economic development in western Europe and the United States. The theoretical framework applied in the volume is derived from theories of governance as well as from institutional theory.

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This book deals with an increasingly important topic. As governments are expected to provide their citizens with more services at less cost, the traditional vehicles of public sector agencies and companies prove to be too expensive. New forms of providing public services are needed. The study explains the basis for public ownership and how public ownership forms have changed over time to accommodate requirements of efficiency in economic and social environments that have become more complex. The book examines experiences in specific sectors and the form of management of public companies that have emerged, with a particular focus on the energy and communications sectors where government ownership has traditionally dominated.

In view of the fact that public infrastructure, health and other services are being more consistently delivered through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) and concessions; this timely book explores these complex contractual arrangements involving cooperation between public and private sectors. It considers that PPPs have become increasingly prevalent following the financial crisis and examines the applicable legal regimes that are still, to a large extent, unclear to many.

This book draws together case analyses of public-private partnerships in four different countries: Australia, France, Romania and Spain. It represents research efforts conducted from December 2007 to November 2012, and it covers a wide range of experiences in planning and implementing public-private partnerships in countries that belong to two very different socio-economic regions: Europe and Australia. The study on Australia deals with key concepts and types of public-partnerships, as well as performance and evaluation issues. While the analysis on France focuses on water sanitation and public transport services, the research on Romania highlights water and infrastructure projects. Finally, the discussion of Spain emphasizes healthcare and network services. The study illustrates that public-private partnerships are very adaptable and can take an unexpected variety of forms in different industries, types of service, regions or legal frameworks. By suggesting new directions for future comparative research in this area, we hope that this collection of country case studies will stimulate useful and enlightened discussion of the field and encourage a greater focus on the importance of context in future discussions of public-private partnerships.

Public-Private Partnerships aims to discover the conditions under which public private partnerships may provide a viable alternative to the provision of public services and infrastructures by the state, while achieving efficient, sustainable, peaceful, and equitable development in four transition countries: China, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine. These countries have experienced command economy under communist rule for at least thirty years. They have only recently introduced market mechanisms. In spite of a huge literature in favor of public private partnerships in the west, scientific empirical evidence is generally mixed and balanced. Success or failure depends upon many factors that need to be identified and analyzed. Moreover, economic performance may be achieved at the expense of other criteria such as equity, public scrutiny, and accountability. This research (a cooperation between the University of Geneva and the United Nations) is the first attempt to evaluate public private partnerships based upon a review of the literature in Europe, documentary analysis, and in-depth interviews in the four countries with representatives of the public and private sectors, as well civil society organizations.

This book highlights good practices and summarises what countries should consider before entering into public-private partnerships (PPPs).