Recent trends in UK Government policy on the provision and management of leisure facilities

Since the first election victory of the Thatcher administration in 1979, Britain has witnessed a cultural transformation from the municipal socialism of the post-World War 2 Welfare State to a form of post-industrial entrepreneurialism. This has had a profound effect on all aspects of civil society, not least the redefinition of the role of active leisure from the 1950s evocation of 'Sport For All' to the market rationality of the 1980s. The transformation has signalled a shift from government support for active leisure as an element of citizen rights to the use of leisure to promote the government's interest in legitimating a new social order based not on rights but on means. Thus access to active living is no longer a societal goal for all, but a discretionary consumer good, the consumption of which signifies 'active' citizenship. It furthermore signifies differentiation from the growing mass of 'deviants' who are unwilling or unable to embrace this new construction of citizenship and are, therefore, increasingly denied access to active living and, hence, active citizenship.

Transacting with citizens: Australian government policy, strategy and implementation of online tax lodgement

Many governments have shown leadership in encouraging their citizenry to conduct transactions on-line. The policies that underpin these initiatives refer to a blend of civic benefits and efficiency goals. They combine the rhetoric of customer service with social shaping through ‘government as model user’ and procedures that require online activities. Many initiatives are described as ‘electronic service delivery’, terms that indicate an intention to provide much more than an additional channel for government interaction with citizens. Australia, as an innovator in eGovernment is a good example of this approach and its national government has specified policy goals for its online strategy. In this paper we examine the case of one Australian online delivery initiative, electronic tax lodgement (e-tax) and consider how well that initiative has met the policy goals of the government. Combining insights from Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovation theory and political analysis, we outline potential difficulties that governments face in implementing ESD initiatives. Our conclusion from this case study is that the provision of good technology is only a small part of the ESD challenge. It shows how success of an ESD implementation may yield contradictory outcomes in terms of overall eGovernment strategies. This case highlights the need for long-term
implementation plans and integration of initiatives with broader government strategy.

Separate spheres and public policy : the role of women in the development of children's services in Victorian local government, 1840-1992

The thesis is an explanation of the development of pre-school children's services (infant welfare, kindergartens and child care) at local government level in Victoria. The critical framework of analysis focuses on three dimensions of public policy: 1) the socio-historical environment; 2) the political processes involved in the development of the specific children's service; and 3) the major individuals and groups that exerted pressure for children's service, The argument is threefold. Firstly it is argued that the political environment of children's services has been dominated by the practice of separate spheres of public and private, in which the care of children is primarily the role of women. Secondly, it is argued that the political processes surrounding the development of local children's services have involved all levels of government in what is termed a local state. Thirdly, it is argued that the development of these children's services in local government has resulted mainly from the work of women both individually and collectively. Since the three services of infant welfare, kindergartens and child care all became a normal function of children's services at different times, the circumstances that surrounded each development exhibited different aspects of the three major arguments. The periodisation is broken into four phases: 1) the establishment of local government with no children's services in the nineteenth century; 2) the establishment of infant welfare services in local government in the early part of the twentieth century; 3) the incorporation of kindergartens into local government after the second world war; and 4) the incorporation of child care into local government in the 1970s and 1980s. The thesis concludes by arguing that the existence of children's services in local government in Victoria is testimony to the remarkable work of those women who have pursued the issue both individually and collectively. It has been the identification of children's services as a women's issue in Australian politics that has enabled women's groups at different times to influence the policy makers in diverse ways. However, while the establishment of children's services as a legitimate political concern brings the matter onto the public agenda, the separate spheres still remains a contested issue in the public policies of children's services.

Social capital and public policy – the current challenge facing the Victorian Government

Social capital, since Putnam’s 1993 work, has captured the imagination of policy-makers the world over, and Australia is no exception. In 2005 the Department of Victorian Communities launched its Actions for Community Strengthening policy statement, which draws heavily on social capital theory. This article explores the theoretical underpinnings of the government’s policy and critiques its failure to deal adequately with the causal relationship between social capital and its supposed community benefits. The article then seeks to isolate the missing factors through a look at recent research on volunteerism and argues that the institution of collaborative/interactive governance needs to be underpinned by sound socio-economic reform.

Opportunities and challenges in developing a whole-of-government national food and nutrition policy: lessons from Australia's National Food Plan

OBJECTIVE: The present article tracks the development of the Australian National Food Plan as a 'whole of government' food policy that aimed to integrate elements of nutrition and sustainability alongside economic objectives. DESIGN: The article uses policy analysis to explore the processes of consultation and stakeholder involvement in the development of the National Food Plan, focusing on actors from the sectors of industry, civil society and government. Existing documentation and submissions to the Plan were used as data sources. Models of health policy analysis and policy streams were employed to analyse policy development processes. SETTING: Australia. SUBJECTS: Australian food policy stakeholders. RESULTS: The development of the Plan was influenced by powerful industry groups and stakeholder engagement by the lead ministry favoured the involvement of actors representing the food and agriculture industries. Public health nutrition and civil society relied on traditional methods of policy influence, and the public health nutrition movement failed to develop a unified cross-sector alliance, while the private sector engaged in different ways and presented a united front. The National Food Plan failed to deliver an integrated food policy for Australia. Nutrition and sustainability were effectively sidelined due to the focus on global food production and positioning Australia as a food 'superpower' that could take advantage of the anticipated 'dining boom' as incomes rose in the Asia-Pacific region. CONCLUSIONS: New forms of industry influence are emerging in the food policy arena and public health nutrition will need to adopt new approaches to influencing public policy.

Government policy and private investment in Brazil (1955/82)

The questlon of the crowding-out of private !nvestment by public expenditure, public investment in particular , ln the Brazilian economy has been discussed more in ideological terrns than on empirical grounds. The present paper tries to avoid the limitation of previous studies by estlmatlng an equation for private investment whlch makes it possible to evaluate the effect of economic policies on prlvate investment. The private lnvestment equation was deduced modifylng the optimal flexible accelerator medel (OFAM) incorporating some channels through which public expendlture influences privateinvestment. The OFAM consists in adding adjustment costs to the neoclassical theory of investrnent. The investment fuction deduced is quite general and has the following explanatory variables: relative prices (user cost of capitaljimput prices ratios), real interest rates, real product, public expenditures and lagged private stock of capital. The model was estimated for private manufacturing industry data. The procedure adopted in estimating the model was to begin with a model as general as possible and apply restrictions to the model ' s parameters and test their statistical significance. A complete diagnostic testing was also made in order to test the stability of estirnated equations. This procedure avoids ' the shortcomings of estimating a model with a apriori restrictions on its parameters , which may lead to model misspecification. The main findings of the present study were: the increase in public expenditure, at least in the long run, has in general a positive expectation effect on private investment greater than its crowding-out effect on priva te investment owing to the simultaneous rise in interst rates; a change in economlc policy, such as that one of Geisel administration, may have an important effect on private lnvestment; and reI ative prices are relevant in determining the leveI of desired stock of capital and private investrnent.

Institutional reform and government coordination in Brazil's social protection policy

Includes bibliography

U.S. immigration policy and the national interest : the final report and recommendations of the Select Commission on Immigration and Refugee Policy with supplemental views by commissioners.

"Submitted to the Congress and the President of the United States pursuant to Public Law 95-412."

Final report of the Select Commission on Immigration and Refugee Policy : joint hearings before the Subcommittee on Immigration and Refugee Policy of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees, and International Law of the House Committee on the Judiciary, Ninety-seventh Congress, first session, on the final report of the Select Commission on Immigration and Refugee Policy, May 5, 6, and 7, 1981.

Item 1042-A, 1041-B (microfiche)

Coordinated information sharing and homeland security : hearing before the Subcommittee on Technology and Procurement Policy of the Committee on Government Reform, House of Representatives, One Hundred Seventh Congress, second session, June 7, 2002.

"Serial no. 107-182."

The government as dominant shareholder : how should the taxpayers' ownership rights be exercised? : hearing before the Subcommittee on Domestic Policy of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, House of Representatives, One Hundred Eleventh Congress, first session.

Mode of access: Internet.

Remarks on several recent publications regarding the civil government and foreign policy of British India.

Mode of access: Internet.

Republican landmarks. The views and opinions of American statesmen on foreign immigration. Being a collection of statistics of population, pauperism, crime, etc. With an inquiry into the true character of the dUnited States government, and its policy on the subject of immigration, naturalization of aliens, etc.

Mode of access: Internet.