Investment in the environment recent housing, planning and transport policies in Scotland

Br,oX

,‘P,‘,C,,‘\

Urban poverty and central-local government relations

Inside view of Scottish politics INVESTMENT

IN

THE

ENVIRON-

MENT Recent

Housing,

port Policies by Em

Planning

and Trans-

in Scotland

Gillett

Aberdeen University Press, deen, UK. 1983. 160 pp, fl 1

Aber-

CITIES

November

1984

distinctive

Scottish

The

operation

tish

government

solutions

solutions in

reaching

is examined

machinery

of

influence

these

in terms of the

government,

of political

pressure

reached.

of the system of Scot-

and

parties.

the

officials,

in

formulation

the

main

with

policy

and change between 1976

and 1980. in each case the response to some form

of consultation

to and

planning

or discus-

anything that

planning

excited

little

the particular

The again

govern-

ment in 1979. The chapter on housing considers in some detail the Labour consultative

the

ner

owner-occupation

homeless.

Against

a major

and

the

the h~~ck~rotlnd of

change of

policy

in

IY7Y,

comments are provided on the understandings

and

arrangements

behind

the P~~rli~lnient~ry scenes in contrast to the influence role

of formal

of civil

debates,

servants.

local authorities

to resist

change. and the extent balance

of

power

groups determined

the

the power

of

unwelcome to which

among

the

The

chapter

into

on town

quiry

pl~~nliin~

into a major

problems

and

lowed

a public

drilling nuclear

an

de-

application inquiry

into

The

development

a

of

approach to scenic herit-

age is traced. from draft designation National

Scenic

sultation

to incorporation

Regulation

Areas

through

and a National

of

con-

in formal Planning

is noted

housing.

town

that.

in contrast

and country

does not arouse

inin

and the emergence of the Scottish

joint

approach

government

and local authorities Eastern

by

agencies

in mounting

Arca

the

Renewal

Pro-

ject. A concluding chapter considers effects that devolution Scottish

Assembly

established

the

to an elected

interests

~

by the senior

civil servant

provides

an UII-

of the evolution

of en-

the hook

review

policies in a country

and devolved administration. of particular

interest

and planners various

of

~~eccntr~ilizcd en-

planning

developed.

cused studies.

exist

Parallel.

in other

those

similarly

would

make a major

international

It wil hc

to administrators

in those countrie\ where

forms

vironmental bring

with

~ovcrn~ne~it

close

or

are

sharply

fo-

countries

hy

to the

action,

contribution

comparison

to

and under-

standing.

might have had on

the policies considered in the hook. fn relation

to the role and influence of all

the parties considered.

it is noted that

the model which hest represents

the

Derek Lyddon Scottish Development Department Edinburgh, UK

DOES POLtTlCS MAl-TER? The Determinants of Public Policy

portant

by L.J. Sharpe and K. Newton

p~rticul~~r year as have many previous

party

planning

political

CITIES November 1984

with con-

advances

in

the

approach

adopted. The

study

studies,

hut

time-series

Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1984,249 PP. f18

does is

not

focus

based on

dataset from

:I

on

a

l7-year

1957 to 1’973.

The study also involves a much grentcr degree of dis~~~re~~~ti~~n of cxpendi-

This

book is a major

contribution

the study of the determinants in local authorities.

to

of policy

It is based on a

major research project using statistical analysis of the outputs

of policy mak-

ing as measured by expenditure in individual aggregated parts

local authorities to particular

of services.

While

levels

and dis-

services relating

study to the large international

Guideline. It

Finally.

the magnitude of Glasgow’s

government, Glasgow

air-

fo-

associated with the disposal of

the Scottish

usual

with

debate and in-

to carry out some research waste.

of

Written the time,

ferry

are discussed,

the

who was dealing with these policies :tt

for

the three

the

or

ment and the electorate.

is paid to

of

system.

petrochemical

velopment proposal

plan-

cases arc dealt

the public

by

aspects

national

and the evolution

particular

involving

groups,

insights

Scottish

planning.

devei~~plnent

Two

factors - whether

the pressure

Unitary model of local government

and country

particular

the distinctively

ning guidelines. the

ments all other

both

povern-

the course of puh-

provides

on regional

transport

tariff

Conservative

pressure

lit policy. planning

and

resistance

;I

in central Scotland. city

uniquely

towards

It is suggested that under

Lahour

were secondary t4) the role of Parlia-

;I

attention

equivalent

to Parliathe electo-

of

to

4tf

responsible

ment, party and ultim~itely rate.

been

hy

dealing with

review

one of ministers

have

is the classical

its oxen form of territorial

they live in.

and policies

reactions

associated with

problems,

rent polices on housing.

with

policies

in Scotland

issues

particular

and

apects

how

vironmental

the right of tenants to buy the houses expenditure

the

document

of

media,

are dealt

Particular

road

ensuing political issues associated with public

considered

reality

determined

services to the islands and to the policy ports

government‘s

document in lY77 and the

The

it was only

Scottish

policies

analysing

policy.

by the changes resulting

new Conservative

of

cases considered

particularly

transport

comprehensive

the

satlie

that passions were aroused.

policy from

policies

discussion,

consultative

tion. followed

the

principles

and manifestos.

general

sion document is analysed, traced into f(~rmul~~ti~~n and ii~~pleinent~~-

like

the

do not figure very largely in

party statements

with

groups and the media.

Dealing

troversy extent,

~overnmcnt

literature

- the authors

claim

than

most previous

htu-

Those

features

the most striking

are not,

however.

aspects of this study.

Indeed, it is by no means clear that the length of period covered by the study has added as much as might have been expected. The authors have. however,

this

made irnp~~rt~lnt advances by hreuking

litera-

on UK

figures

or

ture on output studies as well as to the more restricted

ture dies.

local im-

away

from

the

normal

previous

studies

establish

links

and

so&l.

of

between

economic

practice

attempting

of to

expenditure and

demog-

631