Performance Management Systems: Clashing Symbols or Marching Tunes? Dr Ruth Dixon Department of Politics and International Relations University of Oxford Managing the Politics of National Performance Targets: Country Scorecards, National Results Frameworks, Delivery Units World Bank Seminar 3 May 2012

Performance Management Systems: Clashing Symbols or Marching Tunes? Dr Ruth Dixon Department of Politics and International Relations University of Oxford Christopher Hood and Ruth Dixon, The Political Payoff from Performance Target Systems JPART 20 (Suppl. 2): i281-i298.

UK Government Performance Systems Executive Agencies; Audit Commission; National Audit Office Margaret Thatcher Citizen’s Charter John Major Public Service Agreements (PSAs); 3- year spending plans Tony Blair 1 st term PM’s Delivery Unit; 20 key PSAs; Efficiency Programmes Tony Blair 2 nd term Departmental Capability Reviews Tony Blair 3 rd term; Gordon Brown Departmental Business Plans … David Cameron 3Ruth Dixon 2012

Symbolic or Substantive? What did they claim? Autonomy; Market discipline; Value for Money / Cost-cutting Margaret Thatcher Focus on service users John Major Perf management for central depts; “Education”; targeted spending Tony Blair 1 st term Accountability – high-stakes targets; Public money well spent; Pledges met Tony Blair 2 nd term Developing capability and leadership in civil service Tony Blair 3 rd term; Gordon Brown ‘No More Targets’; Budget cuts … David Cameron 4Ruth Dixon 2012

Symbolic or Substantive? Did achievements match claims? Agencies created across public service  ; Cost of government rose  Margaret Thatcher Public satisfaction fell to record lows  ; Admin costs fell slightly  John Major Education standards rose sharply  ; NHS continued to languish  Tony Blair 1 st term NHS standards rose  ; Public spending rose; Targets increasingly unpopular  Tony Blair 2 nd term Focus on delivery throughout civil service  Tony Blair 3 rd term; Gordon Brown Public spending still rising  ; ‘Process targets’ appear in business plans … David Cameron 5Ruth Dixon 2012

Education Standards Rose in Blair’s First Term 6Ruth Dixon PMDU 1997 SEU

Hospital Waiting Lists Fell in Blair’s Second Term 7Ruth Dixon 2012 Source: Department of Health Annual Report 2006

Public Opinion Improved 8Ruth Dixon 2012 British Social Attitudes Survey Blair’s second term

Hood and Dixon, 2010 Targets became increasingly unpopular with public and press 9Ruth Dixon 2012 UK Newspaper Articles on Health and Education Targets

Targets remained popular with central bureaucrats and NHS managers Source: NHS Managers surveyed June 2010 Whitehall Civil Servants interviewed Opinion of targets for raising standards in public services Negative Neutral Positive Q: Targets are history and that’s a good thing. Hood and Dixon, % 34 % 62 %

Delivery Targets as Symbols Credit claiming Blame shifting Demonstrate control Political reputation Appear fiscally responsible See Hood 2011 The Blame Game 11Ruth Dixon 2012  If standards improve  Incentive to succeed  ‘Impose’ best practice  Delivery important  Understand spending – or Levers for Improvement? “Action expresses priorities” (Gandhi)

Acknowledgements I am very grateful to Christopher Hood, Gladstone Professor of Government, University of Oxford, who led the research described here and who has shaped my thinking on political science. My thanks also to Dr Catherine Haddon, Institute for Government, and to several current and former senior civil servants for helpful discussions. This work was funded by the Leverhulme Trust and the ESRC Public Services Programme. See also xgov.politics.ox.ac.uk and christopherhood.net 12Ruth Dixon 2012