Governance – why bother? PFA Conference Dublin 10 th December 2007 Roger Latham

Keynes’ Statement “The power of economic theory is greater than commonly imagined. Practical men of affairs, who believe themselves quite immune from its influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist, and madmen in authority, who hear voices in the air, are distilling their frenzy from some academic scribbler of a few years back” General Theory 1935

Roles & relationships - the public sector Politics: Who is us & them Legitimisation of force Who gets what, where and when. Mobilising power to defend or make choices A priori definitions of good & bad Public debate & discussion Acknowledgement of luck & Circumstance Professionalism: Occupation requires special skill set Accreditation maintained by collective body Highly trained, disciplined based on qualification Preference for party political neutrality Problems defined in terms of solutions qualified to offer Street level practice & grass roots innovation Managerialism: Wherever the state boundaries are it must be well managed State admin must be accountable Focus on 3E’s & VFM Claims to operate outside politics but always searching for new explanations Relentlessly optimistic “There is nothing that cannot be managed, given time”