The Key Challenges for Implementing Public Policy in Modern Britain - Term Paper Example

The Key Challenges for Implementing Public Policy in Modern Britain "The public policy" is a symbiosis of political actions, a scientific reflection and the act of Mass-media communications. Public policy is carried out by the way of intervention the experts to the sphere of policy, analysts, experts in the field of social sciences, "intellectuals", publicists and journalists. Historically the concrete set of social circumstances acting a condition of an opportunity of public policy, has changed the maintenance of concept “policy”. All this allows speaking about the public policy as about another condition of a field of policy. The general economic crisis, which has amazed many West-European countries in 80-90-ies years, has forced them to reconsider the social policy. "The social state" has appeared to be unable to cope with new problems of public management (social deviations, "new poor", growth of criminality, etc.). The concept of "the social state" was replaced by neoliberalism that demanded the redefinition of the purposes of the state and the "rational" management. The social conditions of political practices have radically changed, having caused new political forms, and new professionals of their manufacture (experts, social workers) (Ham, 1984, p87). Each form of public policy is directed on the social problem and has its "public" (a category of social counterparts). However the problem, no less than a social category, is not something certainly and unequivocally given, but the results of designing of agents of public policy. The Researches of public policy in the West aspire to separate in the independent discipline, speaking on behalf a name of a science about "the state in operation". However, declaring itself as a science about "public action", it in practice, often departs from the model of knowledge accepted in the academic world and takes the form of set of techniques or check lists, intended for the persons making the decision, i.e. solves the problems of public management. A greater part of the responsibility for that lays on Anglo-Saxon tradition as, since the fiftieth years, the researches of public policy in the USA are based on concept "government" and have almost exclusively pragmatical character(Ham, 1984, p94). Studying of public policy goes back to the standard of distinction between policy (a policy as the program of actions) and politics (a policy as a system of sights). The problem of public policy is considered here in aspect of increasing inability of the modern state to solve social problems of the population. The state is ostensibly eliminated from the responsibility for the decision, and shifts it, on the one hand, on the institutes "civil society", and from another - on "neutral" instance - the experts who are speaking on behalf of the science. The Concept "public policy" in ordinary perception is closely connected with actively politically functioning "democratic public". This concept represents the original response to the ascertaining of the fact of a deep and sharp public disagreement, characteristic for modern "western democracies". The task of public policy is the achievement of a consensus, i.е. the public consent on the fixed problems. The public policy cannot be reduced only to institutional forms, such as the mass-media communications or activity of experts (Hill, 1997, pp 102 - 105). The term "the public policy" till now does not express any sociological concept. Behind it there is only limited and friable image, the vague representation involved in a political discourse. The expressive strategy of this discourse is to hide a certain set of the phenomena from the scientific analysis, having transferred it to the area of the deprived basis and spontaneous. However, the public policy is not the fleeting phenomenon not clearly outlined, and possessing neither attributes, nor quality. Trying to overcome the noncriticality and ambiguity of "public policy", the sociology should use "exact" concepts and all reflexive potential. The public policy is not clear and badly certain subject. The public policy is new figure of the states, fields of policy, journalism, social sciences. The public policy overturns the hierarchy of fields which is set by habitual oppositions: policy - journalism, policy - social sciences, journalism - social sciences. But this overturning does not assume an establishment of the new structure, new hierarchy. The public policy exists, first of all, as set of practical actions, preventive measures (the prevention of criminality, a narcotism …), the control, regulation, public discussions. Secondly, the public policy is an ensemble of categories of social perception, legitimate nominations, social classifications and hierarchies, definitions of norm and deviation, estimated judgments. Differently, the public policy includes as set of objective social structures (data in the form of resources distribution, means and mechanisms of their assignment), and a set of subjective structures (legitimate practical schemes and explicit concepts). The question on social conditions of public policy is one of the main research problems of sociology. The social conditions which do possible existence of public policy include various kinds of resources: economic, political, institutional, legal, communicative. Besides the given social conditions comprise various legitimate practical schemes and other symbolical production (Hill, 1997, p58). So, it is possible to understand the programs of the public policy as the priorities of authorities, mechanisms and the technologies of their realization developed on the basis of and in view of expectations of social groups (strata) of any society by their representatives. It is easy to see, that the public policy is closely connected with the concept of public participation of acceptance of imperious decisions. Therefore it is possible to tell also, that the public policy represents a way and result of public participation during acceptance of the vital decisions for a society. The establishing of public policy is a necessary condition for democracy of participation which can come on changes of electoral democracy, democracies of voting only in case of development an expert of public participation. It is important to understand, that by itself the experts and technologies of public participation will not receive any development. They can be realized only by the efforts of concrete people and the organizations which are ready to spend time and other resources for their development. It is necessary to note one more characteristic of public policy - it is impossible without existence of the process of various communications of public groups in occasion of the purposes and problems of the government and local self-management. So, on the one hand we see the authorities approving and then realizing the concrete programs of activity. From another - social groups (strata) of societies which expectations should make a basis of programs for activity. In order the phenomenon of public policy took place, it is necessary; these two parties have been connected by a chain of intermediaries. A classical chain of such intermediaries are deputies - from authority, and political parties - from a society (Hill, 1997, p113). In the name of the deputy authority - the representative authority - their function is concluded. On the other hand, political parties as special type of public organizations, correct revealing of real needs of inhabitants and expression of these needs and problems in the form of the electoral programs can provide. Modern representations testify about the development of public policy, that this traditional chain of intermediaries is obviously insufficiently, especially in conditions of the post authoritative countries when deputies are inclined to forget the representation functions, and parties appear all less influential players of a political stage (Ham, 1984, p99). A huge influence on acceptance of political decisions is rendered by enterprise structures, financial and industrial groups. " The Intermediary chains " in this case can be of two types - public and not public, and the second can be essentially more developed, including various mechanisms of influence both on deputies, and on structures of executive authority, result of that is the development of corruption. As a matter of fact, the parity among themselves public and not public mechanisms of business-community influence on authority can be considered as the important exponent of development of the public policy. It is possible to allocate and one more, the fourth, "chain of intermediaries", formed around of the disputed or disputable situations arising at application of rules of law to concrete vital situations. Any political or imperous decision is not accepted in modern Britain without taking into account the objective scientific knowledge or, otherwise, recommendations of a science. Another case, this knowledge or recommendations are not defining (Hogwood, 1984, p95). The main principles in British public policy are: 1. Desire to receive the objective information in the form of scientific recommendations for the improvement of quality of the made decision. 2. Desire to approve the decision by the opinion of societies basically to strengthen its reference to corresponding scientific examination. 3. Aspiration to create "smoke screen" of around the really made decision by carrying out of set of public discussions of examinations of other projects of the decision. 4. Aspiration to provide public support of decisions offered to authority, winning round authority of scientific examination. 5. Aspiration to achieve the condemnation and a cancelling of decisions already accepted by authority (with this purpose ecological examination is often used). The phenomenon of the schools of the public policy is very popular in Britain now. So, the tasks of such schools are: Creation of the uniform public information environment in the regions of Britain; Creation of inter-regional community of socially active citizens - new political and public "generalizating" environment incorporated on the basis of the general democratic values and desire of active participation in the British modernization; Creation of expert community by a principle the "capital-regions", participating in realization of socially-educational programs; Creation of the public environment and the institutes in regions to active participation in public processes. The schools give much and in particular: To politicians and representatives of executive authority they give an opportunity of professional growth. To businessmen - expansion of the outlook, new communications, finding of skills of work in a public field, and also prospects of self-realization on an arena of politics. To civil active workers - a platform for broadcasting civil problems in imperous and other structures, purchase of skills constructive "works with authority and business". To representatives of mass-media - an opportunity of reception of the information from "the first hands", access to federal information channels, mastering by modern political language. To experts and scientists - an opportunity of discussion of problems with representatives of scientific and humanitarian elite of Britain and abroad. To youth – the development leadership qualities, gaining of new knowledge and skills, prospect of growth. The school gives all listeners the sensation of participation and the responsibility for a state of affairs in the country through which the civil consciousness is found. The ideological priorities of Schools of public policy are values of democracy and a civil society: The relations with authorities of region – partnership; The relations with political parties and business – cooperation; The relations with the civil organizations and projects - mutual aid and partnership; The relations with citizens and mass-media - an openness and availability. Schools are not the political organizations. The policy, in sense of struggle for authority, does not enter into a field of activity of Schools of public policy. Schools do not interfere in the field of activity of politicians and political parties. References Ham C., Hill M. ‘The Policy Process in the Modern Capitalist State’, Wheatsheaf: Brighton (1984), Chapter 6 Hill M., ‘The Policy Process in the Modern State’, Prentice Hall: London(1997), Chapter 6 Hogwood B.W., Gunn L.A., ‘Policy Analysis for the Real World’, Oxford University Press:Oxford(1984), Chapter 11 Read More