From Competition to Collaboration in Public Service Delivery: A New Agenda for Research
| Author | Steve Martin,Tom Entwistle |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.0033-3298.2005.00446.x |
| Published date | 01 March 2005 |
| Date | 01 March 2005 |
Public Administration Vol. 83 No. 1, 2005 (233–242)
© Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2005, 9600 Garsi ngton Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street,
Malden, MA 02148, USA.
FROM COMPETITION TO COLLABORATION IN
PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY: A NEW AGENDA
FOR RESEARCH
TOM ENTWISTLE AND STEVE MARTIN
Competition was one of the guiding threads of public policy under the Conservative
Governments of the 1980s and 1990s. But whereas the Conservatives looked to the
market primarily for the disciplining and economizing effects of competition, the
Labour Government sees the market as a source of innovation and improvement.
Following a brief description of these different perspectives, this paper identifies
three avenues deserving of further inquiry: the costs and benefits of high trust inter-
organizational relationships; the way in which partnerships combine the competen-
cies of different sectors; and finally, the extent to which the new partnerships
transform public service delivery.
INTRODUCTION
Competition was one of the guiding threads of public policy under the
Conservative Governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major. Public
utilities, and other nationalized industries, were exposed to the full rigours
of the market through privatization. Competition was introduced into other
parts of the public sector, notably the health service and local government,
through the creation of new internal markets and compulsory competitive
tendering. The new Labour Government, elected in 1997, has emphasized
the benefits of collaborative rather than competitive forms of procurement
(Parker and Hartley 1997). While some commentators imply that the change
in language is a cover for the continuation of the same policy by other means
(Teisman and Klijn 2002), we argue that the turn to partnership marks an
important departure in service delivery.
This paper does two main things in two sections. First, on the basis of an
analysis of the policy statements and guidance emanating from Central
Government and the Audit Commission, it highlights a significant change in
the interpretation of the role of the market in public service delivery.
Whereas the Conservative Government looked to the market primarily for
the disciplining and economizing effects of competition, New Labour sees
the market as a source of innovation and improvement. This important
difference of perspective has led the current Government to promote a dif-
ferent type of relationship between the purchasers and providers of public
Tom Entwistle and Steve Martin are in the Centre for Local and Regional Government Research,
Cardiff Universi ty.
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