RATIONALIZING THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE ESTATE: LESSONS FOR THE PUBLIC SECTOR
| Published date | 01 December 1988 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9299.1988.tb00706.x |
| Author | D. N. IDRIS PEARCE |
| Date | 01 December 1988 |
CURRENT
RATIONALIZING THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE
ESTATE: LESSONS FOR THE PUBLIC SECTOR
D.
N.
IDRIS
PEARCE
In
his
1840
essay ’Qu’est-ce que la Propritte‘, PierreJoseph Proudhoun, the French
libertarian and philosopher wrote ’Property is theft’. He was epitomizing his view
that land is
a
collective resource
-
an asset that, he implied, should be wholly
owned by the public and employed for the common good. Today’s essayist mght
perhaps reply,
‘If
it
is
worth stealing, it might
be
worth
selling
to benefit the public!’
Certainly, the author’s experience shows that it is gradually becoming a truism
-
at least
in
some National Health Service areas and districts
-
that property assets,
deployed effectively, can provide more
of
the wherewithal to nurture the health
of local communities. And what is true for the
NHS
is likely to be equally true
for other parts of the public sector. Many departments, agencies and authorities
own
large tracts
of
land and a multiplicity of buildings, but they do not necessarily
use
them to the
best
advantage.
As
a result prices
in
property markets are marginally
higher than they should be, and opportunities are being
missed
to save costs and
generate more funds that can be utilized for worthwhile purposes.
Over the past few years, the aim
in
the
NHs
has been to urge upon its decision-
makers the benefits of strategic direction in their disposition of the property assets
under their control. When the initial situation was examined
in
some detail,
in
the course of various enquiries and studies,
a
number of problems came to light.
For example, it was evident that there was little or no strategic direction
in
the
past.
As
a result, there have been serious deficiencies
-
in
accountability, in the
D.
N.
Idris
Pearce
CBE,
TO,
DL,
FRICS,
is a Partner in Richard Ellis, the
firm
of
chartered surveyors
and international
property
consultants. He
is
Property
Adviser
to
the National Health Service
Management Board, and he also advises the Foreign
&
Commonwealth Office
on
the diplomatic
estate.
In
addition, he is a Vice President
of
the
Royal
Institution
of
Chartered Surveyors. This
article is
based
on a
talk
given to the Notbngham and East
Midlands
RIPA
Regional
Group
in
December
1987.
Public Administration
Vol.
66
Winter
1988
(447-455)
0
1988 Royal Institute
of
Public Administration ISSN 0033-3298
$3.00
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