Allan McConnell is Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at the University of Sydney. He is author of The Politics and Policy of Local Taxation in Britain (1999) and State Policy Formation and the Origins of the Poll Tax (1995).

• Contents; Introduction; 1. Thinking Politically: The Nature of Local Government in Scotland; 2. Mapping the Networks and Relationships of Scottish Local Authorities; 3. Scottish Local Authority Structures: From Feudal Burghs to Single-Tier Authorities; 4. Council Decision-Making Structures: From Traditional Administration to Post-Devolution Modernisation; 5. Councillors, Elections and the Electoral System: A Healthy Democratic Foundation?; 6. Beyond Elections: Non-Electoral Forms of Public Participation and Non-Elected Local Governance; 7. Political Parties in Scottish Local Government; 8. Reconstructing Accountability: Value for Money and the Rise of the Performance Culture in Scottish Councils; 9. Financing Scottish Local Government; 10. The Bigger Picture: Central-Local Relations, Multi-Level Governance and Globalisation; Conclusion: Has Devolution Made a Difference to Local Government in Scotland?.

A critical reminder of the roles and essential position lower tier authorities must have in a healthy civil society. I would recommend it to any organiser of a course on this subject, but also would direct researchers and commentators who need to be informed in this area to make this their first port of call. Indeed, given the robust and objective analysis – albeit delivered with a smouldering anger – of the attacks on the integrity and democratic accountability of local government by the Conservative administrations of the 1980s and 1990s, this should be compulsory reading for any new politician or commentator in this field.

Allan McConnell is Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at the University of Sydney. He is author of The Politics and Policy of Local Taxation in Britain (1999) and State Policy Formation and the Origins of the Poll Tax (1995).

• Contents; Introduction; 1. Thinking Politically: The Nature of Local Government in Scotland; 2. Mapping the Networks and Relationships of Scottish Local Authorities; 3. Scottish Local Authority Structures: From Feudal Burghs to Single-Tier Authorities; 4. Council Decision-Making Structures: From Traditional Administration to Post-Devolution Modernisation; 5. Councillors, Elections and the Electoral System: A Healthy Democratic Foundation?; 6. Beyond Elections: Non-Electoral Forms of Public Participation and Non-Elected Local Governance; 7. Political Parties in Scottish Local Government; 8. Reconstructing Accountability: Value for Money and the Rise of the Performance Culture in Scottish Councils; 9. Financing Scottish Local Government; 10. The Bigger Picture: Central-Local Relations, Multi-Level Governance and Globalisation; Conclusion: Has Devolution Made a Difference to Local Government in Scotland?.

A critical reminder of the roles and essential position lower tier authorities must have in a healthy civil society. I would recommend it to any organiser of a course on this subject, but also would direct researchers and commentators who need to be informed in this area to make this their first port of call. Indeed, given the robust and objective analysis – albeit delivered with a smouldering anger – of the attacks on the integrity and democratic accountability of local government by the Conservative administrations of the 1980s and 1990s, this should be compulsory reading for any new politician or commentator in this field.

Allan McConnell is Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at the University of Sydney. He is author of The Politics and Policy of Local Taxation in Britain (1999) and State Policy Formation and the Origins of the Poll Tax (1995).

• Contents; Introduction; 1. Thinking Politically: The Nature of Local Government in Scotland; 2. Mapping the Networks and Relationships of Scottish Local Authorities; 3. Scottish Local Authority Structures: From Feudal Burghs to Single-Tier Authorities; 4. Council Decision-Making Structures: From Traditional Administration to Post-Devolution Modernisation; 5. Councillors, Elections and the Electoral System: A Healthy Democratic Foundation?; 6. Beyond Elections: Non-Electoral Forms of Public Participation and Non-Elected Local Governance; 7. Political Parties in Scottish Local Government; 8. Reconstructing Accountability: Value for Money and the Rise of the Performance Culture in Scottish Councils; 9. Financing Scottish Local Government; 10. The Bigger Picture: Central-Local Relations, Multi-Level Governance and Globalisation; Conclusion: Has Devolution Made a Difference to Local Government in Scotland?.

A critical reminder of the roles and essential position lower tier authorities must have in a healthy civil society. I would recommend it to any organiser of a course on this subject, but also would direct researchers and commentators who need to be informed in this area to make this their first port of call. Indeed, given the robust and objective analysis – albeit delivered with a smouldering anger – of the attacks on the integrity and democratic accountability of local government by the Conservative administrations of the 1980s and 1990s, this should be compulsory reading for any new politician or commentator in this field.