Proposals for reform of local government structures have been published in
the draft Bill ‘Local Leadership, Local Choice’. The Bill contains a
framework with three options for restructuring councils with provision for
local people to say what shape they wish their council to take. The three
models are: directly elected mayor with a cabinet; a cabinet with a leader
and a directly elected mayor with a council manager. 

The Modernising Government White Paper promised for Autumn 1997 will be
published tomorrow. The issues it addresses and most of the responses have
been openly discussed by ministers and officials during its gestation and
there are likely to be few surprises.
Cabinet Office Minister Peter Kilfoyle summed up the essence of the vision
for better services as ‘working smarter in a joined up way’. 

Nash M
The International Journal of Public Sector Management, (UK), Vol 11 No 4 98
Start page: 252. No of pages: 10
Examines the feasibility of two UK government services, the police and the
probation service, combining to deliver a jointly identified agenda of
public protection. Looks at the effect of the ethos of new public
management on both services, leading to the establishment of key
performance indicators which have reshaped the aims and directions of all
public sector organizations.