Governing Britain

Power, Politics and the Prime Minister

By: Patrick Diamond

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Paperback | 30 November 2013 | Edition Number 1

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392 Pages

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21.6 x 13.8 x 0.1

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Number Ten Downing Street and the Cabinet Office are at the apex of power in Britain, yet they are among the most under-researched of all the great institutions of state. With an unprecedented level of access, and interviews from former ministers, senior civil servants and political advisers, Patrick Diamond examines the administrative and political machinery serving the Prime Minister, and considers how it evolved from the early years of New Labour to the election of the Coalition Government in 2010. Drawing on previously unpublished material, Diamond provides a unique analysis which considers the continuing power of the civil service, the tensions between permanent officials and political aides, and the hard grind of achieving change from the centre in Whitehall. By exploring the ideological beliefs underpinning the policy-making process and illuminating the importance of the British Political Tradition in shaping the institutions and practice of statecraft, this book reveals the contemporary realities of government and democracy in practice.

About the Author

Patrick Diamond is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the University of Manchester, Senior Research Fellow at Policy Network and Gwilym Gibbon Fellow at Nuffield College, Oxford. He was formerly Head of Policy Planning in 10 Downing Street and Senior Policy Adviser to the Prime Minister. He is the co-author of Beyond New Labour; Social Justice in the Global Age; After the Third Way; and Global Europe, Social Europe (with Anthony Giddens).

Industry Reviews

'This is an excellent account of New Labour's governing philosophy. Patrick Diamond's "four phases of governance reform" are especially insightful in understanding New Labour's management of the state and public services. He rightly highlights deep continuities in respect of England's tradition of centralised politics and policy making, while acknowledging the variations on that theme.' Andrew Adonis Patrick Diamond's informed and perceptive study of changes in the pattern of government under New Labour raises big questions now in the coalition era about the traditional, and enduring, centralist Whitehall model, and about adapting ministerial/civil service relations. He is right that we may be witnessing only an initial phase in the reconstruction of the British state.' Peter Riddell, Director of the Institute for Government 'Patrick Diamond has provided a groundbreaking book. Through detailed research with the key actors, he has provided a sophisticated understanding of how government worked in the Blair and Brown administrations. His analysis undermines many of the myths of the era and provide an incisive insight into how government really works.' Martin Smith, Professor of Politics, University of York

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