The Conservative governments of the 1980s and 1990s introduced major changes not only in the nature of social policies, but also in the ways in which such policies were made and implemented, with a more centralist and managerialist approach combined with a preference for markets and competition in the delivery of policies. Under the Labour governments from 1997 to 2010 there were further significant changes, including, for example, devolution to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales (see Chapter 13), and the placing of significant emphasis on attempts to improve the processes of policymaking and delivery.

Under David Cameron the Conservatives, when in opposition, put forward a variety of proposals that might impact upon the ways in which social policy is made and delivered, including for changes to the ways in which legislation passes through the House of Commons, some devolution of power to local authorities (although at the same time proposing to allow local residents to veto high council tax rises), reducing the number and power of quangos, replacing the Human Rights Act with a Bill of Rights, and emphasising a significant role for voluntary and community groups, rather than the state, in the provision of social policy. This chapter, therefore, considers the possible implications for the governance of social policy of the Conservative Party under the leadership of David Cameron, including the coalition with the Liberal Democrats.

Why the governance and mechanisms of policymaking and implementation matter

From the 1990s there has been a growing awareness of the importance of the processes of formulation, implementation and evaluation in the development and management of policies. Prior to this period ‘government’ and ‘governance’ tended to be seen as synonymous, so that Finer (1970, pp 3–4), defined government as: ‘The activity or process of governing’ or ‘governance’; ‘A condition of ordered rule’; ‘Those people charged with the duty of governing’ or ‘governors’; and ‘The manner, method or system by which a particular society is governed’. More recently there has been a greater emphasis on the differences between the two terms, with Rhodes (1997, p 15, original emphasis), for example, noting that ‘The term “governance” refers to a change in the meaning of government, referring to a new process of governing’.