The Impact of the Purchaser-Provider Split in the UK

Abstract

Chapter 13 provided an exposition of the meaning and degree of competition in local government and considered how it can be enhanced via the purchaser-provider split. Reference was made to both economic theory and organization theory and a formal model of cost-effectiveness was developed. That model distinguished in conceptual terms the hypothesized impacts on both service costs and service quality. While retaining an economic perspective on service quality, it was recognized that the conceptualization of service quality requires a much broader approach than that conventionally adopted by economists.