Presentation on citizen power and accountability in public administrations.

1. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Citizens’ Power to Accountability
in Public Management and
Service-EU Examples
Rachel Holloway, Senior Adviser, SIGMA
27 February 2014, Ankara
© OECD

2. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Outline of the talk
1) Who are SIGMA?
2) The unwritten chapter of the acquis? –
public administration?
3) The role of policy making tools as a
mechanism for accountability and
providing public participation
4) Raising awareness of citizens and
encouraging participation in decision
making
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3. • SIGMA is a joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union
(EU) that helps countries to strengthen their public governance
systems and capacities of people working in those governments.
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
1. Who are SIGMA?
• We assist countries in transition to meet their aspirations for a
free-market economy, a stable democracy and the rule of law,
and help them demonstrate their readiness to either join the EU
or create a closer relationship with the EU through free movement
and trade.
• SIGMA is part of the Directorate for Governance and Territorial
development of the OECD. We are funded by the European
Union and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development.
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4. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
SIGMA’s areas of expertise
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5. • We provide assistance in five areas: (1) civil service and public
administration organisation and functioning; (2) policy making; (3)
public finance and audit; (4) public procurement; (5) strategy and
reform.
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Who are SIGMA?
• We work with two groups of countries:
 Turkey and 7 Western Balkans countries, financed through
the Instrument for Pre- Accession Assistance (IPA)
 11 countries of the European Neighbourhood, financed
through the European Neighbourhood and Partnership
Instrument (ENPI).
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6. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
2) What is public administration in the EU
context?
• Various definitions:
 Translation of politics into government policies
 The management of public programs
 Implementation of government policy
 The study of government decision making, the analysis of the
policies themselves, the various inputs that have produced
them.
• Public administration is a domestic matter for EU Member States.
National public administrations have to implement EU directives and
recommendations in such a way that European citizens are able to
enjoy the rights granted to them by the EU Treaties, irrespective of
the country in which they live.
• This is why the EU looks to ensure that each national administration
has comparable quality and professionalism, and therefore at the
administrative capacities of their Member States.
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7. • This is the "acquis” - these rules are divided into 35 different
policy fields (chapters), such as transport, energy, environment,
etc., each of which is negotiated separately.
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Meeting the requirements for EU
membership
• “The EU operates comprehensive approval procedures that
ensure new members are admitted only when they can
demonstrate they will be able to play their part fully as members”:
 complying with all the EU's standards and rules
 having the consent of the EU institutions and EU member
states
 having the consent of their citizens – as expressed through
approval in their national parliament or by referendum.
 No formal chapter on public administration – horizontal and cuts
across all chapters: running of a country to fulfill the strategic
intent of government e.g. rules of government, co-ordination of
ministries.
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8. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
What is Public Management/Administration
in the EU context?
• The EU accession criteria, as defined by the Council of the
European Union encompasses four main elements:
 Copenhagen 1993: stability of institutions guaranteeing
democracy, rule of law & human rights;
 Madrid 1995: adjustment of administrative and judicial
structures to be able to transpose EU Law & effectively
implement it;
 Luxembourg 1997: institutions strengthened, improved &
made more dependable;
 Helsinki 1999: obligation of candidate countries to share the
values and objectives of the European Union as set out in
the Treaties.
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9. safety nets
(e.g.
unemployment
benefit, health
care)
Reducing Crime
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
3) Putting this in context
Government action = behavioural
change
Providing
Encouraging Saving
for Pensions
Reducing
environmental impact
Promoting educational
success
Creating a healthier
society
Government activity
requiring
some form of
behaviour change
Providing some
public goods
Raising
revenue
General
administration
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10. • Good policy making requires the assessment of the likely costs
and benefits and the associated risks to the public, private or
civil society organisation, the environment and wider society
over the long term.
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Integrating this into policy making
• Policy makers should use of a range of tools to help them think
through and understand the need for, and consequences of,
proposed policy interventions and assist the Government in
weighing up relevant evidence on the likely impacts of such
interventions and consult with those affected.
• (Regulatory) Impact Assessment is one such tool, which can be
used to achieve this. It provides a framework to systematically
work through issues such as analysis of different options,
budgetary implications and consideration of the implications of
European integration. Owing to its importance, the development
of an impact assessment system is considered a crucial part of
a country readying itself for EU accession and membership.
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11. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Why consult?
• Strengthens the information basis of the proposal
Helps to identify actual consequences and impacts
Seeks active engagement in discussing data and other
information
• Increases citizens participation
Highlights potential problems and opposition
Raises awareness of future regulation
Increases legitimacy of final proposals
Builds trust
Creates ownership and boosts compliance
• Raises the transparency of decision-making
Provides clear decision making processes
Communicates to citizens why decision has been made
• Reduces the risk of unintended consequences
• Improves implementation
Will the proposals work on the ground?
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12. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Consultation and RIA
Consultation is:
• a structured way to ask for relevant
information from people who would be
affected (directly or indirectly) by the
measure under examination or are
knowledgeable about its effects
• a research method to gather quantitative
data and opinions
• Method of promoting transparency &
public participation
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13. Consulting for policy making
Development
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Who should be involved? What
Ministries
Which NGO? Citizen panels? Firms?
You should be
working with
different
groups to
collect
information to
inform the
evaluation of
impact.
Evaluation
Enactment
Options
Consultation
-Are there data gaps?
-Who can help to fill
them?
-Who should you speak to
discuss how likely the
options are in delivering
the anticipated impact
What level of consultation
is required?
Is it proportionate?
Who can help?
How should we consult?
Communicating
with citizens,
clearly setting out
Final
evidence provided
proposal
through
consultation
How have we amended the options to reflect response?
How have we used data supplied to feed back into RIA?
Have we fully communicated changes made to citizens as
well as Ministers?
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14. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Using consultation to improve accountability
Good for business:
“It‟s wonderful that we can have one authority, which
can efficiently ensure all our brasseries are run to the
same standard” Brasserie Blanc Managing Director
John Lederer.
Good for public servants:
"We can see many benefits of this partnership - not
least being able to work closely with businesses,
support economic prosperity and protect our
communities by ensuring public health and safety is as
good as it should be." - Wakefield Council Leader Peter
Box.
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15. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
The accountability cycle: citizens > politicians
> policy makers > parliament > citizens
“The best Impact Assessments are providing valuable information
to help Parliament and the public judge the merits of proposals.”
National Audit Office 2010
“[Impact Assessments] These are a vital part of the process of
parliamentary scrutiny.” European Union Committee: Fourth
Report. IA in the EU: room for improvement? March 2010
• IAs go through several stages as the proposal is
developed, resulting in an initial IA when the proposal is being
formulated, a partial IA which forms part of the consultation
process with Parliament.
• By facilitating Ministerial and parliamentary scrutiny of regulation
and subsequent evaluation of whether regulation has achieved
what was intended, IAs help establish accountability for the
policy and legislative making process.
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16. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
The UK trend of policy making
• The problem: “Whitehall has a virtual monopoly on
policy development, which means that policy is often
drawn up on the basis of too narrow a range of
inputs and is not subject to rigorous external
challenge prior to announcement”
• The solution: “Open policy making will become the
default. Whitehall does not have a monopoly on
policy making expertise.” UK Civil Service Reform
Plan, 2011
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17. The future of policy making [in the UK]
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
• Two key components:
1) Citizens can challenge existing regulation: Red
Tape Challenge - launched in 2011 to open
government up to the public. Designed to promote
open discussion of ways in which the aims of
existing regulation can be fulfilled in the least
burdensome way.
2) Share data about things that affect peoples‟ lives:
open data promotes economic growth, inclusive
development and improved citizen engagement,
and empowerment.
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18. © OECD
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,

19. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Open data
© OECD

20. principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Interpreting data
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21. Imagine that Turkey is preparing for an unusual disease which is expected to kill
600,000 people. Two alternative programs to combat the disease have been
developed
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
Framing of information can affect
decision making
Which do you choose?
2 programmes
The consequences
If program A is adopted 200k
people will be saved
72%
If program B is adopted there is
a 1/3 chance 600k people will be
saved and a 2/3 chance no one
will be saved
If program A is adopted 400k people
will die
22%
If program B is adopted there is a 1/3
chance no one will die and a 2/3
chance 600k people will die.
78%
28%
Source: Kahneman and Tversky (1981)
„the framing of decisions and the psychology of choice‟ Science
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22. Policy interventions can have
unintended consequences…
Fine
removed
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
A fine is a price…
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Source: Gneezy and Rustichini (2005) The Second Day-Care Center Study
© OECD

23. Conclusions
principally financed by the EU
A joint initiative of the OECD and the European Union,
• Public administration as the unwritten chapter of the
acquis
• Policy making tools are an effective mechanism for
enabling accountability and providing public
participation
 Consultation is enshrined in Impact Assessment process
 [R]IAs provide useful input into Parliamentary consideration of
proposals
 Technologies are being used successfully to hold governments to
account and driving choice and improvements in its provision of
services to the public
Email: rachel.holloway@oecd.org
© OECD