Local governance under austerity: hybrid organisations and hybrid officers

Abstract

Using the case of Cardiff, Wales, we argue that the hybridisation of local governance forms is exacerbated by the downscaling and offloading of austerity politics. Conceptualising hybridity as a process which operates across governmental scales, at the organisational and at the individual level helps understand the growing complexities of local governance under austerity and the tensions which arise in seeking to assemble locally appropriate ideas and practices. Conceptualising hybridity as practice, we consider how ‘hybrid officers’ at the frontline experience austerity, their situated agency, and the implications for higher levels of governance.

Planning for historic urban environments under austerity conditions: Insights from post-crash Ireland

“…Peck's austerity urbanism thesis has been increasingly examined in the urban studies literature (see for example : Fuller, 2017;Hackworth, 2015;Hastings et al, 2017;Meegan et al, 2014;Pill and Guarneros-Meza, 2018). This literature often provides case studies of specific cities dealing and coping with the consequences of the economic crisis and devolved austerity to the urban scale, thus helping to situate national differences (Hastings et al, 2017).…”

Austerity urbanism: Patterns of neo-liberalisation and resistance in six cities of Spain and the UK

“…Cardiff markets itself as 'a world class European capital city' with an 'exceptional quality of life' at the 'heart of a competitive city region'. This competitive city region discourse lent momentum to the rationalisation and metropolitanisation of local economic development (Pill and Guarneros-Meza, 2017).…”

The Jewel in the Crown: Co‐optive Capacity and Participation During Austerity in Cardiff and San Sebastián‐Donostia

“…While this process is aimed at passing responsibility to third‐sector and community organizations, Peck argues that it is likely that the poorest of the population will be most affected, as they tend to have fewer skills and resources to take on the state's managerial responsibilities. In response, governments have identified the need to recruit officers whose skills span organizational or sectorial boundaries to link the requirements of government with the interests or needs of non‐state partners (Skelcher et al ., ; Pill and Guarneros‐Meza, ). In particular, these officers seek to promote community self‐management, albeit subject to the procedural regulations established by the (local) state, as a way to ensure co‐optation.…”

“…Financial allocations to local authorities were considered ‘by far the worst settlement since devolution’. These included severe budget cuts of over 5% in real terms for 2014/15 budget, with figures rising to 9% by 2015/16 (Henry, quoted in Pill and Guarneros‐Meza, ). Cardiff Council had to cut its budget by some £Stg100 million in the three years that followed, and Welsh Government ministers and local politicians blamed the UK government for these cuts.…”

“…As a result, Cardiff Council has attempted to rationalize and reorganize public services, taking advantage of its city‐wide governance model and the Cardiff Debate, a citizen consultation exercise that had helped the council to prioritize service provision, particularly in community and social services, in the 2014/15 budget. ‘Rejecting austerity altogether was not an option and therefore the future structuring and operation of the council's policy‐making had implications for participatory governance’ (Pill and Guarneros‐Meza, : 2) through co‐production with and commissioning of services from civil society organizations and community groups.…”