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Ministerial Advisers, Contestability and Politicization in the Core Executive in Westminster Systems

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The Palgrave Handbook of the Public Servant

Abstract

Public servants operate in contexts that have been shaped by years of institutional reform. One significant development has been the advent of political staff in executive government. For public servants, the arrival of this new class of actor on the terrain of the core executive can present as an opportunity and as a risk. Contestability in the process of the development of policy is typically viewed as a virtue. However, forms of politicization that militate against the provision of advice that is both responsive and responsible – speaking truth to power, including truths that may be disturbing, inconvenient, unsettling, and even unwelcome to those in power – are undesirable. This chapter examines the ministerial adviser as a participant in the policymaking process and explores the challenges this “third element” poses for public servants as policymakers.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

    Richard Shaw

Authors
  1. Richard Shaw
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Correspondence to Richard Shaw .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University, Acton, ACT, Australia

    Helen Sullivan

  2. UNSW Australia, Campbell, ACT, Australia

    Helen Dickinson

  3. College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

    Hayley Henderson

Section Editor information

  1. EAESP/Department of Public Management, Fundacao Getulio Vargas (FGV), Sao Paulo, Brazil

    E. Berman

  2. Fudan University, Shanghai, China

    Yijia Jing

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Shaw, R. (2020). Ministerial Advisers, Contestability and Politicization in the Core Executive in Westminster Systems. In: Sullivan, H., Dickinson, H., Henderson, H. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of the Public Servant. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03008-7_10-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03008-7_10-1

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-03008-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-03008-7

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Political Science and International StudiesReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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