We live in an era when we really need governments to get it right - from the Covid-19 pandemic response to how they tackle climate change. Our lives depend on it. Yet, to many, they can seem clueless, and their decisions leave us confused. Why?
In Why Governments Get It Wrong, renowned Cambridge professor and former political speechwriter Dennis C. Grube explores the pitfalls, failures and successes of those in power around the world. Across an array of policy issues we meet politicians who fumble their brief, while others seem on top of it and able to project a sense of calm.
With insight and wit, Grube explains how governments can improve their decision-making. Examining fascinating case studies - from the UK school exam fiasco during the pandemic to gun reform in Australia, and sanitation in India - Grube highlights the key factors that make for effective government. With the stakes higher than ever before, this original and important book is an essential read for any concerned citizen who wants to understand why governments make the wrong decisions and, crucially, what can be done about it.
'A must-read' - Sebastian payne
'A timely book with accessibly provocative arguments' - Steve Richards
'There is a real gap for this book' - Isabel Hardman
Dennis C. Grube is a professor in politics and public policy at the University of Cambridge, and Acting Director of the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. A one-time political speechwriter in his native Tasmania, he is the author of three single-author monographs on aspects of politics and policy. Why Governments Get It Wrong is Grube's first book for a wide audience.
Title: Why Governments Get It Wrong: And How They Can Get It Right
Author: Grube, Dennis C.
ISBN: 9781529083316
Binding:
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Publication Date: 2022-09-15
Number of Pages: 240
Weight: 0.4201 kg
Insightful . . . A timely book with accessibly provocative arguments -- Steve Richards, author of The Prime Ministers We Never Had
A fascinating and timely look at how government decisions affect our lives and how those in charge can do much better. A must-read -- Sebastian Payne, author of Broken Heartlands
Engaging and accessible -- Ivor Crewe, co-author of The Blunders of Our Governments
There is a real gap for this book . . . international in scope and non-partisan -- Isabel Hardman, author of Why We Get the Wrong Politicians
Highly original and very entertaining . . . This is the book Boris Johnson should have read before he promised to 'Get Brexit Done' -- Gavin Esler, author of How Britain Ends
From the pandemic to the climate crisis, we are living in an era of historic policy-making. Dennis Grube's convincing book teaches all of us how governments get decisions wrong and what we have to do to get them right -- David Lammy MP