The lives of all Australians are profoundly affected by the quality
of social services available, but a long list of royal commissions
and public inquiries have revealed them to be failing. In The
Careless State Mark Considine shows that the preferred model of
reform has failed to adapt and improve.In the 1980s Australian
governments faced rapidly increasing demand for services in areas
like employment assistance, aged care, childcare and vocational
education and training; to respond to this challenge, governments
led by Bob Hawke and Paul Keating pioneered the introduction of
service markets, where private companies compete with public
institutions and charities in newly constructed social services.
This 'choice revolution' was embraced and extended by the Howard
government. Market choice continues to drive reform across a wide
spectrum of programs and social services. Considine's detailed
investigation demonstrates conclusively that important aspects of
the experiment with social service markets have failed. Weak
quality control, systematic rorting and entrenched disadvantage
have become the norm. Private business interests and shareholders'
interest have often displaced established charities and commitment
to quality care for all. The service systems are careless, leaving
clients to make choices without real information or
protection.Considine points to alternative ways that reforms could
be configured to get the best from both private and public
agencies, and find a new approach to save these failing services.
General
Imprint: |
Melbourne University Press
|
Country of origin: |
Australia |
Release date: |
October 2022 |
Authors: |
Mark Considine
|
Dimensions: |
234 x 154 x 17mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Paperback
|
Pages: |
256 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-522-87901-8 |
Categories: |
Books >
Social sciences >
Politics & government >
General
|
LSN: |
0-522-87901-2 |
Barcode: |
9780522879018 |
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