This open access book offers unique insights into how governments and governing systems, particularly in advanced economies, have responded to the immense challenges of managing the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing disease COVID-19. Written by three eminent scholars in the field of the politics and policy of crisis management, it offers a unique 'bird's eye' view of the immense logistical and political challenges of addressing a worst-case scenario that would prove the ultimate stress test for societies, governments, governing institutions and political leaders. It examines how governments and governing systems have (i) made sense of emerging transboundary threats that have spilled across health, economic, political and social systems (ii) mobilised systems of governance and often fearful and sceptical citizens (iii) crafted narratives amid high uncertainty about the virus and its impact and (iv) are working towards closure and a return to 'normal' when things can never quite be the same again. The book also offers the building blocks of pathways to future resilience. Succeeding and failing in all these realms is tied in with governance structures, experts, trust, leadership capabilities and political ideologies. The book appeals to anyone seeking to understand 'what's going on?', but particularly academics and students across multiple disciplines, journalists, public officials, politicians, non-governmental organisations and citizen groups.

Every decision that is made by managers and policy-makers in a public sector organization requires an evaluation and a judgement of the risks involved. This vital requirement has been recognised in the growth of risk management. However, risks can never be fully prevented, which means that public managers also have to be crisis managers. Today's crises develop in unseen ways; they escalate rapidly and transform through the interdependencies of modern society, and their frequency is growing: the global financial crisis, the European volcanic ash cloud, the Japanese tsunami and subsequent Fukushima nuclear plant meltdown, the Christchurch earthquake and the Queensland floods. All highlight the extreme challenges that public sector organizations across the world have had to face in recent years. Risk and Crisis Management in the Public Sector Second Edition responds to these challenges by presenting the only guide for public managers and public management students which combines lessons about risk and crisis management together in a single, accessible text. It equips readers and public managers with the knowledge and skills to understand key issues and debates, as well as the capacity to treat risks and better prepare for, respond to and recover from crisis episodes. This exciting new edition enhances the original text with contemporary cases and a greater focus on the international, trans-boundary and multi-agency dimensions of risk and crisis management. These enhancements reflect the fact that today's public manager must increasingly operate within a global and interdependent governance context.

Every decision that is made by managers and policy-makers in a public sector organization requires an evaluation and a judgement of the risks involved. This vital requirement has been recognised in the growth of risk management. However, risks can never be fully prevented, which means that public managers also have to be crisis managers. Today's crises develop in unseen ways; they escalate rapidly and transform through the interdependencies of modern society, and their frequency is growing: the global financial crisis, the European volcanic ash cloud, the Japanese tsunami and subsequent Fukushima nuclear plant meltdown, the Christchurch earthquake and the Queensland floods. All highlight the extreme challenges that public sector organizations across the world have had to face in recent years. Risk and Crisis Management in the Public Sector Second Edition responds to these challenges by presenting the only guide for public managers and public management students which combines lessons about risk and crisis management together in a single, accessible text. It equips readers and public managers with the knowledge and skills to understand key issues and debates, as well as the capacity to treat risks and better prepare for, respond to and recover from crisis episodes. This exciting new edition enhances the original text with contemporary cases and a greater focus on the international, trans-boundary and multi-agency dimensions of risk and crisis management. These enhancements reflect the fact that today's public manager must increasingly operate within a global and interdependent governance context.

This book fills an important gap in our understanding of Scottish local government in the dynamic new context of the Scottish Parliament. It provides academics, students, practitioners, journalists and others with a broad-ranging yet detailed account, not just of how local government actually works, but also the main political issues and debates surrounding its multi-faceted roles in contemporary Scotland. It covers issues such as: *The nature and purpose of Scottish local government *The strengths and weaknesses of unitary authorities *Modernisation of political management arrangements *Roles and remuneration for councillors *Electoral reform and new methods for encouraging citizen participation *The growth of non-elected local governance *Best Value and the rise of the performance culture *The politics of council finance: including business rates, Council Tax and PFI *The wider context of central-local relations, multi-level governance and globalization The book contains a wealth of facts, figures, tables and diagrams. The accompanying analysis draws, in a supportive way, on literature from the traditions of public policy, public administration and political science. The end result is an original, modern, accessible analysis of Scottish local government in the context of devolution. A particular focus throughout is assessing the 'distinctiveness' of Scottish local government compared to the rest of the UK, and addressing the question -- to what extent has devolution made a difference to Scottish local government? Key Features: * Only modern work of its kind - fills a gap in our understanding of local government in Scotland * Accessible - offers the facts of how Scottish local government works, combined with incisive political analysis * Places Scottish local government in the context of the Scottish Parliament, Westminster, the EU and an increasingly globalised world

This book fills an important niche in our understanding of scottish local government within the dynamic new context of the Scottish Parliament. It provides academics, students, practitioners, journalists and others with a broad-ranging yet detailed account of how local government actually works and the main political issues and debates surrounding its multi-faceted role in contemporary Scotland. It covers issues such as:

*The nature and purpose of Scottish local government

* The strengths and weaknesses of unitary authorities

*Modernization of political management arrangements

*Roles and remuneration for counselors

*Electoral reform and new methods for encouraging citizen participation

*The growth of non-elected local governance

*Best Value and the rise of the performance culture

*The politics of council finance: including business rates, Council Tax and PFI

*The wider context of central-local relations, multi-level governance and globalization

The book contains a wealth of facts, figures, tables and diagrams. In a supportive way the analysis draws on literature from the traditions of public policy, public administration and political science. The result is a modern and accessible analysis of Scottish local government in the context of devolution. A particular focus throughout is assessing the 'distinctiveness' of scottish local government compared to the rest of the UK, and addressing the question-to what extent has devolution made a difference to scottish local government?

Key Features:

* The only modern work of its kind-fills a gap in our understanding of local government in Scotland

* Accessible-offers the facts of how scottish local government works, combined with incisive political analysis

* Places scottish local government in the context of the Scottish Parliament, Westminster, the EU and an increasingly globalized world

Contemporary societies are increasingly crisis-prone, and crises have profound implications for the rapidly changing political, economic, and social landscape. Crises pose major challenges to governments, communities, leaders, and organizations. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Crisis Analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the rapidly emerging and evolving field of crisis studies and explores its connection to several relevant neighboring fields of knowledge. Crises are complex, unfold in diverse political and socio-technical contexts, and must be studied and understood from multiple angles and disciplinary perspectives. This Encyclopedia brings together contributions by experts from political science, public administration, management, international relations, public health, sociology, economics, media and mass communications, the law, and many other fields to explore important theoretical, methodological, empirical, and practical issues related to crisis and crisis management. Articles focus on concepts (crisis as well as closely related concepts such as emergency, disaster, resilience, security etc.), contingencies (natural hazards, major accidents, pandemics, terrorism, social and political conflict among many others), historical and contemporary cases, classic and cutting edge research methods, different "phases" of the crisis/emergency management cycle, as well as documenting a wide range of pitfalls and good practices that can help to forewarn and forearm current and future crisis managers. The 84 essays in this Encyclopedia fall into six main categories: Theory, Concepts, Metatheory and Methodology, Crisis Governance and Regional Perspectives, Bridging Gaps, and Cases & the Evolving Socio-Technical Context. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Crisis Analysis is a key reference for anyone involved in the study, research, or practice of crisis and emergency analysis and management.

This volume of leading scholarly articles addresses the international dynamics of emergency policy and practice. In a world of increasing technological, economic and political interdependency, it is no longer feasible for states to ignore the pervasive influence of globalisation. The crises wrought by industrial disasters, catastrophic weather events, pandemics, financial implosion and cyber intrusion now transcend and challenge national interests with increasing frequency. The case-studies collected here explore these global dimensions of crisis and the state through the lenses of planning and prevention, acute responses, recovery and reconstruction, and learning about crisis. This collection is essential reading for academics, policy officials and practitioners with an interest in emergency management, risk management and issues of national/global security. In original introductory and concluding chapters to the volume, Legrand and McConnell provide a critical perspective on the challenges that globalisation presents to policymakers under crisis conditions and signposts some of the emerging challenges to the state and international community.

The constant threat of crises such as disasters, riots and terrorist attacks poses a frightening challenge to Western societies and governments. While the causes and dynamics of these events have been widely studied, we know little about what happens following their containment and the restoration of stability. This volume explores 'post-crisis politics, ' examining how crises give birth to longer term dynamic processes of accountability and learning which are characterised by official investigations, blame games, political manoeuvring, media scrutiny and crisis exploitation. Drawing from a wide range of contemporary crises, including Hurricane Katrina, 9/11, the Madrid train bombings, the Walkerton water contamination, Space Shuttles Challenger and Columbia and the Boxing Day Asian tsunami, this is a ground-breaking volume which addresses the longer term impact of crisis-induced politics. Competing pressures for stability and change mean that policies, institutions and leaders may occasionally be uprooted, but often survive largely intact.

The constant threat of crises such as disasters, riots and terrorist attacks poses a frightening challenge to Western societies and governments. While the causes and dynamics of these events have been widely studied, we know little about what happens following their containment and the restoration of stability. This volume explores 'post-crisis politics, ' examining how crises give birth to longer term dynamic processes of accountability and learning which are characterised by official investigations, blame games, political manoeuvring, media scrutiny and crisis exploitation. Drawing from a wide range of contemporary crises, including Hurricane Katrina, 9/11, the Madrid train bombings, the Walkerton water contamination, Space Shuttles Challenger and Columbia and the Boxing Day Asian tsunami, this is a ground-breaking volume which addresses the longer term impact of crisis-induced politics. Competing pressures for stability and change mean that policies, institutions and leaders may occasionally be uprooted, but often survive largely intact.