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The Transaction Cost Economy In May 2015, I was on a Brexit discussion panel with a Conservative local councillor and a former Cabinet Minister. It was not the most edifying experience given the audience was dominated by Leave.EU supporters who on being informed that Brexit would lead to increased transaction costs derisively responded: "Wot's Dat?" This response showed a more profound problem that went beyond the 2016 Referendum campaign. That is, the general lack of understanding of how modern economies work, that appears to afflict not only large numbers of the public but many of their political representatives and media commentators.

At the time of the Vietnam War in the 1960s, the justification for expanding the conflict into neighbouring Cambodia and Laos rested on the belief in and application of the Domino Theory. This was a geo-political theory that came to prominence in the United States and was subscribed to in many quarters until the 1980s. The Domino Theory was used by successive United States administrations during the Cold War to justify the need for American intervention around the world. The theory was summarised in a speech by former US President,, Dwight Eisenhower at a press conference in 1954 regarding the political situation concerning the spread of Communism in Indo-China.

"Fly me to the Moon and let me play among the stars"is a famous song popularised by the American singer Frank Sinatra. The United Kingdom's (UK) exit from the European Union (EU) means no longing flying closely with the other 27 moons that are Member States and has profound consequences beyond the immediate focus on a new trade deal. One industry thattends to be overlooked in the debates about the impact of Brexit and beyond is space.

PurposeSeeks to examine changes in the environment in which public policy and public management operate and the claim that bureaucracy has been replaced by post‐bureaucracy as a result of these changes.Design/methodology/approachThe paper proposes reanimated public governance as a concept that occupies the space between public administration and transformed public governance (including reinvented government and new public management (NPM)). Rather than accepting the existence of post‐bureaucracy,per se, the paper argues that there has been a process of extending bureaucracy that cuts across public and non‐public boundaries rather than the development of post‐bureaucracyper se.FindingsIn examining the claims for post‐bureaucracy, The paper is witnessing a discourse and practice of continuity rather than difference. The need for economies of scale and scope, standardisation and the existence of indivisibilities in public services suggest that public sector reforms and proposals for new governance models establish extended or flexible forms of bureaucracy rather than post‐bureaucratic organisational forms. Attempts to introduce ICT‐based services and the need for regulatory agencies to oversee the contracts with private and non‐profit service providers reinforce these findings.Research limitations/implicationsThe arguments in this paper are based on marshalling the literature and debates surrounding public sector reform to advance a central thesis. It draws on real world examples but does not draw on direct empirical evidence. There is scope for internationally comparative case‐studies of various public service functions and discourses and practices in different countries.Practical implicationsPolicy makers and managers should treat the clarion call of post‐bureaucracy as a way of liberating public services from a lack of creativity, innovation and accountability with healthy scepticism. In particular, the view that public sector reforms through post‐bureaucratic re‐organisation will lead to efficiencies is one to be challenged. Reforms in any service driven organisation are not zero‐cost and any implied operational cost saving should be considered against increased transaction costs.Originality/valueThere have been heroic claims made for post‐bureaucracy in many organisations enabled by developments associated with the concepts of information society and knowledge society. By locating public sector reforms under the rubric of "reanimated public governance" a deeper investigation of the implications for the discourses and practices associated with public sector reform is advanced.

Policy-makers in Europe have been concerned with developing and sustaining the competitiveness of their cities. This concern comes from the view that the determing parameter of urban regions is globalisation. By engaging in a process of territorial competition, the economic and social welfare of cities' constituent territories can be maintained. What this paper argues is that there is a danger that territorial competition is as much an abstraction as globalisation and its application to policy-making will bring about distortions in economic development. By examining the specification of globalisation and territorial competition and the relevant literature, a debate may be initiated in which the consequences for the economic environment of European cities are addressed. The discussion is given some context by drawing on the cursory examples, one global and one local, of London and Lille.

The debates about globalisation, global finance and global cities appear to confuse global and international changes and seem a-historical. This paper begins with a sceptical assessment of globalisation and asks whether a globalised economy is really an internationalised one. The paper then addresses an aspect of global finance—the national impetus given to alliances between markets in major cities. The financial derivatives markets, particularly in Europe, are used to exemplify this trend and to question the degree to which electronic trading poses a threat to the economic welfare of the urban territories in which they are located. In conclusion, the prospect of major players in large financial centres becoming incorporated into the governance of urban policy is raised.

The UK's vote to leave the European Union is a pivotal moment in British history. Over the past forty years, the UK's economy has become increasingly intertwined and dependent on its relationship with the other EU member states with both the EU and the UK's economic landscape irrevocably fashioned by its membership. Brexit takes both parties into unchartered territory. At such a time of uncertainty, what can we say for certain about the UK's economic relationship with the EU and what might be the likely flashpoints for negotiations and the unintended consequences of Brexit? This collection of essays explores the ramifications of the Brexit decision for the UK and European economies. The contributors, who all draw on long experience of policy-oriented research on the British economy within the European Union, consider the impact, at least in the short term, of a weaker and less influential UK economy.

1. Governance puzzles / John Clarke -- 2. E-governance and the governance of the global internet / Richard Collins -- 3. The limits of post-Lisbon governance in the European Union / Leslie Budd -- 4. "Early adopter" case studies of effective mobile communications between citizens and government / Jane Vincent and Lisa Harris -- 6. Abandoned heroes : the decline of ICT business support / Alan Rae -- 6. Collateral damage? : the impact of government policy on UK higher education / Simran Grewal -- 7. E-governance issues in small and medium-sized enterprises / Colin Gray -- 8. E-governance and local government / Janice Morphet -- 9. E-government, disability and inclusion / Fintan Clear and Charles Dennis -- 10. E-governance in transition economies / Antoaneta Serguieva and Kamen Spassov.