Suchergebnisse

This article examines how local policy elites conceptualize and communicate potential innovations to overcome the fiscal crisis. Four austerity frames based on cultural theory are developed: an individualist, hierarchist, egalitarian and fatalist frame. Two expectations are tested by tracing frame usage in austerity speeches by the leadership in Birmingham, Cologne and Rotterdam. First, the modest contribution of the individualist frame in NPM‐sceptic Cologne is confirmed, but no evidence is found of individualist dominance in NPM‐minded Birmingham. Second, it is shown that leaders in Birmingham and Rotterdam combine elements of multiple frames so as to create a new promising narrative which opens up routes towards innovation. The importance of 'frame flexibility' is stressed to deal with the complexities of coping with the fiscal crisis in ways that are logical (given available views) and innovative (exploring alternative views), and highlight the importance of further developing understandings of such (municipal) coping.

This article attempts to clarify the relationships between the politico-administrative system and responses to austerity by comparing municipal austerity plans in the Netherlands and North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). Although austerity is a major topic in both states, the approaches differ. In our sample, Dutch municipalities have used the crisis as an opportunity to realize reforms, whereas NRW municipalities have regarded the challenge as a temporary issue and chosen fiscal discipline and stability. Although municipalities seem to deploy similar measures, an in-depth analysis of austerity plans illustrates a wider variety in chosen responses. This variety is shaped by financial autonomy and administrative culture.