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In 1996, an independent inquiry into the voluntary sector in England recommended that there should be a `concordat' or `compact' embodying agreed guidelines for relationships between government and the voluntary sector. Since then, work has been continuous on drafting both a basic Compact and more detailed codes to regulate the behavior of both parties in areas such as funding, consultation, the use of volunteers, contacts with Black and ethnic minority organizations, etc. The Compact and several codes are now in force. Current questions include whether their existence can be made known to the thousands of individuals and organizations involved and whether, having no legal force, they can become effective constraints on inappropriate actions.

This article focuses on the central national government of Great Britain. It outlines the most important permanent features of the British administration, those which have remained constant over the past hundred years or so. It then describes the major changes in the public service between 1960 and 1970 and during the government of Margaret Thatcher. It also discusses some unresolved issues and identifies key lessons learned on how to reform and maintain an efficient public administration. Furthermore, it is explained that the British civil service has been altered by accession to the European Community, because their laws restrict the formulation or implementation of British public policies. Finally, thirteen essential elements for an effective civil service in a modern democratic state are mentioned.

The British civil service, a highly conservative institution, is at present subject both to spontaneous pressures for change and to pressures from the Conservative government. Change is necessary, including relatively radical developments, such as increased political influence over senior appointments. Current attempts to improve financial management in Whitehall are, as far as they go, on the right lines (though their longer‐tern implications need more thought). But the government's approach to change is based on a limited understanding of what'management' really means; it ignores the difficulties of reforming established organizations without undesirably damaging them. Those who want to reform the civil service must develop a strategy as far as possible comprehensive and consensual.

Great Britain. Implications of organizational changes.

The more that I have thought about the question of the image of the public administrator, the more complex and ambiguous the whole concept has seemed to be. Our knowledge of the facts is patchy enough. Our understanding of causes and effects is thinner still. The best approach is perhaps to pool what we know from different sources. So today I propose to add to the available material, including the recent ANOP survey findings, such fragments of information and such conclusions as are available in the British context. I shall certainly look forward to learning more about Australian experiences while I am here. Between us, we may be able to make a little progress.

Governance and Nationbuilding describes how aid donors have attempted to improve the performance of government in developing countries and countries in crisis. Kate Jenkins and William Plowden review the widespread lack of success, tracing the history of international government intervention, the roles of donors and recipient countries, the ways in which expert advice and support have been provided, and the donors' own evaluation of their work