LAW7329 - The privatising state: reform, regulation and reinvention

Leader: Professor Graeme Hodge

Offered

Not offered in 2007

Synopsis

This unit investigates privatisation as a family of policies
and practices within the modern state and the crucial
role played by regulation in governance. It uses an
historical perspective to explore state-owned enterprise
and its traditional governance and then more recent
privatisation trends and regulatory phenomena. A range
of theoretical underpinnings for privatisation and
regulation are then explored. Components of
privatisation analysed include enterprise sales,
contracting-out public sector services, public-private
partnerships and private sector development strategy.

Objectives

Upon completion of the unit, students will be able to:

• Understand the changing role of the state
• Define the privatisation family of policies and their place within state governance
• Outline the task of regulating state-owned enterprise, including aspects of history, debates, trends and issues
• Identify theories and political underpinnings relevant to privatization and associated regulatory arrangements
• Analyse a range of privatisation modes including; contracting-out of government services, enterprise sales, public-private partnerships and private sector development strategies
• Articulate contemporary debates on privatization and regulation and understand the crucial role played now by regulatory arrangements in the privatised state
• Distinguish elements of accountability in the re-regulated state

Assessment

Research paper (3,750 words): 50% Case study (3,000 words): 40% Class participation: 10%

Contact hours

Students enrolled in the course will be provided with 24 contact hours of lectures/seminars per semester. Students will be expected to do reading set for class, and undertake additional research and reading as applicable to a 6 credit point unit.

Prerequisites

Any two of the prescribed core units in the Master of Regulatory Studies and the Graduate Diploma in Regulatory Studies, or subject to approval of the LLM course convenor.