Contenu du sommaire : Les administrations en Europe : d'une modernisation à l'autre

From Modernizing the Administration to State Reform. Policies of modernizing the administration in European States resemble each other in some ways. One major objective is to reduce State spending but to also develop new techniques of public management. Yet, changes brought on by the establishment of these policies vary in function of the countries and their political environments. Likewise, the endeavor to modernize can be interpreted in different ways. Indeed, on the one hand, modernization may constitute a response to constraints imposed upon European States, but on the other hand, it can also serve as a means to find alternative solutions to the welfare State model.

The Dismantling of Traditional Administration : The Case in Great Britain. Reform of public administration in Great Britain began in 1979 with the Conservative Party newly-installed in power. This modernization policy, strongly motivated by ideological factors, proceeded with a complete calling into question of traditional characteristics of British central administration. Subsequent modifications focused on two main areas : on the one hand, political leaders reinforced their means of control in an effort to assert their authority, and on the other hand, a vast campaign of privatizations was launched, accompanied by numerous measures designed to increase the efficiency of administrative activity.

Administrative Reform in Sweden : The Decline of Executive Capacity ? In a country like Sweden, which possesses the largest public sector in the Western world and which is often referred to as the model of the welfare State, administrative reform takes on a very particular significance. The renovation of the public sector took place during two successive periods : from 1982 to 1988, and from 1988 to 1995. This modernization policy culminated in a decrease in public services provided by the welfare State, and in a reinforcement of local authorities' autonomy. However, these reforms did not significantly increase administrative efficiency, and the process of granting private interests access to the public sector has made it necessary to define new management models.

Success and Failure of the Modernization of the Italian Administration : The Ciampi Government Experience. The modernization of the Italian administration began during a period where in the country was in the midst of an economic, financial, administrative, and political crisis. Launched in 1992 by the Ciampi government, modernization policies set out to achieve several objectives : to place public service users at the heart of public administration preoccupations by simplifying administrative structures, to reduce administrative activity costs by fighting effectively against corruption, and finally by proceeding to translate into national law a certain number of European directives. This endeavor to modernize, which users did not support, also encountered several other forms of resistance, from both from political as well as administrative forces.

Spanish Public Administration : Reform or Modernization ? Under Franco, the Spanish administration -fundamentally corporatist and elitist in structure -underwent technocratic reforms which maintained it in its archaism. Changes carried out after Franco's death are more a consequence of the transition to democracy than the fruit of a genuine public administration policy. Twenty years later, the administration has developed significantly, but still urgently awaits a fundamental reform program that must, above all, reduce the public deficit and successfully fight against political corruption.

Administrative Reforms and Public Sector Governance in the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, as in most Western countries, reducing public deficits has constituted the main objective of administrative reform. However, successive governments have attempted to find alternative solutions, persuaded that the pure and simple adoption of management and private competition methods would not suffice. This is why, parallel to the traditional «management» approach, new relationships have developed within the very heart of the administration, in order to increase their efficiency on both the level of public policy elaboration as well as its application.

Administrative Modernization in Germany : Old Wine in New Bottles. The issue of public sector modernization appeared on the scene in Germany in 1991. Before that, Germany had undergone two major reform programs, between 1965 and 1975, and after reunification. Three major objectives were attributed to the modernization program : to limit the scope of public activity, to reduce personnel costs, and to proceed with structural reforms. The main goal essentially being to reduce spending, questions relative to public service ethics are therefore not addressed. This tends to demonstrate that long-term effects of this type of modernization have not been taken into consideration, hence the necessity to improve these reforms might arise in the coming years.

The Search for Lost Time : The Modernization of Greek Administration. The turbulent history of the Hellenic nation encouraged the establishment of a pre-Weberian bureaucracy completely dependent on the political branch. Over the past fifteen years, several important reforms have introduced a sort of anarchical transformation of administrative structures and public service organization. The environment and functioning of the administration remain unchanged since innovative measures are often stillborn. Only Greek's participation in the European Union seems to be a favorable factor motivating the modernization of its administration.

Civil Service face to Modernization. The concept of modernization covers different realities, depending on the historical, political and institutional background. Nevertheless, Civil Service seems to lose its specific features and the difference with labour relations progressively disappear. Contractualization of civil service statute and decrease of the disparities between the rights and obligations of officials and employees characterize this evolution. But several contradictions appear, in the modernization process which put into question its efficiency and coherence : the conciliation between the cuts in public expenses and the delegation of responsibilities ; the increasing tendency to consider the citizen as a client ; the lack of political accountability and ethics.

Administrative Modernization in France : Evaluation and Perspectives. For several years now, French administrative institutions are experiencing a genuine crisis principally characterized by increased complexity and a growing sentiment of inefficiency. This is one reason why the modernization of French administration constitutes a recurrent issue to which a certain number of partial responses has been offered. However, in light of such diverse themes as administrative decentralization, public management methods, or the needs of public service users, efforts thus far implemented seem to remain insufficient.

Should the State be Reformed ? : Requirements and Levers of Change. Any analysis of the French society convinces one of the urgent necessity to reform the State. In fact, even more than reform, it has become imperative to enact a permanent process of reflection and of adapting the State to its missions and environment, as well as to respond to changes brought on by globalization, the European Union, decentralization, and the weakening of traditional social links. Proposals for each of these points constitute the foundation of the search for the control of new infra and supra-national public spaces.

The Service Project of the Documentation française. The service project of the Documentation française, whose elaboration took place over a period of almost two years, underlined the existence of a certain number of internal dysfunctions. Following a long series of debates, an orientation text was elaborated and took its inspiration from diverse proposals presented by workshops. The final result of this service project appears to be a globally positive one since it has allowed for the reinforcement of coherence within the Documentation française, as well as the accomplishment of essential reforms towards the institution's future.