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ISSUE NETWORKS AND THE RESTRUCTURING OF THE BRITISH AND WEST GERMAN COAL INDUSTRIES IN THE 1980s
Author(s) -
TAYLOR ANDREW J
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
public administration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.313
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1467-9299
pISSN - 0033-3298
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9299.1992.tb00924.x
Subject(s) - restructuring , german , coal , west germany , dimension (graph theory) , politics , network theory , coal mining , economy , economics , economic system , political science , economic history , engineering , law , history , statistics , mathematics , archaeology , pure mathematics , waste management
This article uses policy network theory to examine comparatively the politics of the British and West German coal industries in the 1980s. It considers the reasons why policy in Britain was directed at restructuring and in West Germany at preserving the industry's existing structure. It focuses on the dynamics of network stability and change, and the growing importance of the international dimension in domestic policy making, a factor overlooked by network theory. The article contrasts the Thatcher and Kohl governments which, though both avowedly committed to free‐markets, pursued very different policies in the coal industry. The article concludes with a brief assessment of network theory.