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Abstract
This paper seeks to evaluate critically the extent to which there is community involvement in the construction and delivery of urban policy under New Labour, through a case study of the Greater Pollok Social Inclusion Partnership. The paper concentrates on the Scottish experience, but its lessons resonate more widely. Its key finding is that, for all the rhetoric of New Labour and community involvement, the degree to which it has occurred in practice is little different to the level of involvement under Conservative urban policy initiatives. The paper argues that the processes of community consultation and participation during the early stages of the Greater Pollok Social Inclusion Partnership were woefully inadequate. At best it was tokenistic, and at worst, local people were being ‘exploited’ to legitimise the policy process.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Ann McDowell and Gerry Mooney for their insightful and constructive comments on an earlier draft of the paper. However, the author alone is responsible for the content and substance of the paper.
Notes
The Glasgow Regeneration Alliance was established in 1993 as a partnership between the then Strathclyde Regional Council, Glasgow District Council, Glasgow Development Agency and Scottish Homes. These key players were encouraged, to work in urban partnership. However, little was achieved by the GRA in terms of concrete policy formulation, improved coordination and the long-term commitment of partners towards regenerating the city (McWilliams, Citation2002).
In 1998, the Glasgow Alliance emerged from the former Glasgow Regeneration Alliance and was charged by the Secretary of State for Scotland for getting key actors (from the public, private and voluntary sectors) in the city to work in a formal partnership (McWilliams, Citation2002).