Public inquiries as procedural policy tools

ABSTRACT

In this article we conceptualise the public inquiry as a procedural tool and address the question of what makes a public inquiry an effective policy instrument. The issue of control is central to our arguments. In our conceptual work, we use control as a means of introducing the concept of the ‘catalytic procedural tool’ to better capture the variance in autonomy, location and function that can be associated with different inquiries. In our evaluative work, we use control as a means of analysing the effectiveness of an inquiry as a procedural tool, which centres on a capacity to build legitimacy and prospectively influence the implementation and institutionalisation of recommendations. We conclude by claiming that there is value in thinking about control as a means of understanding policy instruments because it can deliver insights into their effects once they leave the design table and enter a variety of technical, political and social environments.

KEYWORDS:

• Public inquiry
• public policy
• policy instrument
• procedural policy tool

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Alastair Stark

Alastair Stark is a Senior Lecturer in Public Policy at the University of Queensland who specialises in the study of crisis management. Alastair has published widely in high-ranking international journals and is the recipient of the Mayer Prize (best paper in the Australian Journal of Political Science) and the Lasswell Prize (best paper in Policy Sciences). He has authored two books that addressed crisis and risk management in the public sector and policy learning and public inquiries. Alastair’s current research examines three areas: the role that institutional amnesia plays in terms of policy learning, deliberative democracy and policy design, and royal commissions in the policy process.

Sophie Yates

Sophie Yates is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Public Service Research Group, School of Business, UNSW Canberra, and was previously a Research Fellow at the Australia and New Zealand School of Government. She is interested in a gender and equality lens on public administration and public policy issues, and has won several national and international awards for her PhD and publications. She is on the Editorial Board of Public Management Review and is the Social Media Editor of the Australian Journal of Public Administration.