ABSTRACT
Alan Buddmentioned the idea of governments making use of strategic planning back in 1978. In a book on the politics of economic planning, he suggested that parliament (in the UK) tended to be preoccupied with the immediate in its decision making rather than the long-term and then turned to consider the possible benefits of governments using strategic planning.He quoted the ideas of Lindblom who favoured strategic planning by government because it was selective (it did not try to plan everything in society and in the economy) and made much use of interaction (presumably a reference to the interactions of planners and stakeholders). Budd (1978: 153) commented:
Strategic planning resembles the style of planning undertaken by companies in competitive markets. They recognize that their control over the environment is limited, and develop a system for responding to market forces. They are negotiating with the environment rather than seeking to control it.
