ABSTRACT
Eight years after Mrs Thatcher’s downfall and the advent of John Major’s very different style the debate over the significance of the New Right for planning continues. Many may claim that we have moved on-New Labour is now making its own distinctive contribution. But the impact of the New Right has more than simply historical significance. For nearly twenty years planning and other areas of public policy were subject to a distinctive approach regardless of any interpretation of the significance of change. There is little doubt that New Right policy has had a major influence on the shape and direction of British politics and the trajectory of change is of interest and importance to all those involved. At another level the planning system reacted to these changes in a way that altered or diluted centrally directed proposals. How this came about tells us as much about the shape and power of local planning in the UK as it does about the ability of central government to impose its preferred policies. This is a book that says as much about the administration, institutions and processes of planning as it does about Mrs Thatcher’s attempts to change it.
