ABSTRACT
This century has seen substantial changes in the composition and size of the public sector of the economy in the UK and other developed countries. Moreover, the policies of successive Conservative governments in the period 1979 to 1997 saw radical changes taking place in the organization and funding of the public sector. As we move into the new millennium, the various political, economic and technological trends in the world suggest that the public sector will continue to undergo substantial change. This book is about the public sector in the United Kingdom, the changes it has undergone in the past, will undergo in the future and the impact of those changes on the practice of management in public sector organizations (PSOs). However, before considering the trends that have taken place in the sector it is first useful to give some consideration to what is meant by the term ‘public sector’.
