Machinery of government
Encyclopedia
The Machinery of Government (sometimes MOG) means the interconnected structures and processes of government
, such as the functions and accountability of departments in the executive
branch of government. The term is used particularly in the context of changes to established systems of public administration
where different elements of machinery are created.
The phrase “machinery of government” is thought to have originated with John Stuart Mill
in Considerations on Representative Government (1861). It was notably used to a public audience by President FD Roosevelt in a radio broadcast in 1934, commenting on the role of the National Recovery Administration
(NRA) in delivering the New Deal
. A number of national governments including those of Australia
, Canada
, South Africa
and the United Kingdom
have adopted the term in official usage.
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
, such as the functions and accountability of departments in the executive
Executive (government)
Executive branch of Government is the part of government that has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the idea of the separation of powers.In many countries, the term...
branch of government. The term is used particularly in the context of changes to established systems of public administration
Public administration
Public Administration houses the implementation of government policy and an academic discipline that studies this implementation and that prepares civil servants for this work. As a "field of inquiry with a diverse scope" its "fundamental goal.....
where different elements of machinery are created.
The phrase “machinery of government” is thought to have originated with John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill was a British philosopher, economist and civil servant. An influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control. He was a proponent of...
in Considerations on Representative Government (1861). It was notably used to a public audience by President FD Roosevelt in a radio broadcast in 1934, commenting on the role of the National Recovery Administration
National Recovery Administration
The National Recovery Administration was the primary New Deal agency established by U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. The goal was to eliminate "cut-throat competition" by bringing industry, labor and government together to create codes of "fair practices" and set prices...
(NRA) in delivering the New Deal
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...
. A number of national governments including those of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
have adopted the term in official usage.
Further reading
- Making and Breaking Whitehall Departments: A Guide to Machinery of Government Changes, Institute for Government, May 2010 http://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/pdfs/making_and_breaking_whitehall_departments.pdf
- Nethercote, J. (1999) Departmental Machinery of Government Since 1987 Research Paper 24 1998-99, Parliamentary Library, Australia accessed at http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/rp/1998-99/99rp24.htm June 12, 2006
- Machinery of Government Reform: Principles and Practice in "The Organisation of Central Government Departments: A History 1964-1992", ESRC Whitehall Programme accessed at Nuffield College, University of Oxford http://www.nuff.ox.ac.uk/politics/whitehall/Machinery.html June 12, 2006
- Constitutional, legal and Government framework: Machinery of Government changes, Australian Public Service Commission http://www.apsc.gov.au/foundations/machinerygovernment.htm