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INTERNATIONAL SERIES ON PUBLIC POLICY

Public Value
Management,
Governance and
Reform in Britain

Edited by
John Connolly
Arno van der Zwet
International Series on Public Policy

Series Editors
B. Guy Peters
Department of Political Science
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Philippe Zittoun
Research Professor of Political Science
LET-ENTPE, University of Lyon
Lyon, France
The International Series on Public Policy - the official series of International
Public Policy Association, which organizes the International Conference
on Public Policy - identifies major contributions to the field of public
policy, dealing with analytical and substantive policy and governance issues
across a variety of academic disciplines.
A comparative and interdisciplinary venture, it examines questions of
policy process and analysis, policymaking and implementation, policy
instruments, policy change & reforms, politics and policy, encompassing a
range of approaches, theoretical, methodological, and/or empirical.
Relevant across the various fields of political science, sociology,
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and those teaching public policy worldwide.
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cess: https://www.palgrave.com/gb/demystifying-peer-review/792492

More information about this series at

http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/15096
John Connolly • Arno van der Zwet
Editors

Public Value
Management,
Governance and
Reform in Britain
Editors
John Connolly Arno van der Zwet
University of the West of Scotland University of the West of Scotland
Paisley, UK Paisley, UK

ISSN 2524-7301     ISSN 2524-731X (electronic)

International Series on Public Policy
ISBN 978-3-030-55585-6    ISBN 978-3-030-55586-3 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55586-3

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer
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 We dedicate this book to our friend and colleague Professor Duncan
McTavish. Duncan planned on contributing to this book before his untimely
death in November 2018. We hope that he would be pleased with how this
book has come together. Many of the contributors to this book have been
fortunate enough to have been mentored, encouraged and supported by
Duncan over the years, for which we owe a great deal of gratitude.
 Foreword

In the post-war era, two simple equations lay behind much of public pol-
icy. The first, which shaped the private sector of the economy, was Value
equals Price. As Mariana Mazzucato has explained, a century and a half of
controversy about the nature of value, running back through Marx and
Ricardo to Adam Smith, was neatly brought to an end in the immediate
post-war era. Products were valued by their price. Businesses came to be
judged by the shareholder value they created. At macro-economic level,
the economic success of countries was based on GDP growth which was
also based on this simple equation. Everyone knew the equation was
deeply flawed and, at best, a gross simplification, but as economies grew,
businesses thrived and business schools devoted themselves to mathemati-
cal models (which also assumed the simple equation), pretty much every-
one was happy with this self-deceit.
Meanwhile, policy for the public sector—funding for education,
health and policing, for example—was based on the second equally sim-
ple equation, Inputs equal Outputs. Around the world, countries built
schools, hospitals and thousands of miles of road or railway and claimed,
on the basis of this equation, to be making a big difference. They
employed more and more teachers, more and more nurses, more and
more police officers and argued that thus they were improving educa-
tion and health and reducing crime. Economists calculated the impact
of education on the economy by measuring years of schooling rather
than outputs or outcomes—in response, countries pushed up the

vii
viii FOREWORD

school-leaving age, regardless of what students learnt or even whether

the teachers actually showed up at school.
Again, everyone knew this equation was deeply flawed and, at best, a
gross simplification, but economists could not think of anything better.
Governments were generally happy too because it was easier to deliver a
promise, for example, for a maximum class size or a given quantity of
police officers than it was to improve literacy or cut crime. Public sector
workforces supported the equation too, happy to agree that more meant
better (and fewer meant worse) because it meant no accountability for
outcomes.
The consequences of these two equations over 70 years or so were not
all bad. Globally speaking, we became many times more wealthy, poverty
was much reduced, health improved, life expectancy rose, more children
and young people achieved higher standards, university education
expanded dramatically, crime rose and then fell…but by the first decade of
this century, the profound flaws in the two equations were becoming
apparent.
In the private sector, Value equals Price led businesses to promote profit
by, among other things, externalising costs—if waste could be poured
down the river at no cost to the business, so be it. Market pressures, with
businesses chasing quarterly evidence of profit and shareholder value,
became increasingly short-term and global. The equation’s biggest flaw
was that it had no ethical context. Of course, many people in business
were ethical in the way they conducted themselves, but by no means all.
We had a series of scandalous cases such as Enron and WorldCom. Worse,
economic growth occurred without any thought given to its sustainability.
Climate change was one consequence, pollution of the oceans and loss of
biodiversity were others, equally profound.
In the public sector, by the end of the twentieth century, similar flaws
in the simplistic equation were becoming apparent too. Taxpayers were
increasingly sceptical about what they got for their money. Some just
wanted to pay less tax; others were willing to pay but only on condition
they saw results. Not just more police, but less crime. Not just more trans-
port, but more convenient, punctual rail services and less congestion. Not
just more hospitals and doctors, but shorter waiting times and better
health outcomes.
As a result, some governments set public targets so taxpayers could see
what they were getting for their money. Public sector workforces were
 FOREWORD ix

generally sceptical of this development; they feared being held account-

able for results. I even heard the leader of one of America’s major teacher
unions argue against accountability for results on the grounds that ‘teach-
ers don’t make that much difference’. In other words, she was willing to
undermine public belief in the importance of teachers (and incredibly her
members’ sense of self-worth) in order to resist accountability and main-
tain Inputs equal Outputs.
Inputs equal Outputs had no ethical context either, though the profes-
sional ethics of the vast majority of doctors, nurses, teachers and public
servants mitigated the consequences. Even so, with notable exceptions,
performance around the world of public services, especially for families on
low incomes, often fell short. Mediocrity ruled. Outcomes varied hugely
by postcode.
And while targets helped where they were well designed, many govern-
ments did not have the courage to build a system around them. And in any
case, targets were by no means a complete answer. They rarely took
account of the long term or of the degree to which public expenditure was
understood and supported by citizens, users and taxpayers.
In Britain, one advance was made when Gordon Brown asked Tony
Atkinson of Oxford University to find a better way of measuring public
sector productivity than Inputs equal Outputs. His report led to improve-
ments in the way the Office for National Statistics accounted for public
sector productivity, but the effect was largely retrospective and his report
had little impact on policy-making or on the way in which public money
was allocated in spending reviews.
Then in 2007–2008 came the global financial crisis. Value equals
Price, you might have thought, would be blown out of the water by the
crisis as the equation’s lack of ethical basis and dire economic conse-
quences were made plain. But no. To avoid total economic meltdown,
public sector bailouts were required as the banks were considered ‘too
big to fail’. The financial services sector that had spent thirty years lob-
bying for ever less regulation discovered it could not manage without it.
It even had the arrogance to claim that the fault for the crisis lay not with
its own ethical failings but with the regulators for allowing them to do
what they had done.
Economic growth rates stalled, public debt rose, government expendi-
ture came under pressure. Austerity ruled. The answer in the public sector
x FOREWORD

was not to change the simple equation—it was to squeeze the inputs side
of it and hope for the best. At a level of generality, governments were
forced to make a productivity argument—that less input should not neces-
sarily lead to less output—but the imperative was to cut inputs and there-
fore control and ultimately reduce burgeoning debt, which would
otherwise have been passed on to future generations.
When we finally emerged from austerity, while the two flawed equa-
tions remained largely in place, their long-term consequences were becom-
ing apparent. A growing number of voices advocated alternatives.
In relation to Value equals Price, Mariana Mazzucato’s book The Value
of Everything raised fundamental questions about the equation’s validity at
both micro- and macro-economic levels. Meanwhile, the growing sense of
a climate emergency, coinciding with the major financial and economic
challenges of 2008–2018, put the issue of finding an alternative firmly on
the agenda. How could we continue to measure GDP in the way we do
given its ethical and environmental blindness? GDP survives still because
there is no consensus on what the alternative might be, but it is increas-
ingly being questioned.
While Inputs equal Outputs also remains influential, as illustrated by
much of the political debate, it too has come under challenge, not before
time. Ongoing international benchmarking, perhaps best exemplified by
the OECD-PISA comparisons of education systems, has revealed that the
correlation between inputs and outcomes is weak. It matters, not just how
much you spend but how exactly you spend it!
Meanwhile, the UK Treasury, with the active support of successive
chancellors and chief secretaries, has actively pursued alternative ways of
thinking about public value. The starting point was the commissioning of
a report from me on the subject, which was published with the budget in
November 2017. Since then, the Treasury has pursued an innovative
approach which, in spite of political uncertainty in Britain in the years
2016–2019, has begun to shape the dialogue between the Treasury and
major spending departments.
My report made the case for a rounded perspective on public value, to
replace the bankrupt concept of Inputs equal Outputs. Hence the Public
Value Framework with four pillars.
 FOREWORD xi

Public Value Assessment Framework: Relationship Between Funding, Pillars and

Outcomes

The first pillar requires that a given sum of public money delivers speci-
fied goals. The second pillar requires the fair, transparent and efficient
allocation of the resources. The third pillar is an innovation—it suggests
that for many areas of public expenditure we will get much better out-
comes if the service user is not just a recipient but an engaged partner;
think of tackling obesity, addressing mental health or enabling student
learning. It also suggests that taxpayers/citizens need to see the rationale
for each budget. If they support, or at least understand that rationale, the
budget will have greater legitimacy.
The fourth pillar is another innovation. Public value is long term as well
as short and medium term. This means that public service managers at
every level need to think consistently about how they can ensure they
leave the service for which they are responsible better than they found it.
This is stewardship. It applies at the front line—a hospital manager, for
example—and at national level—the permanent secretary of a government
department.
Since my report was published, the application of this Framework has
been piloted by the Treasury in collaboration with several government
xii FOREWORD

departments. The Framework was refined and improved as a result. Since

then, Historic England has adopted and refined it further as a means of
evaluating proposals. The Food and Farming Commission has strength-
ened it in relation to the natural environment and proposed its use in that
domain. Recently, the Dutch government has decided to pilot its use too.
It would be foolish to suggest that this approach to public value answers
all the questions, but it is a step forward and these early applications of it
suggest it is practical and useful. The recently retired head of the National
Audit Office, Sir Amyas Morse, has welcomed it as a significant advance.
My hope is that it will become central to the way the Treasury interacts
with government departments and results in a common language in which to
discuss public value. The result of that would be a richer, deeper dialogue
about what public value is and how it is delivered. I also hope that others will
build on it—which is why I welcome this book—and ensure ever deeper
understanding of public value. With this in mind, John Connolly and Arno
van der Zwet (and the contributors to their book) make a welcome contribu-
tion to public value thinking by examining the possibilities and challenges of
delivering public value in Britain. There are lessons from this study that other
state contexts beyond Britain should reflect on. In short, a focus on public
value by governments should result in better services, more efficient use of
public money, better outcomes for individual citizens and families and thus
more people leading more fulfilled lives.
That surely is worth working for. And, if we succeed, while others dis-
mantle Value equals Price, we could dance on the grave of Inputs equal
Outputs.

2019Sir Michael Barber

Sir Michael Barber is founder and chairman of Delivery Associates, an

advisory firm which helps the government and other organisations to
deliver improved outcomes for citizens. Sir Michael was Head of the Prime
Minister’s Delivery Unit from 2001–05, and Chief Adviser to the Secretary
of State for Education on School Standards from 1997–2001. Before join-
ing the government, he was a professor at the Institute of Education,
University of London. He is the author of several books on deliverology,
most recently How to Run a Government: So that Citizens Benefit and
Taxpayers Don’t go Crazy (2016). Other titles by him are: Deliverology in
Practice (2015), Deliverology 101 (2011) and Instruction to Deliver
(2008). He is also a co-author of Oceans of Innovation (2012) and An
Avalanche is Coming (2013).
 Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements for John Connolly

First of all I would like to thank my co-editor, Arno, for his work on this
book project. I fear that without his commitment, hard work and patience,
this book would never have happened! In the acknowledgements for my
previous book—The Politics and Crisis Management of Animal Health
Security (Routledge Publishers)—I gave priority in the acknowledgements
section to my wife (Jennifer) and to my two cheeky children (Robyn and
Joshua). Back then, the kids didn’t know all that much about my job but
I guess they might have a slightly better idea these days—they are, after all,
at the grand old ages of 9 and 7. I must admit, though, they remain fairly
unimpressed! I’m quite pleased about that, I think, because they ensure
that my feet are rarely far off of the ground. My extended family, and my
non-academic friends, also have a better idea of what I do after I had the
opportunity to share some of my work with them at my inaugural lecture
at the University of the West of Scotland in August 2019. It was a night to
remember and cherish. One of the greatest pleasures, for me personally,
was that my father in-law, Jim, told me after the lecture that he was very
proud of me—that meant a great deal. Jim has always been very kind and
supportive to me over the years—so much so that I also think of him as my
in-house handyman who is on-call most days to deal with crises as they
arise. He doesn’t get paid all that much for that job so I hope that my
personal dedication of this book to him will suffice. Just don’t ask me to
do any wallpapering any time soon!

xiii
xiv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Acknowledgements for Arno van der Zwet

There are many colleagues and students that have directly or indirectly
made a contribution that made this book possible and to whom I am
immensely grateful. In particular, I am indebted to my fellow editor for
giving me the opportunity to contribute to this book. This started off as
John’s book project, but I was happy to come on board when I moved to
the University of the West of Scotland three years ago. However, no letters
would have filled these pages, or at least those that I was responsible for,
without the support of my wife Jennifer and three gorgeous children
(Aletta, Thijs and Cas). The latter have no idea what daddy does (the for-
mer has some idea!) and ‘don’t like the stories he writes’. I would also like
to thank my parents (all four of them) and parents-in-law for their encour-
agement and support at various stages of my academic career. When
reflecting on achievements, we tend to think of those that are no longer
with us. My stepdad, Gaston Schellekens, and father-in-law, Bill Lindsay,
are two men that I have lost in recent years. They epitomised hard work,
creativity and love, and despite having passed away far too young, I feel
their support every day.
We would both like to thank colleagues at Palgrave for their support
and patience over the past few years as well as all of the contributors to the
book for their hard work and commitment. It is much appreciated!
 About the Book

This book examines governance reform in Britain, with a particular focus

on the period since 2010. The New Labour period (1997–2010) saw a
fairly strong emphasis on governance reform. The decade or so since has
seen major societal, economic and technological changes. We examine,
through different analytical lenses, the extent to which the post-2010
period (under the Conservative government, with initial support being
offered by the Liberal Democrats when they were part of the post-2010
coalition government) saw a departure from Labour-led reforms or
whether the reforms were of a path-dependent nature.
Students of public administration will know that public sector reform is
continuous and never ending, as is the political, social, cultural and tech-
nological context in which bureaucracies operate. Governance systems
have to continually find new ways to address new and old challenges.
Reform is invariably incremental and often reactive. However, there are
occasions when the government of the day sets out a comprehensive
reform agenda for the public sector that shifts the way in which the gov-
ernment’s bureaucracy operates and changes many of the assumptions
underpinning governance and the policy process. We approach this sub-
ject by using the concept of ‘public value management’. Public value not
only offers analyses that focus on governance from a micro or meso level
(i.e. the leadership and operationalisation of policy implementation), but
it also offers an opportunity to reflect on matters of statecraft and com-
plexity at a systems-wide level in governance settings.
The book concludes that there has not been a major shift towards a new
‘public value’ paradigm in Britain and that key elements of the NPM
xvi About the Book

paradigm remain prevalent. What the various contributions to this volume

show is that there is an opportunity for more paradigmatic changes to UK
governance but that post-2010, despite some examples of progress, has
not seen the emergence of new governance agenda which concerns evalu-
ating how government works on the basis of sustaining public value
approaches. Austerity, Brexit and COVID-19 have distracted political
leaders and limited the progress towards a new approach to gover-
nance reform.
The book calls for greater attention to be given to public value in the
future to ensure that a value-based approach to ‘reinventing government’
is prioritised and sustained as part of modern British governance.
 Contents

1 Introduction  1
John Connolly and Arno van der Zwet

2 Public Value in Britain: A ‘Post-New Public Management’

Environment? 15
John Connolly and Arno van der Zwet

3 Public Sector Reform in the UK: Key Developments,

Debates and Political Responses in Challenging Times 45
Robert Pyper

4 Modes of State Governance, Populist Pressures and

Public Sector Reform 87
Matthew Flinders and Christopher Huggins

5 Evidence-based Policy and Public Value Management:

Mutually Supporting Paradigms?115
Kathryn Oliver and Alec Fraser

xvii
xviii Contents

6 Public Service Innovation: Challenges and Possibilities

for Innovation Adoption149
Adina Dudau, John Finch, James Grant Hemple, and
Georgios Kominis

7 Public Value Leadership in the Context of Outcomes,

Impact and Reform173
Janice McMillan

8 Accountability and Networks: Mind the Gap201

Andrew Massey

9 Public Value Management in Brexit Britain227

Janice Morphet

10 Public Value Management: A Paradigm Shift?259

Arno van der Zwet and John Connolly

Index287
 Notes on Contributors

John Connolly is Professor of Public Policy at the University of the West

of Scotland. He is a former public servant having previously worked in
senior policy and evaluation positions in Scotland before joining the
University of the West of Scotland in 2013. His main research inter-
ests include public sector reform, the politics of crisis management,
evaluation, health security and social inequalities. He has led and
contributed to a number of funded research projects (funders include
the Scottish Government, National Health Service in Scotland, the
Economic and Social Research Council and the British Council). He
is the editor of the flagship journal of the Academy of Social Sciences—
Contemporary Social Science—and is a senior fellow of the UK Higher
Education Academy.
Adina Dudau is a senior lecturer at the University of Glasgow’s Adam
Smith Business School. Her research includes public sector management,
accountability and innovation. Adina is a CIPD associate member
and works with public sector and voluntary and community sector
organisations for research, teaching and consultancy. Her researches
have been published in Public Management Review, Public Money and
Management, Public Policy and Administration, European Management
Review, Management Accounting Research and Academy of Management
Learning and Education.
John Finch is Professor of Marketing and Head of University of
Glasgow’s Adam Smith Business School. His research is in business-to-­
business marketing and market studies. John is a member of the Chartered

xix
xx NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS

Institute of Marketing and has undertaken consulting work with a

number of organisations (from large transnational corporations to
SMEs) and his works have been published, among others, in Research
Policy, Marketing Theory, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of
Business Research and Cambridge Journal of Economics.
Matthew Flinders is Professor of Politics and Founding Director of the
Sir Bernard Crick Centre at the University of Sheffield. He is also presi-
dent of the Political Studies Association of the United Kingdom and is a
member of the Economic and Social Research Council. His research inter-
ests span political psychology, democratic governance and public
management.
Alec Fraser is Lecturer in Government & Business at King’s College
London. His research centres on the use of evidence in policy-making and
practice across the public sector with a particular focus on health and social
care. He previously spent five years at the Policy Innovation Research
Unit at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Prior
to entering academia, he worked in NHS administration and
management.
James Grant Hemple is Adjunct Lecturer in Management at the Adam
Smith Business School, University of Glasgow. His main area of research
is business-to-business marketing with a broader interest in market stud-
ies, business models and innovation. Grant holds a PhD in management
from the University of Glasgow. His work has been presented at vari-
ous conferences including the British Academy of Management
(BAM), Industrial Marketing and Purchasing (IMP) and The
International Society for Professional Innovation Management
Conference (ISPIM Innovation Conference). Grant’s academic inter-
ests complement his practical experience as a project manager, where
he focuses on research and development within the public sector.
Grant has also undertaken roles specialising in knowledge manage-
ment and digital marketing.
Christopher Huggins is Senior Lecturer in Politics and Associate Dean
for Learning, Teaching and Student Experience at the University of
Suffolk. He completed his PhD at the University of Portsmouth and has
held positions at Keele University, the University of Aberdeen and the
University of the West of Scotland. His research interests centre on subna-
 NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS xxi

tional and territorial politics and the impact of Brexit on ­devolution in the
UK. He is also editor of the Journal of Contemporary European Research.
Georgios Kominis is Lecturer in Management Control at the University
of Glasgow’s Adam Smith Business School and undertakes research in
public sector accounting, accountability and management control. He
reviews for, and his works are published in, Management Accounting
Research, Public Management Review, European Management Journal
and Financial Accountability and Management.
Andrew Massey is Professor of Government and Academic Director of
the International School for Government at King’s College London. He
is the author of more than 100 published books, papers and chapters. He
has worked in a range of areas including British, European and US policy
and politics. His main areas of research include comparative public
policy, public administration and issues around the reform and mod-
ernisation of government and governance at all levels in the UK,
USA, EU and globally. He is editor-in-chief of the journal International
Review of Administrative Sciences and editor for the journal Public
Money and Management.
Janice McMillan is Associate Professor in Public Management and
Human Resource Development at Edinburgh Napier University. Her
research interests include public management, human resource develop-
ment and leadership, and she has written widely in these areas. With John
Fenwick, she is co-editor of Public Management in the Postmodern Era:
Challenges and Prospects (2010) and co-author of Decentralizing the Civil
Service: From unitary state to differentiated polity in the United Kingdom
(2003) (with Rod Rhodes, Paul Carmichael and Andrew Massey). She was
chair of the Political Studies Association Public Administration
Specialist Group 1995–2005 and vice-chair of the Public
Administration Committee of the Joint University Council
2013–2016.
Janice Morphet is a visiting professor at the University College London.
Janice has been engaged in planning and local government for over
50 years. She was chief executive of a unitary authority, head of a large
university school of planning and landscape, senior adviser on local gov-
ernment to central government and a consultant. She has written widely
on local government, planning, management, infrastructure and the
EU, including Brexit.
xxii NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS

Kathryn Oliver is a social scientist with interests in the use of evidence in

policy-making, especially public health policy. She is particularly interested
in the structure and function of networks in policy and practice and
how these influence research impact and science policy more gener-
ally. Kathryn co-leads the Transforming Evidence initiative which is a
cross-disciplinary network aiming to bring together knowledge about
the making and use of evidence from across sectors and disciplines.
Robert Pyper is Emeritus Professor of Government and Public Policy at
the University of the West of Scotland. His books, book chapters and aca-
demic journal articles span the fields of government, public policy and
public management and include national and international analyses of civil
service policy and management, public services reform and modernisa-
tion, devolved polities, official and political accountability, governance and
parliamentary select committees.
Arno van der Zwet joined the University of the West of Scotland in
2017 as Lecturer in Politics and Public Policy. He has previously worked
as a research fellow at the European Policies Research Centre at the
University of Strathclyde, where he remains as a senior research associate.
His research interests include territorial politics, regional policy, gover-
nance and identity studies. He has been a principal investigator for
Economic and Social Research Council funded research as well as for proj-
ects funded by European institutions, such as the European Commission,
European Parliament and ESPON. He is an expert panel member of
regional and urban studies for the European Commission Joint
Research Centre.
 List of Figures

Fig. 4.1 Types of Multilevel Governance Transport-Related Carbon

Emissions in Four Cities. Bache et al. (2015) 93
Fig. 4.2 Procurement as a percentage of government expenditure,
2004/05 to 2017/18. Davies et al. (2018, p. 6) 100
Fig. 6.1 The process of institutional hybridity in relation to governance
modes153
Fig. 6.2 Public and private value across modes of governance 155
Fig. 6.3 Service continuum (adapted from Laing 2003) 157
Fig. 6.4 Public Utility Firm’s regulatory framework 162

xxiii
 List of Tables

Table 1.1 Thematic shifts in emphasis between NPM and PVM 8

Table 2.1 Public Value Framework 23
Table 4.1 Types of Multilevel Governance 91
Table 5.1 How evidence interacts with paradigms of management 121
Table 5.2 Four PVM propositions and their implications
for evidence use: 130
Table 6.1 Illustration of public value pursuit in Public Utility Firm161

xxv
 List of Boxes

Box 4.1 Hansard Society Audit of Political Engagement (2019) 107

Box 5.1 The search for public value: the example of higher education 131
Box 5.2 Recognising the legitimacy of stakeholders: the example of
public and patient involvement 132
Box 5.3 Collaborative commissioning 134
Box 5.4 Adaptable learning 137

xxvii
 CHAPTER 1

Introduction

John Connolly and Arno van der Zwet

I say this to governments around the world ‘you should always treat the
bureaucracy with respect, you should recognise what it can do but if you
become a prisoner of it then you will achieve nothing, you will just go
around in circles’. It is a longer debate to have and it is a very
important debate to have because reinventing government has fallen
off the political agenda in recent times and it really shouldn’t because
today, especially with changes in technology, this whole concept of how
government itself works is in my view fundamentally important. But,
as I say, I love the integrity of the civil service and in a crisis it was
brilliant but when it comes to trying to making change, and I’m being
very honest here, I found it inadequate.

—Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair: 10th August 2017;

BBC Radio 4

The above is an extract from an interview for the Reflections radio pro-
gramme presented by Peter Hennessey (historian and expert in the history
of British government) with the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair

J. Connolly (*) • A. van der Zwet

University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow, UK
e-mail: john.connolly@uws.ac.uk; arno.van-der-Zwet@uws.ac.uk

© The Author(s) 2021 1

J. Connolly, A. van der Zwet (eds.), Public Value Management,
Governance and Reform in Britain, International Series on Public
Policy, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55586-3_1
2 J. CONNOLLY AND A. VAN DER ZWET

(1997–2007), who was reflecting on his time in office. Blair went on to

note that he found the bureaucracy to have clear limitations when it came
to implementing reform agendas for areas such as health, education, asy-
lum and immigration policy and that the bureaucracy or civil service was
‘unresponsive’. A more positive sentiment entered the interview later
when Blair said that:

What I do accept, and I think we did this in my last six or seven years, is that
you can get to a much more balanced perspective where you liberate those
within the bureaucracy who actually do want to make change and who are
enthusiastic.

Tony Blair’s sentiments about changing the machinery of government

warrants a renewed focus, particularly due to the twin policy challenges of
Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, the final manuscript for this
book was submitted during a period of lockdown as part of the pandemic
crisis management control measures. The added value of this project will
be to offer contemporary debates, reflections and perspectives which will
feed into future academic research about how, and to what extent, the
contours of governance reform in Britain will, or need to, change in the
context of Brexit and in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aims of the Book

Our primary aim is to examine governance reform in Britain, with a par-
ticular focus on the period since 2010. However, the authors of this book
also discuss pre-2010 governance developments when it is relevant to
their argument or thematic area. In substantive terms, we examine the
extent to which the post-2010 reforms, taken forward by the Conservative
and Liberal Democrat coalition government (Con-Lib, for short), and the
developments since the re-election of the Conservative government in
2015 and 2017, have served to represent a departure from the governance
reforms implemented by the post-1997 Labour government. Our domi-
nant aim is to engage with debates about whether there has been a para-
digm shift from an era of new public management to that which can be
described as ‘public value management’. This academic endeavour requires
an interrogation of the extent to which such conceptual development is
evident in the context of public sector reform in Britain and whether there
 1 INTRODUCTION 3

is evidence of reform agendas, leadership cultures and political narratives

that emphasise ‘public value’.

British Governance: Post-New Public Management?

The public administration and management field has seen considerable
conceptual development over the past thirty years. The traditional model
of public administration (emphasising bureaucracy, hierarchy, lines of
accountability and control) shifted as part of the new public management
(NPM) agenda associated with Thatcherism post-1979 (Hood 1991).
Economic policy reform towards monetarism, the rise of the New Right
ideology and neo-liberalism led to a paradigm shift (Hall 1993), which
meant that public administration academics became increasingly con-
cerned with market mechanisms, efficiency, consumerism, outputs, regu-
lation, competition, performance management and performance
measurement. Although these terms still have considerable scholarly cur-
rency, NPM developments in the 1990s foregrounded the emphasis on
perspectives such as ‘governance’ and ‘modernisation’, which aligned with
a post-1997 Blairite agenda. This agenda had its roots in Thatcherism and
continued under ‘Majorism’ post-1990 (Rhodes 1997; Cabinet Office
1999; Massey and Pyper 2005). The rise of ‘governance’ perspectives
from the mid-1990s onwards reflected the triple developments of devolu-
tion in the UK (Marsh et al. 2003), increasing globalisation (Hay and
Marsh 2000), and European integration (George 1998). As Judge (2014:
112) notes:

In the UK, devolution upwards to the European Union and other interna-
tional organisations and devolution down to Scotland, Northern Ireland,
and Wales has transformed a unitary (or at least a union) state into a multi-­
level polity…characterised by non-standardised administrative structures, a
complex institutional nexus and variegated decentralised policy processes.

One of the most enduring characterisations of the British state emerges

from the view that the political system has become ‘hollowed-out’ and
that the core and wider executive (although a prevailing actor) is just but
one actor amongst several which cross-cut the public, private and third
sectors (Bevir and Rhodes 2003). The characterisation of the ‘hollowed-­
out’ state promotes the idea of states remaining as ‘gatekeepers’ in that
they are able to steer and terminate policy at a strategic level. Current
4 J. CONNOLLY AND A. VAN DER ZWET

debates gravitate around whether British governance is less about the state
being a facilitator (amongst many facilitators) but more about the manner
and style of statecraft whereby the state remains an architect of governance
(Bevir 2010). In this respect, notions of ‘metagovernance’ and ‘rescaling’
become conceptual reference points for understanding the capacities and
approaches relating to state actions.
If public administration is about ‘how things work, how governments
make decisions, apply, or enforce these decisions’ (Massey and Pyper
2005: 4), then a focus on public value is about understanding the quality
of governance reforms at multiple levels, including the extent to which
these match public expectations. Nonetheless, there are debates in the
academic literature about whether we have witnessed an end to NPM
(Dunleavy et al. 2006; De Vries 2010; Reiter and Klenk 2019). These
debates gravitate around what could be the successor to NPM. One nota-
ble candidate has been New Public Governance (NPG) (Osborne 2009).
The arrival of NPG largely comes down to the argument that NPM think-
ing does not sufficiently address the external dynamics which shape public
governance. There are also concerns about NPM’s focus on intra-­
organisational forms, performance measurement, and its lack of account
for understanding complex relationships. There are further important
interpretations of public sector governance such as New Public Service
(NPS), which emphasises the importance of the democratic and collabora-
tive dimensions of modern governance (Denhardt and Denhardt 2007).
NPS is also informed by Mark Moore’s idea regarding creating Public
Value, which calls for public managers to open up policy processes and
rebalance power relationships to give citizens a greater role in shaping
policy decision-making (Moore 1995). Creating public value is, therefore,
about the implementation of governance strategies, which are valued by
the public. It is perhaps understandable, therefore, why Dunleavy et al.
(2006) questioned whether ‘New Public Management is Dead’. In recent
times, public value has become the centre of academic attention around
the extent to which it is a distinctly new paradigm, superseding new public
management (NPM). Yet, Stoker (2006, p.43), in his assessment of the
move from public management to public value management, notes that
‘[c]laims that a new paradigm is emerging in any sphere of social and
political study are rightly treated with scepticism’. This, in part, is because
no conceptual approach in public administration scholarship is ever
entirely new, and there are always connections to the past. We have sym-
pathy with this perspective but recognise that debates about ‘whether
Another random document with
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 CHAPTER XI.
CHANGE OF AIR AND SCENE.

Mr. Jessop duly arrived, and found, to his amazement, that his fish
and fruit had been forestalled; and there were other and yet greater
surprises in store for him.
He listened to Madeline’s plainly told tale, with his glass rigidly
screwed into his eye, his mouth pinched up as if he had an unusually
intricate “case” under his consideration.
He never once interrupted her, until she brought her recital to an
end, and she, in the heat and haste of her narrative, had permitted
him to know more of their poverty than he had dreamt of.
The Wynnes were as proud as they were poor; the extremity of
their straits was kept for their own exclusive experience. Mr. Jessop
gave an involuntary little gasp as he listened to the revelation about
the pawnbroker, the history of the miniature, and medals, and rings.
“By the way, I am going to redeem them the first thing to-morrow!”
said Madeline hurriedly.
“No, no, no, my dear Mrs. Wynne; such places for you are simply
out of the question. I will go,” protested Mr. Jessop, who had never
been inside such an institution in his life.
“No, certainly not; they know me quite well at Cohen’s, and you
are a stranger. I don’t mind one bit, as it will be for the last time; and
why should it be more out of the question now, than yesterday?
Does money make such a difference in a few hours?” (Money
sometimes makes a difference in a few minutes.)
 On the whole, Mr. Jessop approved. The scheme was rash,
romantic, risky; but it was the only plan he could see for the present.
Mrs. Wynne must take her father in hand, and talk him over. “He
did not think she would have much trouble,” he added consolingly, as
he looked at her pretty, animated face; and he told himself that the
old fellow must have indeed a rocky heart if he could resist that. And
now for business, for action, for a council of war.
In a quarter of an hour it was all settled, so unanimous were
Madeline and Mr. Jessop.
A great doctor, whose speciality was low fever, was to be
summoned the next morning. If he consented, Mr. Jessop was to
come in the afternoon with a very, very easy brougham, and take the
invalid at once to Waterloo station, and by rail and carriage to a farm
house that he knew of, about fifty miles from London, where there
was pure air, pure milk, and every incentive to health. The baby and
Madeline were to follow the next day, after everything had been
packed up and stored with Mrs. Kane, who was now amenable to
anything, and amiable to imbecility.
The prescribed journey did take place by luxurious and easy
stages, and actually the next night Mr. Wynne passed under the red-
tiled roof of the farm in Hampshire. He was worn out by fatigue, and
slept well—slept till the crowing of the cocks and the lowing of the
cows had announced, long previously, that the day was commenced
for them. He sat in a lattice-paned sitting-room, looking into a sunny
old-fashioned garden (filled in summer with hollyhocks, sunflowers,
roses, and lavender, and many sweet-scented flowers well beloved
of bees), and felt better already, and made an excellent early dinner,
although his portly hostess declared, as she carried the dishes into
the kitchen, “that the poor sick gentleman—and ay, deary me, he do
look bad—had no more appetite than a canary!”
The sick gentleman’s wife and baby appeared on the scene in the
course of the afternoon, “a rare tall, pretty young lady she were,”
quoth the farm folk. A country girl took charge of the infant, who, as
long as he had plenty of milk in his bottle, and that bottle in his
clutch, was fairly peaceable and contented with things in general;
and was much taken with Mrs. Holt’s cap frills, with her bright tin
dishes on the kitchen shelves, and with various other new and
strange objects.
Madeline was thankful to get into the peaceful country, with its
placid green fields and budding hedges; to live in Farmer Holt’s old
red-roofed house, with the clipped yew trees in the sunny garden,
and the big pool at the foot of it overshadowed by elder trees.
Thankful to enjoy this haven of rest, away from murky London, with
its roar of hurrying existence and deafening street traffic that never
seemed to cease, night or day, in the neighbourhood of Solferino
Place.
Here the lusty crowing of rival cocks, the lowing of cows, the noise
of the churn were the only sounds that broke a silence that was as
impressive as it was refreshing. All things have an end. Madeline’s
three weeks’ leave soon came to a conclusion; and she most
reluctantly tore herself away from the farm, the evening before she
was due at Harperton. How happy she was here! Why must she go?
Laurence was better, a great deal better. He walked in the garden,
leaning on her arm at first, then in the lanes with no support but his
stick. He was more hopeful, more like his former self—he was
actually engaged in tying flies for Farmer Holt, as Madeline watched
him wistfully, with her chin on her hand. She loved the farm itself—
the farmer’s wife (kind Mrs. Holt, with a heart to match her ample
person). The sweet little chickens, and ducks, and calves, and foals,
were all delightful to Madeline, who, active as ever, had helped to
feed the former, learned to make butter, to make griddle-cakes, to
milk, and was on foot from six in the morning until nine o’clock at
night, and had recovered the look of youth and well-being which had
so long been missing from her appearance.
The farmer himself was to drive her to the station in his dog-cart,
and she and Laurence strolled down the lane together to say a few
last words ere they parted—for how long?
Laurence was hopeful now, and Madeline was tearfully
despondent. He was recovering, and felt more self-reliance every
day. He would soon, please God, be back at work.
 “I don’t know what has come over me, Laurence,” said his wife, as
they came to the gate and a full stop. “I feel so low, so depressed,
something tells me that I shall not see you again for ages,” her eyes
filling with tears. “And I feel so nervous about meeting papa,” and her
lips quivered as she spoke.
“Nonsense, Maddie! you must never meet trouble half way. Your
father cannot but be pleased with you, and when you tell him about
me——”
“Oh, but I won’t, I dare not at first,” she interrupted hastily. “It all
comes back to me now. The days in that big house in Toorak, and
how I used to be afraid when I heard his voice in the entrance-hall—
his voice when he was angry. I used to run away and hide under a
bed!”
“Nevertheless you must tell him, all the same; you are not a child
now. And when you point out to him that his silence for two years
and a half left you to a certain extent your own mistress, and that
your unlucky marriage was the result of the reins being thrown on
your neck——”
“Now, Laurence!” putting her hand on his arm, “you know I won’t
listen to that; and if the worst comes to the worst, I can run away
again!”
“So you can; and I think in another fortnight I shall be fit for—for
harness. Jessop says——”
“If Mr. Jessop say anything so wicked, he and I will quarrel!”
exclaimed Madeline indignantly. “You are not to do anything for three
months; there is plenty of money left yet.”
“Yes; but, Maddie,” producing some notes, “you know you can’t
appear before your father like that,” pointing to her dress. “You will
need a couple of decent gowns; and I don’t think much of that hat.
You must take forty pounds, without any nonsense, you know.”
“No, I won’t,” pushing it away impatiently. “I don’t require it.”
“But you do, and must take it, and do as I desire you—goodness
knows it’s little enough! Promise me to spend every farthing on
yourself. You ought to be respectably dressed when you meet your
father. Where is your common sense? And naturally he will ask—
Where is the hundred pounds he gave you for new frocks?
Remember, Maddie, if he is very angry, you can always come back
to me”—kissing her. “And now that I am not so down on my luck, I
feel anxious to work for you, and the sooner the better; and the
sooner you return the better. Here is Holt,” as the farmer, driving a
slashing long-tailed colt, came quickly round the corner into view.
“He is driving that crazy four-year-old! I hope he will take care of you.
Mind you leave her there safely, farmer,” as his nimble wife climbed
up into the lofty dog-cart. “Good-bye, Maddie; be sure you write to-
morrow.” Stepping aside as they dashed through the gate, carried
forward by the impatient chestnut.
Madeline looked back, and waved her handkerchief. Yes, he was
still standing gazing after them, even when they had gone quite a
distance; finally she applied the handkerchief to her eyes.
“Now, don’t take on so, ma’am,” murmured the farmer, his eyes
fixed on the colt’s quivering ears. “We’ll take good care of him! He is
a real nice young gentleman; and as to baby, I don’t see how the
missus will ever part with him. You cheer up! Ain’t you a-going to
meet your father?”
“Yes, Mr. Holt,” she faltered; “but I may as well tell you that he has
not seen me for more than twelve years. He—I—we thought he was
dead. He does not know that I am married!”
“Oh, great gooseberries!” ejaculated her listener emphatically.
“What a taking he’ll be in!”
“No, and he is not to know just yet. I am Miss West, not Mrs.
Wynne, until I have paved the way. I’ve told your wife all about it; she
knows.”
“I don’t see what your father can have to say agin Mr. Wynne?”
said Holt stoutly. “He is a gentleman. The king himself is no more.”
“Ah, yes; but he has no money,” sighed Madeline.
“Maybe he has brains; and them does just as well. Don’t let your
father come between you—you know the Bible says, ‘As——’”
 “Mr. Holt!” she exclaimed, flushing indignantly, “do you think I
would ever desert Laurence? No, not for fifty fathers. No, not if my
father came all the way from London on his knees, would I ever give
up Laurence and baby, or forget them for one single hour!”
“Nay, I’m sure you wouldn’t, excuse me, ma’am. But, you see,
your father’s very rich, and you are just wonderful pretty, and when
the old gent—meaning no offence—has you living in a kind of
palace, with servants, and carriages and ’osses, and tricked out in
dress and jewels, and every one pushing and jostling one another to
tell you what a grand and beautiful lady you be—why, maybe, then
you won’t be so keen for coming back; you know it would be only
human nature—at least,” coolly correcting himself—“woman’s natur.”
“Well, Mr. Holt,” she returned rather stiffly, “time will tell. I cannot
say more than that,” unintentionally quoting from Mrs. Kane. “I know
myself that I shall come back, and soon. Remember,” stopping when
she had jumped down, and holding his bony hand tightly in both of
hers, “remember,” she repeated, looking up into his honest rugged
face, with dim and wistful eyes, “I leave them in your charge. Don’t
let Laurence overtire himself—don’t let him walk too far. Don’t let the
baby have a halfpenny to play with again—or the toasting-fork. And,
oh, I must go! Remember, above all, that I shall soon return.”
Exit Miss West, running to take her ticket and claim her luggage;
and Farmer Holt, fearing the effect of the train, for the first time, on
his rampant colt, prudently turned his head back towards the cool
green lanes without any dangerous delay.
 CHAPTER XII.
“SHE WILL DO!”

Madeline, having arrived in London, drove direct to No. 2, and

spent one more night under Mrs. Kane’s roof, where she was
received with open arms, and proudly shown a letter marked,
“Private and confidential,” and signed by the neat and respectable
signature of “Letitia Harper.”
“I answered her! Ay, my word, that I did!” cried Mrs. Kane
triumphantly. “She’ll not come poking her nose after you again. I
knew Miss West for a long time, I said, and nothing to her discredit.
She was a most excellent, reliable young lady—who kept herself to
herself: and should I mention as Miss Harper had kindly referred to
me? That wor a poser, I can tell you! Back came a letter telling me
on no account to say a word to Miss West, and enclosing a postal
order for ten shillings for my trouble! That was a rare joke! the
trouble was a pleasure. And how is Mr. Wynne? and how is the dear
baby?” continued Mrs. Kane, whose speech and affection were alike
at high tide.
It was evident to Madeline herself that she must get some new
clothes. She was not even wearing out the remains of her trousseau
—never having had one. What would her father say to her faded
cotton, and still more shabby serge? Even the eleven-and-ninepenny
hat was now passé. Knowing, as he did, too, that she had the means
to dress differently! She must spend money on her wardrobe without
delay. Accordingly, after breakfast, she sallied forth, and went to a
first-class establishment where a great sale was in its first frenzy.
Here, among a mob of well-dressed ladies, she struggled for
standing room, and waited for attendance, and saw dress after dress
on which she had set her heart snatched away and sold. After
patient endurance of heat, tempers, rudeness, and unblushing
selfishness, she secured the attention of a harassed girl, who
perhaps feeling that she was even such an one as herself, assisted
her to choose a neat covert coating, a tailor-made coat and skirt—a
model costume of crêpon, with immense sleeves and a profusion of
jet and black satin trimmings, also a black gauze evening gown—a
once-exquisite garment, but now shockingly tumbled by ruthless
hands, though it was a “Paris pattern.”
These, with a smart silk blouse, a picture hat, a cape, shoes,
handkerchiefs, veils, and gloves, swallowed up twenty-five pounds.
Then she returned with her parcels in a hansom, displayed the
contents (by request) to Mrs. Kane, and spent her evening in altering
the bodices and packing her trunk: it was not very full. It did not need
any one to come and sit on the top and press the lock together. Next
morning she was en route to Riverside, and that same evening in
Mrs. Harper’s arms!
Mrs. Harper and her daughter were delighted to see her. The
house was empty; the girls had gone home for the Easter holidays,
and they would be very cosy and comfortable. They asked many
veiled and clever questions anent her money. What had she done
with it? Surely she had not spent it all? How much was the tailor-
made? How much was the black? But she gave them no satisfactory
answer. That was her affair, and not in the bond!
Days passed, and yet no sign of Mr. West, and Mrs. Harper was
becoming a little impatient and irritable. Could he mean to disappear
for a second time? What was she to think?
Meanwhile Madeline wrote to the farm daily, posting the letters
herself. Here is one of them as a specimen:—
“My dear Laurence,
“No news yet. So glad to get your letters. I call for them
every day. It looks funny to see nothing but W. on the
envelope, but it would never do to put West, much less
Wynne. It makes me very happy to hear that you and baby
are getting on so well and are making the best of this lovely
weather. How I wish I was back with you—ten—fifty times a
day—strolling about the lanes and fields among the lambs
and primroses, instead of being cooped up here, in this hot,
dusty suburb. You must not do too much! How dare you walk
to the top of Brownwood Hill! It is just four times too far. How
could the Holts allow you to be so foolish? But I’m afraid you
don’t mind them. You ask what I am doing? I am trying hard to
make believe that I am Madeline West once more. Don’t be
shocked, my dear Laurence, but at times I succeed admirably,
especially when I sit down to an hour’s practising on the
schoolroom piano. I am getting up my music and singing
again, and working very hard, so that my father won’t be
disappointed as far as my voice is concerned. I have looked
over the new books that the girls had last half in the first class
—horrible essays and lectures and scientific articles—about
the glacial periods, and shooting stars, such as I abhor, and
you love; but I know that I ought to read up, for I am a
shameful ignoramus. I, however, enjoy rubbing up my French,
and have devoured several most delicious books by Gyp.
Miss Harper lent them to me. She said, now that I had left
school, I might read them. I asked her—just to see how she
would look—if she had any of Émile Zola’s. I had heard so
much of them. She nearly fainted, and said, ‘My dear, you
must never even mention that man’s name!’ I have learnt to
dress my hair in the new style. I’ve gone shopping with Miss
Harper. Altogether I’ve been very busy, and when I sit in my
old place at meal-times, and stare at the familiar wall-paper,
and familiar cups and saucers, and when I listen to the
Harpers’ well-known little sayings and turns of speech, when I
look out of the windows, or sit alone in the schoolroom, as I
used formerly to do in holiday times, I honestly declare that I
feel as if all about you was a dream, and that I cannot bring
myself to realize that I have ever left school at all. You see I
am naturally a very adaptable creature; I drop into a groove at
once, and accommodate myself to circumstances. For
instance, Mr. Holt said I was born to be a farmer’s wife! I have
lived here for so many, many years that I fall straight back into
my old place. Then I rouse up and go off to the post-office,
when the second post is due, and receive one of your
 welcome letters; and I know that I am not dreaming, but that I
am actually married. Oh, Laurence, I sometimes look at the
Harpers and say to myself—If they knew! I wish that this
waiting was over! I wish my father would come! This delay
makes me so nervous and so jumpy. It’s like sitting in a
dentist’s drawing-room! I sincerely hope that anticipation will
prove to be the worst part of the business. Miss Harper is
coming. I hear her heavy step! No—I breathe again. Only
fancy, she asked me yesterday, with one of her old sharp
looks, whom I was always writing to? and I was fortunate to
have so many friends—such wonderful correspondents! With
a kind of sneer, then, she said, ‘I’m going out, and I may as
well post your letter,’ but I need not tell you that I declined her
amiable offer, and posted it myself. You say that baby
screams at night, and must be consigned to an outhouse, if
he continues to make night hideous. How inhuman of you,
Laurence, to write such horrid things, even in joke! Do you
think he could possibly be missing me, or is this a foolish idea
with respect to an infant of five months old? Ask Mrs. Holt to
feel his gums. Perhaps it is a tooth? And now good-bye, with
many kisses to him, and kind remembrances to the Holts.
“I am, your loving wife,
“M. W.”
Very shortly after this letter was despatched Mrs. Harper received
a telegram from the agents to say that the Ophir was expected at
Plymouth the next afternoon.
What a fuss ensued, what rushing and running and packing, and
calling for twine and luggage labels, and leather straps and
sandwiches on the part of an excited spinster, who was enchanted at
the prospect of a jaunt down to Devonshire—all expenses paid.
Once fairly off, and away from her own familiar beat, she was little
better than a child. It was not Miss Harper who looked after
Madeline, but Madeline who took care of her. At every big station
she was seized with a panic, and called out, “Porter, where are we
now? How long do we stop? Do we change? Is the luggage all
right?” Her fussy flight to the refreshment-rooms, and frantic dashes
back to the carriage—usually the wrong one—was amusing to her
fellow-travellers, but not to Madeline; and, besides this, her shrill and
constant chatter about “your father,” “I do hope the Ophir won’t be
late,” “she is a splendid steamer, 10,000-horse power,” “and I hope
they have had a good passage,” made her former pupil feel a keen
desire to say something cross, knowing that Miss Harper imagined
that she was impressing the other inmates of the carriage, but in
reality was making herself supremely ridiculous.
Madeline was thankful when they were safely housed (luggage
and all) in the best hotel in Plymouth. Miss Harper had only forgotten
her umbrella in the train, and lost a considerable share of her temper
in consequence, but a good dinner and a good night’s rest made this
all right, and she wore a smiling face as she and her charge and
many other people went down the next morning to board the newly-
arrived Orient Liner Ophir.
To a stranger it was a most bewildering scene, and Miss Harper
and Madeline stared about them helplessly; but of course the new
arrivals were readily singled out by the passengers, and Mr. West
had no hesitation whatever in promptly selecting the prettiest girl
who had come up the side as his own daughter.
It would have been a severe blow to his penetration and self-
esteem had he been wrong, but it so happened that he was right.
And now, before introducing him to Madeline, let us pause and
take a little sketch of Robert West, millionaire, who had made
considerable capital out of the fact, and taken the lead socially
during the recent voyage, from whist and deck-quoits to the usual
complimentary letter to the captain. He is a man of fifty-five, or a little
more, short, spare, dapper, with a thin face, hair between fair and
grey, quick bright hazel eyes, a carefully trimmed short beard, and
waxed moustache. There are a good many deep wrinkles about his
eyes, and when he raises his cap he no longer looks (as he does
otherwise, and at a short distance) a man of five and thirty, but his
full age, for we perceive that his head is as bald as a billiard ball.
(N.B.—His photographs are invariably taken in his hat.) He is
dressed in the most approved manner, and by the best tailor in
Melbourne; a fat little nugget hangs from his watch-chain; a
perennial smile adorns his face, although he has a singularly hard
and suspicious eye. His history and antecedents may be summed up
in a few sentences: His father, an English yeoman of a respectable
old stock, committed forgery, and was transported to Port Philip in
1823; he got a ticket-of-leave, acquired land, squatted, married in
Port Philip, now Victoria. His success was fitful, owing to drought,
scab, and the many other evils to which an Australian settler is heir.
However, he gave his son a fairly good education in England. He
desired him to make a figure as a gentleman. To this end he pinched
and struggled and scraped, and finally sent Robert down to
Melbourne with a certain sum of money, and a stern determination to
grapple with and conquer fortune. Privately Robert despised his
horny-handed old father, the ex-convict. He hated a squatter’s life—
loathed dingoes, dampers, buck-jumpers, and wool, and he soon fell
into a comfortable berth in a land-agent’s office, and being steady,
capable, hard-headed (and hard-hearted), prospered rapidly; in his
young days everything in Melbourne was of Tropical growth.
He married a veritable hot-house flower—his employer’s only
daughter—a pretty, indolent, excitable, extravagant creature, with
French blood in her veins, who carried him up a dozen rungs of the
social ladder, and brought him a fortune. Her house—in Toorak—her
splendid dresses, entertainments, and equipages were the talk and
envy of her neighbours and sex; she was in with the Government
House set, and she lived in an incessant round of gaiety, a truly
brilliant butterfly.
After six years of married life, she died of consumption; and her
widower was not inconsolable. He kept on the big house, he
frequented his club, he heaped up riches, he gambled with
selections as others do with cards; he was not behind-hand in the
great land boom which led to that saturnalia of wild speculation
which demoralized the entire community. Suburban lands were
forced up to enormous prices—a thousand times their value; people
bought properties in the morning and sold them in the afternoon at
an advance of thousands of pounds. New suburbs, new banks, new
tenements sprang up like mushrooms, under the influence of
adventurous building societies, and every one was making an
enormous fortune—on paper.
When the gigantic bubble burst, the consequences were terrible,
involving the ruin of thousands. Robert West had seen that the crash
must come, but believed that he would escape. He tempted fortune
too rashly. Just a few more thousands, and he would sell out; but his
greed was his bane. He had not time to stand from under when the
whole card house toppled over and his fortunes fell.
He was left almost penniless: the banks had collapsed, land and
estate was unsaleable. He was at his wits’ end. He seriously
contemplated suicide, but after all decided to see the thing out—that
is, his own life. He went to Sydney; he kept his head above water; he
looked about keenly for a plank of security, and providence—luck—
threw him one. Land he had taken with grumbling reluctance as part
payment of an ancient debt—land he had never been within five
hundred miles of—proved to be a portion of the celebrated Waikatoo
gold mines. He was figuratively and literally on the spot at once; his
old trade stood to him. He traded, and sold, and realized, keeping a
certain number of shares, and then turned his back on greater Britain
for ever, intending to enjoy life, and to end his days in Britain the
less. Money was his dear and respected friend; he loved it with every
fibre of his little shrivelled heart. Ambition was his ruling passion, and
rank his idol. To rank he would abase himself, and grovel in the
gutter; to rank he intends to be allied before he is much older—if not
in his own proper person, he will at least be the father-in-law of a
peer. Money for the attainment of this honour was no object; and as
his sharp, eager eyes fell on the pretty frightened face that was
looking diffidently round the many groups standing on the deck of the
steamer, he told himself, with a thrill of ecstasy, “That if that girl in the
black hat is Madeline—by Jove! she will do!”
 CHAPTER XIII.
MR. WEST’S WISHES.

Standing close to Mr. West—or, rather, Mr. West had attached

himself to him—was his favourite fellow-traveller, a young and
somewhat impecunious nobleman—Lord Anthony Foster—the son of
a duke, whose pedigree was much longer than his purse, and one of
a large family. Most of this family were already established in life,
and had repaired their shattered fortunes by a prudent and wealthy
marriage; but Lord Tony, as he was called, preferred his liberty. He
was fond of sport and travelling, and was postponing the evil day (as
he considered it) which, alas! must sooner or later overtake him, for
his private fortune was small. His elder brother, the present duke,
was close-fisted, and his personal expenses, do as he would,
invariably exceeded his expectations—it is a little way they have with
many people—and although he had no extravagant tastes (so he
declared), yet he was liberal, and liked to “do things comfortably.” In
his appearance no one would suspect that the blood of a hundred
earls ran in his veins; in fact (low be it whispered), he was a rather
common-looking young man—short, square, with a turned-up nose,
wide nostrils, a wide mouth, and a faint light moustache; his
complexion was tanned to mahogany, but a pair of merry blue eyes,
and an open, good-humoured countenance made up for many
deficiencies. He was not a ladies’ man, but popular with men; not at
all clever, but ever ready to laugh at other folk’s good things, and his
own mistakes—shrewd enough, too; a capital shot, an untiring
angler, an enterprising traveller, and, according to his own account,
an unparalleled sleeper. He had no profession, no ties, no landed
estates to look after—the world was his landed estate—and he was
now returning from a long tour of inspection in Japan and Australia.
Lord Tony had met Mr. West in Sydney society, and Mr. West had
taken an immense fancy to him, and had privately arranged the date
of his own departure so as to secure the young lord as a fellow-
passenger. He had also shared his cabin. In this unaffected young
man, with a pleasant, hearty manner, and a large connection in the
peerage, he saw a link to upper circles, and a ready ladder for his
nimble and ambitious foot.
Mr. West was determined to get into society, to enjoy his money, to
be in the swim, and to make a splash! He had obtained one or two
good introductions to merchant princes, and he had cemented a fast
friendship with Lord Tony. Friendships grow quickly at sea, though
these same friendships frequently languish and fade on shore. He
had frequently and pointedly alluded to “his only child,” “his
daughter,” “his little heiress;” he had displayed with pride the
photograph of a very charming girl in her early teens; he had thrown
out hints, that if she married to please him—a nice, unaffected, well-
connected young fellow, who would give her a coronet on her
handkerchief—the money to spend and keep up her position would
be his affair.
Lord Tony’s married brothers and sisters were continually and
clamorously urging heiresses upon his notice; it was “his only
chance,” they assured him. “He must marry money.” If this pretty girl
now speaking to West, with visible trepidation and becomingly
heightened colour, was the heiress he was always swaggering about
and dragging into his conversation, Lord Tony told himself, as he
took his cigarette out of his mouth and blew away a cloud of smoke,
“that, by George! he might do worse.” And so he might. Presently he
was formally introduced to the young lady and her companion, and
Mr. West, who was metaphorically carried off his feet by Madeline’s
unexpected grace, was in a condition of rampant satisfaction. She
would go down. She would take anywhere; and actually, for a few
lofty seconds, he scorned a mere lord, and saw a wreath of
strawberry leaves resting on her pretty dark hair.
Miss Harper was not slow to read the signs of the times—to
interpret the expression of the millionaire’s growing complacency: he
found Madeline prettier than he had anticipated; he was greatly
pleased; and she immediately improved the occasion, and
murmured a few well-timed words into his ear about “dearest
Madeline’s air of distinction, her exquisitely shaped head, her
vivacity, her remarkable beauty; fitted to adorn any sphere; always a
favourite pupil; a most accomplished, popular girl;” whilst Madeline
gravely answered Lord Anthony’s blunt questions. He was the first
lord she had ever spoken to, and as far as she could judge, neither
formidable nor imposing.
After a little she found herself being led up and presented to the
captain and to several of the passengers, with a look and tone that
told even Madeline, who had a very humble opinion of herself, that
her father was exceedingly proud of her!
Oh, if he would only be kind—only be good to her! if her pretty
face, that he appeared to value so much, would but open the door of
his heart, and admit her and Laurence and his grandchild! But it
would not. Do not think it, simple Madeline; it will only admit you in
company with a peer of the realm.
After much fuss and bustle, Mr. West and his party disembarked.
Never in all her life had Madeline been so much stared at. And she
was not merely looked at curiously—as a pretty girl who had never
seen her father since she was a child—she was doubly interesting
as a great heiress, and a very marketable young person. She was
not sorry to make her escape, and was conducted down the
gangway in a kind of triumphal procession, led by her exultant
parent, her arm on his, whilst Miss Harper followed, leaning on Lord
Anthony—who was to be Mr. West’s guest at his hotel—and I have
no hesitation in affirming that this was the happiest moment of Miss
Harper’s life, if it was not that of her pupil’s (as to this latter I cannot
speak with certainty). Arm-in-arm with a lord! What would people say
at home when she went back? Her heart already beat high with
anticipation of the sensation she would produce upon the minds of
her particular circle. If one of them could only see her! But there is
always an “if.”
Mr. West was rather indisposed after his voyage. He could not
sleep, he declared; he missed the engines; and he remained at
Plymouth for a few days. So did Lord Anthony, who was in no
particular hurry. Miss Harper had reluctantly taken leave, and
returned to Harperton, endowed with a valuable present “for all her
kindness to Madeline,” quoth Mr. West, as he presented it with
considerable pomp, and this offering she graciously and modestly
accepted—yes, without the quivering of an eyelid, much less the
ghost of a blush! Perhaps, so crooked are some people’s ideas, she
had brought herself to believe that she had been kind to Madeline—
and, indeed, she had never been as hard as Miss Selina. She would
have liked to have remained at this luxurious hotel a few days longer.
Everything was done en prince. A carriage and pair, a really smart
turn-out (cockades and all), took them for a delightful drive. There
were excursions to Mount Edgecumbe, promenades on the Hoe.
Plymouth was gay, the weather was magnificent, Lord Anthony
Foster of the party—and so amusing! Miss Harper was easily
amused—sometimes. She threw out one or two hints to Mr. West to
the effect that she was excessively comfortable, that this little visit
was quite too delightful—an oasis in her existence; that mamma was
not lonely—in short, that she dreaded parting with her dearest pupil;
but nevertheless she had to go. Mr. West was ruthless, he was blunt;
he was, moreover, wonderfully keen at interpreting other people’s
motives. He perfectly understood Miss Harper. She was, no doubt,
very much at her ease; but he owed her nothing. She had been
amply paid; she had had his girl for twelve years, and could afford to
part with her young charge.
Moreover, Miss Harper did not belong to the class of people he
particularly wished to cultivate—that was sufficient—and he smilingly
sped the parting guest, after a four days’ visit. During those four days
Madeline had been installed as mistress of her father’s
establishment, and was endeavouring to accustom herself to her
new rôle. Everything was deferred to her, the ordering of dinner, the
ordering of carriages, and of various items that meant a considerable
outlay. She took up her position at once with a composure that
astonished her school-mistress. She stared at Madeline in
amazement, as she sat at the head of the table in her new black
gauze, and comported herself as though she had occupied the post
for years.
 In about a week’s time, the Wests (still accompanied by Lord
Anthony) went to London, staying at the Métropole Hotel; and here
Mr. West, who was a brisk man of action, and resolved to lose not an
hour in enjoying his money and realizing his plans, set about house-
hunting, con amore, assuring delighted house agents that price was
no consideration—what he sought was size, style, and situation.
Under these favourable circumstances, he soon discovered what
he required. A superb mansion in Belgrave Square, with large suites
of reception rooms, twenty bedrooms, hot and cold water, electric
light, speaking-tubes, stabling for twelve horses, and, in short, to
quote the advertisement, “with everything desirable for a nobleman’s
or gentleman’s family.” It had just been vacated by a marquis, which
made it still more desirable to Mr. West. If not near the rose, the rose
had lived there! Indeed, to tell the happy truth, a duke resided next
door, and an ambassador round the corner. So far so good. The next
thing was to be neighbourly. Then there was the business of
furnishing—of course regardless of cost. Days and days were spent,
selecting, measuring, matching, and discussing at one of the most
fashionable upholsterers in town, and the result was most
satisfactory, most magnificent, and most expensive. There was a
dining-room hung with ancestors—Charles Surface’s, perhaps—but
certainly not Mr. West’s. A full-length portrait of his father in prison
dress would have been a startling novelty; there was an ante-room in
turquoise blue, a drawing-room in yellow and white, and a boudoir in
rose and pearl-colour brocade. Of the delights of these apartments,
of the paintings, statuary, bronzes, and Chinese curios, of the old
silver and china and ivory work, and pianos and Persian carpets, it
would take a book to catalogue.
As for Madeline, accustomed, as we know, to four Windsor chairs,
two tables, a shabby rag of Kidderminster carpet, and a horsehair
sofa with a lame leg, her brain was giddy as she endeavoured to
realize that she was to be mistress of these treasures, and to preside
over this palatial establishment. Carriages and horses found places
in stables and coach-houses; a troop of well-trained servants
populated the house. There was a stately lady housekeeper, a
French chef, a French maid for Madeline, three footmen in mulberry
and silver buttons, and a butler whom one might have mistaken for a
dean, and whose deportment and dignity were of such proportions
as to overawe all timid natures, and of very high value in his master’s
eyes.
Madeline shrank from her lady’s maid, but she was a necessity—
noblesse oblige. She did not wish the sharp-eyed Parisienne to spy
out the nakedness of the land, as far as her own wardrobe was
concerned, and was at many a shift to postpone her arrival until she
had garments more befitting her background and her father’s purse.
Indeed he had not been pleased with her gowns, “they looked
cheap,” he had remarked with a frown.
“Is that all you have, Madeline, that black thing?” he asked rather
querulously one evening, as they stood in the drawing-room awaiting
Lord Anthony, and a friend.
“Yes, papa; and it is nearly new,” she said in a tone of deprecation.
“It does very well for the present, and I must wear it out.”
“Wear out! Stuff and nonsense!” irritably. “One would think you had
a shingle loose. I really sometimes fancy, when I hear you talking of
the price of this and that, and so on, and economy, that you have
known what it is to be poor—poor as Job! Whereas, by George! you
have never known what it is to want for a single thing ever since you
were born. You have as much idea of poverty as your prize black
poodle has!”
Had she? Had she not known what it was to frequent pawnshops,
to battle with wolfish want, to experience not merely the pleasures of
a healthy appetite, but the actual pangs of painful hunger. Oh, had
she not known what it was to be poor! She gave a little half-choked
nervous laugh, and carefully avoided her father’s interrogative eyes.
“I’ll give you a cheque to-morrow,” he resumed, “and do go to
some good dressmaker, and get yourself some smart clothes. Lady
Rachel, Lord Tony’s sister, is going to call, ask her to take you to
some first-class place, and choose half a dozen gowns. I really mean
it; and put this thing,” flicking her fifty-shilling costume with a
contemptuous finger and thumb, “behind the fire. You are not like
your mother; she made the money fly. However, she was always well
turned out. I don’t want you to ruin me; but there is a medium in all
things. What is the good of a daughter who is a beauty if she won’t
set herself off?”
“Do you really think me pretty, father?” she asked, rather timidly.
“Why, of course I do! We shall have you setting the fashions and
figuring in the papers, and painted full life-size, when you have more
assurance, and know how to make the most of yourself. Remember
this,” now giving his collar a chuck, and speaking with sudden
gravity, “that when you marry”—Madeline blushed—“when you
marry, I say,” noticing this blush, “you must go into the peerage,
nothing else would suit me, never forget that. Now that you know my
views, there can be no misunderstandings later on. Never send a
commoner to ask for my consent.”
“But, father,” she ventured boldly, now raising her eyes to his, that
surveyed her like two little fiery brown beads, “supposing that I loved
a poor man, what then? How would it be then?”
“Folly!” he almost yelled. “Poor man. Poor devil! Love! rot and
nonsense, bred from reading trashy novels. Love a poor man! Do
you want to drive me mad? Never mention it, never think of it, if I am
to keep my senses.” And he began to pace about.
“But,” she answered resolutely, pressing her fan very hard into the
palm of her trembling hand, “supposing that I did? Why should I not?
—you married my mother for love.”
“Not a bit of it,” he rejoined emphatically, “I liked her, admired her;
she was very pretty, and had blue blood—foreign blood—in her
veins, but she was a good match. She had a fine fortune, she was in
the best set. Her father took me into partnership. I was a rising man
—and—er—I know all about love; I have been through the mill! Ha,
ha, it’s bad while it lasts, but it does not last! The woman I loved was
a little girl from Tasmania, without a copper. She tempted me
mightily, but I knew I might just as well cut my throat at once. No, I
married for good and sensible reasons, and one word will do as well
as ten. If you ever make a low marriage, a love match with a pauper,