Representing territorial diversity: the role of local government associations

“This paper argues that local government associations (LGAs) form a key element in central–local relations. They contribute towards defending local discretion through their three roles: as the collective voices of local authorities; as countervailing public-interest groups; and as feedback mechanisms for central government actors.”

LGAs are understood as hybrid organizations and their role and influence analyzed in terms of (1) their relationship with central government; (2) their capacity to manage the dilemmas of collectively representing territorial heterogeneity; and (3) the extent of competition from other political and functional interests. These roles are studied by comparing LGAs in England, Germany and the Netherlands.

Published in Regional Studies | Dennis de Widt | 2018, https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Representing-territorial-diversity%3A-the-role-of-Widt-Laffin/81e5df74d34d732c387515b77de888041b6d8e75, https://consensus.app/details/this-paper-argues-government-associations-lgas-form-widt/e85e94c18121518c9be972eb7c4faa92/