Example British politics dissertation topic 4:

‘A bulwark against effective regionalism’ – a discussion of the place of county councils within English local government.

The present administrative county councils of England date back to the Local Government Act of 1888. Though they have been altered (notably in the 1974 Local Government Act), with some being abolished and thereafter restored (for example, Rutland), they have, as an instrument of local governance remained virtually unaltered (in size) for over 100 years. In contrast, urban and rural district councils, municipal boroughs and non-municipal boroughs along with single tier governments for conurbations have come and gone; to be replaced by, amongst other forms, district and borough councils. Given the plethora of innovations within the lower tier of regional government and the continued failure to establish convenient and elected regional bodies across England, this dissertation asks how county councils have managed to maintain their position within local government for so long when so much around them has altered.

Suggested initial topic reading:

• Elcock, H., Fenwick, J. and McMillan, J. (2010) ‘The reorganization addiction in local government: Unitary councils for England’, Public Money & Management, Vol. 30(6), pp. 331-338.
• Leach, S. and Game, C. (1991) ‘English metropolitan government since abolition: An evaluation of the abolition of the English metropolitan county councils’, Public Administration, Vol. 69(2), pp. 141-170.