{"product_id":"the-myth-of-treasury-control-david-richards-9780198937753","title":"The Myth of Treasury Control: Public Spending in an Incoherent State","description":"In an era of fiscal constraint, rising public demand, and fragmented governance, the UK's approach to public spending is under unprecedented strain. At the centre of this system sits HM Treasury, long regarded as the most powerful department in British government yet questioned for its ability to deliver effective financial control in an increasingly complex and fragmented policy landscape. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis book offers a bold and timely reassessment of the Treasury's role in shaping the UK's public finances over the last thirty years. Drawing on over 150 interviews with senior officials, policymakers, and frontline practitioners, it reveals how the Treasury's traditional model of top-down control has failed to adapt to the realities of modern governance over the last three decades. Through detailed case studies of prisons, special educational needs, and homelessness, the authors expose the systemic consequences of short-termism, siloed budgeting, inadequate evaluation, centralised performance budgeting, and accountability deficits that undermine both fiscal sustainability and public service outcomes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e David Richards,Sam Warner,Diane Coyle\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 019893775X\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780198937753\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/16\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 384\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover","brand":"David Richards","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48874576675071,"sku":"9780198937753","price":165.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-myth-of-treasury-control-david-richards-9780198937753","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}