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Big Society as big government: Cameron’s governmentality agenda
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-09, 04:00 authored by Bal Sokhi-BulleyBal Sokhi-Bulley, Dan BulleyCameron’s flagship policy of the ‘Big Society’ rests on a society/government dichotomy, diagnosing a ‘broken society’ caused by ‘big government’ having assumed the role communities once played. The remedy is greater social responsibility and the ‘Big Society’. This article argues that the dichotomy is deceptive. We aim to show that the Big Society is big government, as it employs techniques for managing the conduct of individuals and communities such that the mentality of government, far from being removed or reduced, is bettered and made more efficient. To illustrate this, we explore two major initiatives: the National Citizen Service and the Community Resilience programme. These projects demonstrate how practices of informing and guiding the conduct of individuals both produce agents and normalise certain values, resulting in the population being better known and controlled. Thus, far from lessening government and empowering people, the Big Society extends governmen- tality throughout the social body.
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Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Accepted version
Journal
British Journal of Politics and International RelationsISSN
1369-1481Publisher
SAGE PublicationsExternal DOI
Issue
3Volume
16Page range
452-470Department affiliated with
- Law Publications
Full text available
- No
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2016-11-14First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2016-11-13Usage metrics
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