jonathan craft (University of Toronto)
Centres of government are unquestionably important to the governance of modern states. They uniquely set and coordinate government policy agendas and perform various crucial whole-of-government functions including budgeting, decision making, communicating, and the coordination of policy and financial management. Yet, protracted debates on centralization of power in Canada and elsewhere have overshadowed other important lines of inquiry related to how centres of government undertake their work. How are they organized, operated, and reformed – and with what consequences for effective democratic governance? Drawing from Westminster style country cases this paper revisits traditional approaches to the study of centres of government and examines important variation and contemporary developments linked to these key critical sites of governance.