Political control and coordination in the area of New Public Management

Most OECD countries have implemented New Public Management (NPM) reforms. The objective of the reforms is a more cost-efficient public sector. Research and empirical experience indicate, however, that fragmentation and undermining of political control and coordination are significant side effects of the reforms. This report presents the theories underpinning NPM and some Norwegian and international academic discussions of their effects on policy coordination and coherence. General reform trends and examples from the transport sector are presented and discussed in relation to strategic and holisitc planning, cross sector coordination and political coherence in the Norwegian national transport planning system.