Decoding Decentralisation: The Marketing of Urban Local Power?

Abstract

Local decentralisation-to urban neighbourhood level-has become commonly projected as an important component of urban restructuring, and in particular of new modes of urban governance. This ubiquity is founded on the mythical qualities of decentralisation. Focusing on the discursive strategies employed by two urban Scottish local authorities, this paper shows how local decentralisation can become commodified as both a good and as 'good practice'. Analysis of the texts used to advocate local decentralisation identifies the language through which the marketing of power is conveyed.