SOPY 3085

Policy Processes and Politics

Lecture 5
Implementation of Policies

1 March 2019

Dr. CHAN Bing-Kwan

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 1
1. What is implementation?
1.1 Definition
Implementation is the process by which policies enacted by the
government are put into effect by the relevant agencies.

In other words, implementation is the process of carrying out policies.

1.2 Who are the agencies of implementation?

• Policies are often implemented by the administration, including the civil
servants and administrative officials at various levels who deliver and
manage the necessary actions.
e.g. police officers, government clerks, etc.
• In some cases, however, quasi-government & non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) are involved in implementation activities.
e.g. non-government social service organizations, contractors of
cleaning service, etc.

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 2

Birkland 2010: 263-4; Howlett et al 2009: 160-1
2. Why study policy implementation?

For researchers:
• Implementation studies provides researchers a better understanding
of policy processes which demonstrate not only how policy is
carried out but also how political actors at various levels interact
with one another.

For policymakers:
• Implementation studies provides advice to policymakers as to learn
about a better way to design policies which can be implemented to
achieve the effects that the policy designers desire.

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 3

Howlett et al 2009: 160-1
3. How to study policy implementation?
3.1 Why perfect implementation is unattainable
Obstacles to implementation are outside the control of administration.
The unexpected sudden change in physical or political environment create
obstacles to policy implement.
Physical obstacles:
E.g. Climate change and new disease (such as SARS).
Political obstacles:
E.g. Sudden change in public opinion become the obstacle to the
implementation of national education policy.

Too much is expected too soon.

e.g. people expect the resolve the problems poverty in a short period.

Failure in providing or managing combination of resources required at each

stage in implementation process.
e.g. man power, money, land, equipment, etc.
前年造成九人死亡的旺角花園街大火，死因庭聆訊繼續，兩名消防人員作供講述救人經過
，又指當時資源不足，令他們無法逐層搜救…(TVB News, 2013 Mar 4)

…前年落成的天水圍醫院同樣多層未啟用，原本承諾急症室去年第四季可以開十二小時，但至
今只能提供八小時服務。有立法會議員批評政府未做好人手配套規劃，食物及衛生局局長陳肇
始則承認醫管局人手緊張。 (i-Cable.com, 2018 Jan 1)
SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 4
Hogwood and Gunn 1984:198-206
3.1 Why perfect implementation is unattainable (Cont.)
Inadequate understanding of a problem, its causes, its nature, and what is
need to resolve it.
金管局早前預告，會視乎市場情況推出逆周期措施調控樓市，中原集團創辦人施
永青批評是「斷錯症、落錯藥」。他指，樓價急升並非出現泡沫，而是供不應求，
增加供應才能紓緩樓價升勢。(am730, 24 May 2012)

The intervening links among causes and effects.

The effects of new policy create other problems (i.e. side effect of policy).
徵SSD後 投資者大炒商舖 (HKET, 14 Apr 2012)

Dependency relationships and disagreements among agencies of

implementation. 地皮頻流標 2萬供應未達標 (HKET, 5 Apr 2013)

Disagreements of the objectives of policy:

地產代理萬人瀕失業
Some groups agree the objective of the 政府早前突然決定向住宅物業交易加徵5%至
policy while some do not. As a result, the 15%「額外印花稅」，又收緊按揭成數…措
opponents always highlight the negative 施即時令二手物業成交大幅急降，地產代理
impact of the policy. 生意顯著萎縮，代表近八成地產代理從業員
的五大地產代理商會指政府亂投「重藥」，
Poor communication & coordination 對樓市問題治標不治本…擔心最終會導致超
among participants. 過三成從業員及後勤員工，佔近1萬人會失
業…(Oriental Daily, 30 Nov 2010)
SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 5
Hogwood and Gunn 1984:198-206
3.2 Theoretical way to study policy implementation

• Who are the policy formulators?

• Who are the decision makers?
• Who are the implementers?
• If they are not the same group of actors, who have more power?

Hill 2013: 207-8

Two classical approach to answer these questions?

• Top-down approach
• Bottom-up approach

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 6

4.Top-down Approach
4.1 Definition
• It is an approach to study policy implementation that considers the
goals of the top-level policy designers, and traces the design and
implementation of policy through the lowest-level implementers.
• In other words, this approach is based on the assumption of stage
model in which there is a clear distinction between policy formulation
and implementation. It also assumes that actions of implementers are
directed by objectives decided in prior stage of policy (policy
formulation).

4.2 Key assumptions

Descriptive assumption:
• Decision are made at the top level (central government or legislature)
and carried out at the bottom (by implementing organizations)

Prescriptive assumption:
• Decision should be made at the top and carried out at the bottom.

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 7

Birkland 2010: 265-6
4.3 Other key assumptions of top-down approach

• Policies contain clearly and consistently • The only goal is to cool down the
defined goals against which performance property market.
can be measured.
• Policies contain clearly defined policy • Introducing new taxes and others
tools (policy instruments).
• New law is proposed by the
• There is a single authoritative statement government and is passed by the
of policy LegCo.
• There is an implementation chain that
starts with the message at the top, and • The government designs the new
sees implementation as occurring in a policy and all organizations at
chain. In other words, there is a lower levels, such as the
sequence of policy stage. Monetary Authority, developers,
banks and property agents will
• Policy designers have good knowledge
take appropriate actions to
needed to effectively implement policies, implement the policy.
including:
•Policy implementers’ availability of • The top-level of government
resource knows how far the implementers
•Policy implementers’ desire to carry can implement the new policy
the goals of the top-level policy and all implementers are willing
designers. to implement the new policy.

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 8

Birkland 2010: 265-6
4.4 Criticisms of top-down approach
• Clear goals of policy do not always exist. Sometimes there is no
consensus on the goals as different parties have different goals.
• It is questionable to assume that there is a single authority that can
successfully structure and direct policy implementation. In most cases,
however, most policy made by the central government requires local
governments’ cooperation. Similarly, policy made by a local government
also relies on the cooperation of other public and private agencies.
• Policy usually contains a wide collection of separate and sometimes
contradictory programs. e.g. free economy vs. housing policy

觀塘重建流標 標價遠遜下限
涉1700伙 市建局9月捲土重來
市建局歷來最大重建項目觀塘市中心第2、
3期發展區，宣布流標收場…接近市建局消
息人士向本報透露，是次參與入標的發展
商出價極審慎，個別出價甚至遠低於招標
條款下限80億元，令當局無法接受。港府
原計劃本財年首季(即4至6月)推地供應量為
3200伙，如今涉及1700伙的觀塘重建觸礁
，意味首季度達標率不足一半，要趕上今
年1.88萬伙的供應目標有一定壓力。
Ming Pao, 30 July 2014
SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 9
Birkland 2010: 265-6
5. Bottom-up approach
5.1 Definition
Bottom-up approach, or “backward mapping” is a way to study policy
design and implementation that considers the abilities and motivations
of the lowest-level implementers, and tracks policy design from that
level to highest level of government. (Birkland 2012: 268)
5.2 Key assumptions
• Goals are ambiguous rather than well-defined.
• Goals may conflict not only with other goals in the same policy area,
but also with the norms and motivations of implementers. Thus,
implementation can be considered to be the continuation of conflicts
and compromises throughout the policy process.
• Groups are active participants in the implementation process.

Descriptive assumption:
• Thus, decision and implementation are the continuation of conflicts and
compromises among groups at various levels throughout the policy
process.
Prescriptive assumption:
• Decision should be made by compromises among various groups from
the top to the bottom-level of political actors involved.
SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 10
Birkland 2012: 268-9
5.3 Criticisms of bottom-up approach

• Bottom-up approach overemphasizes that ability of the implementers but

downplays the goals of the top policy makers. Actually, implementers such
as civil servants are constrained to act in a particular way based on the legal
status, code of practices and professional norms, etc.

• Not all groups are active participants in implementation process. There are
actually power differences of groups. Those, including implementers and
target population, with greater power can have greater influence on policy.

How powerful are the civil servants

公務員最不滿政府施政
政界一直盛傳特首梁振英和公務員合作不咬弦，浸大一項研究更顯示
官校教師起義
，原來在公務員、公營機構及私營機構僱員中，公務員是對梁振英政
府施政表現最不滿的一群…
促暫緩推國民教育
政府學校教師協會昨晚發
表聲明，批評設立推行國
結果發現，76%受訪公務員認為現時政府制訂政策不公，比例高於在
民教育科諮詢工作不足，
公營機構和私營機構工作的受訪者；62%人受訪公務員不滿政府表現
要求局方暫緩推行，否則
…公務員工會聯合會主席梁籌庭指，公務員站在前線執行政策，相當
在現時紛亂局勢下，必定
清楚政策的優劣：「有時都會無奈，明知啲政策落到地，係唔適用於
無法成事。
廣大市民。」他指以往制訂政策者是公務員，如今是政策局，但奈何
Apple Daily, 28 July 2012
部份政策局「外行領導內行」，政策弊病叢生，但公務員只能硬着頭
皮執行：「所以成班同事一坐低，大家就會大吐苦水。」
SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 11
Apple Daily 4 June 2013 Birkland 2012: 268-9
6. Insights
6.1 Variation of administrative structure across states and policy areas
• Implementation involves complex inter-organizational interactions
among groups with different interests and different structure.
• In this case, it is necessary to study the variations in administrative
systems across different states and different policy areas.

• In some states, power is relatively centralized in the central

government or its departments (e.g. North Korea). In this case, top-
down is relatively applicable, though bottom-up approach should
be taken into account.
• In contrast, since the rise of the New Right in the 1980s, most
western states have decentralized their power to various agencies.
In this case, bottom-up approach is useful while the governments
still play a key role in managing policy.

• In the US, military policy is highly controlled by the White House,

State Department and the Pentagon.
• However, other social policies rely on numerical public and private
agencies.

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 12

6.2 Towards a mixed approach
Both top-down and bottom-up approaches have their own strengths
and weaknesses.

• Top-down approach highlights the goals of top-level policy

makers but downplay the role of the lower-level agencies.
• Bottom-up approach focuses on the interactions among the
agencies and policy designers. However, the power difference
of agencies may be over-estimated and over-simplified.

Mixed approaches, with triangulation between these two approaches

can be applied.

• Both approaches are applied. Findings from these two approaches

are then combined in order to identify the role of various political
actors and factors in implementation process.
• e.g. How top-level government manage its policy and how bottom-
level agencies resist or distort the policy.

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 13

Hill 2013: 216-8
Example
膠樽暗堆填 回收旅程太荒謬

本港三色回收桶收到的塑膠廢料，近來竟然有八、九成兜了個圈後，在市民不
知不覺下暗中去了堆填區，原因是內地推出「綠籬行動」，嚴格執法拒納不符
合標準的「洋垃圾」，本港的塑膠再造行業，又無法吸納全部回收得來的塑
料…不但加重堆填區壓力，浪費政府津貼回收業的公帑和市民為廢物分類的心
血，在轉折運送過程中耗費能源、膠袋，產生廢氣污染，增加碳足印，比直接
送去堆填區更不環保…

港府每月津貼五十三萬元予一家合約回收商，收集三色桶垃圾，經初步處
理後，再售予持牌回收商。現在塑料缺乏出路，合約商乾脆「左手交右手」予
關連公司，輾轉將膠樽丟去普通垃圾站和堆填區，大量塑膠廢料遂展開更不環
保的荒謬旅程。
Singtao Daily 28 Jun 2013

• Are there consistent goals of policy?

• If so, what are the common goals?
• If not, what is the difference, and why are they inconsistent?
• How useful are the top-down and bottom-up approaches to the study
of implementation in this case?

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 14

Questions

• Who are the policy formulators?

• Who are the decision makers?
• Who are the implementers?
• If they are not the same group of actors, who have more power?
• Who define how good a policy is?
• Who decide how good a policy is?

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 15

Questions
Which side is more powerful?

Over 900 US career diplomats protest Trump order

A memo signed by 900 State Department diplomats that opposes President

Donald Trump's temporary ban on refugees and citizens of seven Muslim-
majority nations from entering the US has been delivered to top officials, State
Department officials familiar with the memo told CNN Tuesday.

The "memo of dissent" warns that not only will the new immigration policy not
keep America safe, but it will harm efforts to prevent terrorist attacks. The ban
"will not achieve its stated aim of to protect the American people from terrorist
attacks by foreign nationals admitted to the United States," the memo notes.
CNN first reported that a draft memo of dissent was being circulated for
signatures on Monday.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer, when asked about the memo at a
press briefing Monday, told the federal employees who backed it to “either get
with the program or they can go.”
CNN.com, 1 Feb 2017

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 16

Questions
• Who implement the policy? Who decide the success of the implementation of this policy?
• What is the goal of this policy? To what extent will this goal be achieved?
• What are the difficulties in implementation of policy? What made these difficulties?
• How can we smoothen the implementation this policy.
膠袋4月全面徵費 街市拆招
倘同買徵稅免稅品 顧客自行入袋不違法
4月1日開始，膠袋徵費會由現時逾3000零售商戶，擴展至全港10萬戶，包括街市和小商戶
用的背心膠袋或平頭膠袋。新法例下，市民除購買新鮮食品和冷凍食品外，無論到大型超
市、街市或任何零售商舖購物而索取膠袋，均須繳付0.5元的膠袋稅，若商戶不收款即屬
違法，有可能遭票控罰款2000元。有街市管理公司預計，售賣「混合」貨品的商戶如凍肉
或雜貨店易墮法網，近日已加緊傳授「拆解方法」，只要將徵膠袋稅的貨品交予顧客，然
後由顧客放入免徵費的膠袋，就可避過檢控。

除新鮮冷凍食品 不能免費索平口袋
第二階段膠袋全面徵費4月實施，全港10萬商戶一律不可免費派膠袋。環保署助理署長黎
耀基接受訪問時表示，新法例難以針對每一種食品或飲品訂下準則，但首階段膠袋徵費計
劃下，留意到濫用平口袋的情况，「有人買包薯片都要攞個平口袋」，故到全面徵費時，
消費者再不能免費索取平口袋，除非用來裝載新鮮食品及冷凍食品。

黎耀基表示，環保署向立法會提交的條例草案，原本要求較高，但在立法會議員要求下，
放寬了部分要求，例如環保署原本建議購買冷凍食物或飲品索取膠袋亦要徵費，但議員認
為冷凍食品會有「倒汗水」問題，難以直接用手拿着，此外亦難以對冷凍食品溫度設定義，
政府最後願意讓步，只要是冷凍食品或飲品（雪榚、樽裝飲品、壽司、牛油及凍肉等），
索取膠袋毋須收費0.5元。 Ming Pao 23 Feb 2015
Questions

• How can the civil servants resist the policy

made by the ministers?
• What empower the civil servants to bargain with
the ministers?
英部長批公務員「阻撓」施政
英國政府高官公開指責本國的公務員系統中有資深官員「刻意阻撓」和「否決」
政令行為，引發朝野激烈爭議。
內閣辦公室部長莫德在日前對一個政策研究機構的講話中，公開指責一些長期在
任的資深公務員「過分注重程序細節、迴避風險」，以至於抵制和阻撓政令實施。
莫德稱會要求政策性智庫從其他國家的文官體制中借鑒經驗，並表示應該每年把
10%的公務員拉出來重作業績考核評估。此話一齣，立即招致公務員工會等方面
的強烈反彈，認為這番言論「嚴重損害了」政府部長與公務員之間的互信關係…
在英國，每次選舉後政黨輪換執政中的獲勝政黨可以任命本黨人士出任各部部長，
但是部長下面的辦事文官和資深公務員則往往是長期任職的。在日前講話中談到
英國現行公務員辦公體制時，莫德抱怨說：「一旦部長們作出決定，那麼依照憲
法公務員的職責就是執行這些決定。」
「然而，本屆政府和以往歷屆政府的官員往往遇到的情況是，政府決定最後實施
不下去。」他還說，在有些事例中有些資深公務員故意阻撓政令實施，並甚至私
自通知各部門不要實施某某政令。(bbc.com.uk, 3 Oct 2012)
SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 19
Questions
What made policy change?

強推煤改氣捱轟 官急轉軚准燃煤
京津冀及周邊地區強推「煤改氣」工程並實施「禁煤令
」，大批民眾因工程未完成或「缺氣」等原因失去供暖
捱凍，引發民怨。官方終讓步，環保部下發「特急」文
件指，以民眾溫暖過冬為第一原則，煤改氣工程未完成
的可繼續沿用燃煤取暖方式…通報還指，煤改氣、煤改
電已完工的項目及地方必須確保氣源、電源供應穩定及
價格穩定，工業等領域用氣、用電必須為民用讓路。環
保部將把確保民眾冬季及時充足供暖，作為督查巡查工
作重點，如發現不作為、亂作為情況，將按規定嚴肅追
責問責。Sky Post 2017 Dec 8

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 20

Questions
【派錢4000蚊】申請程序擾民港府終放寬 無住址證明郵費欠資也接受

派錢最多4000元予合資格市民的「關愛共享計劃」，被外界批評行政混亂失當，政府
今（23日）宣布優化申請措施，決定申請人無須提交住址證明；至於郵寄申請表格時
遇上郵資不足情況，當局將寬鬆對待，使申請可獲得處理。

政府稱，為了回應部分市民指提供住址證明有實際困難，並考慮到申請人須在申請表
格上作出聲明，明白故意作出虛假陳述、虛報或隱瞞任何資料以騙取款額屬刑事罪行
，當局決定申請人無須提交住址證明。因應公眾需求，政府已額外加印100萬份中文
版表格，並由今起至下星期一（28日）分批送達各區民政諮詢中心，以及在職家庭及
學生資助事務處轄下的在職家庭津貼辦事處和學生資助處，供市民索取，市民亦可於
計劃網頁（css.gov.hk）下載申請表格。
topick.hket.com 2019 Jan 23

What made policy change?

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 21

References:

Cairney, P. (2012) Understanding public policy: Theories and issues.

Basingstoke & New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Birkland, T.A. (2010) An introduction to the policy process: Theories, concepts, and
models of public policy making (3rd ed.). New York: M.E. Sharpe.

Hill, M. (2013). The public policy process (6th ed.) Essex: Pearson Education
Limited.

Hogwood, B. W. and Gunn, L. A. (1984) Policy analysis for the real world, Oxford:
Oxford University Press.

Howlett, M. Ramesh, M. & Perl, A. (2009) Studying public policy (3rd Ed.) Don Mills,
Ont. : Oxford University Press.

SOPY 3085 - Lecture 5 22