Technocracy and democracy as spheres of justice in public policy

Policy Sci (2017) 50:922

DOI 10.1007/s11077-016-9260-2

DISCUSSION AND COMMENTARY

Bruce Gilley1

Published online: 18 July 2016 Springer Science+Business Media New York 2016

Abstract There is a long-standing debate about the proper application of democratic versus technocratic approaches to decision-making in public policy. This paper seeks to clarify the debate by applying Michael Walzers notion of spheres of justice, wherein both democracy and technocracy could be seen as distinctive approaches to justice that need to be protected from the domination of the other. The paper shows how the debate on democracy versus technocracy has evolved in both theoretical and applied settings in a manner that reects the domination of one approach by the other. It elaborates the argument through several concrete examples drawn from comparative politics, public policy, and public management. It then explores how the spheres approach implies the need for an interpretive mechanism in order to mediate the competing notions of justice in particular policy issues.

Keywords Democracy Technocracy Public policy Policy analysis Governance

Spheres of justice

Introduction

In 1970, the Macau casino mogul Stanley Ho proposed to build a casino in Singapore. Lee Kuan Yew, then prime minister, rejected the idea on the grounds that it would corrupt the moral values of the city-state: No, not over my dead body, were his words (Sim 2013,34). Thirty-four years later, in 2004, the Singapore government announced that it was considering casino proposals again. An unprecedented wave of opposition arose, including a civil society alliance and a petition campaign. At a public forum organized by the

& Bruce Gilley [email protected]

1 Mark O. Hateld School of Government, Portland State University, Urban Center, Portland,

OR 97207, USA

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10 Policy Sci (2017) 50:922

Institute of Policy Studies at the newly named Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in late 2004, 52 % opposed the casinos on any grounds, while a further 30 % opposed them unless strong safeguards were in place (Institute of Policy Studies 2005). Still the government pressed ahead, making the case that this was not a question that required public consent. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Lee Kuan Yews son, put it this way: The...