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Do Ministers Matter? The Individual Style of Ministers in Programmed Policy Change

Many social science approaches to governmental work suggest, mainly through models of policy analysis, that individuals (ministers) ‘make’ little ‘difference’ to (policy) processes. This article argues that, on the contrary, individuals are able to influence, through their policy style, change processes. It draws from field research on 19 ministers and three policy sectors in four political systems (Britain, France, Germany, Spain) and interviews with 179 (former) ministers, cabinet members and high-ranking civil servants. It follows in B. Headey and J. Blondel’s footsteps: the ‘consequences’ or the ‘impact’ of ministers. It claims to look at ministerial ‘efficiency’ less by evaluating the work of certain ministers than by comparing types of minister in the ways in which they tackle and overcome (or fail to overcome) the constraints bearing upon the various ‘compartments’ of their policy work.