This is the first book to explore the public policy process through 19 contributions from diverse scholars from all over the world, using empirical material to demonstrate how many of the key theories and concepts may be applied to its analysis.

Part One: Introduction; Part Two: Stability and Change; Introduction; How policies change? Clean air policy in France and Greece ~ Chloe A. Vlassopoulos; When a Solution becomes the Problem: Policy Reversals in Korea and Japan ~ Gyu-Jin Hwang; Stability with Change: Work-Family Balance Policies in Taiwan ~ Pei-Yuen Tsai; Understanding the Political Context of Nuclear Energy Policy Change in Sweden ~ Daniel Nohrstedt; Part Three: Agenda Setting; Introduction; Agenda Setting in a Parliamentary Federation: Universal Medicare in Canada ~ Gregory P. Marchildon; Flood Mitigation Policy in the United States ~ Kristin O’Donovan; Focusing events, priority problems and governance arrangements: Regulatory reforms in health and eldercare sector in Sweden and Japan ~ Naonori Kodate; The evolution of gender equality policy in New Zealand ~ Jennifer Curtin; Part Four: Policy Formulation; Introduction; Canadian Disability Policy Formulation: Social Movement Preferences and Federal Government; Choices of Instrument Design ~ Michael J. Prince; Defining Ecological Restoration Policy in Sweden ~ Anna Zachrisson and Katarina Eckerberg; The role of local actors in water and flood management in France: between policy formulation and policy implementation ~ Corinne Larrue and Marie Fournier; Think tanks and policy networks in English education ~ Sonia Exley; Part Five: Implementation; Introduction; Agency Preferences and Political Conflict: Policy Implementation in the Netherlands ~ René Torenvlied; Local histories and local sensemaking: a case of policy implementation in the English National Health Service ~ Anna Coleman, Kath Checkland, and Stephen Harrison; Implementation of the structural development policy of Finnish higher education ~ Turo Virtanen; Part Six: Governance and globalism; Introduction; Minimum unit pricing of alcohol in Scotland ~ Srinivasa Vittal Katikireddi and Katherine E Smith; The role of national and international policy actors and influences in crisis times: the case of Ireland ~ Mairéad Considine and Fiona Dukelow; Policy responses to climate change in Australia: contestation, complexity and uncertainty ~ Paul Burton; Cross border healthcare in the European Union; EU governance and national responses in healthcare ~ Dorte Sindbjerg Martinsen and Nikolay Vasev.

"The book offers a fascinating range of policy domains and countries as case studies making it a valuable resource that students and lecturers can use to find cases to illustrate the policy process." Professor Bruce Stafford, University of Nottingham