The Centre for Market and Public Organisation (CMPO) at the University of Bristol conducts research on the theme of 'modernising government', including welfare reform, public sector delivery and competition in the provision of health care and education.
In the CMPO's January 2003 Bulletin:
MATERNITY RIGHTS STRONGLY INFLUENCE MOTHERS' RETURN TO WORK
This April, a number of changes to the UK system of maternity rights come into effect that will substantially lengthen the periods of leave to which mothers are entitled. New legislation will extend the period of paid leave from 18 to 26 weeks and unpaid leave with the right to return from 29 to 52 weeks.
New research by Liz Washbrook and colleagues at the CMPO examines how these changes will affect the amount of maternity leave women choose to take.
The report indicates that mothers in lower skilled occupations attach most importance to the date at which paid leave expires, reflecting the significance they place on short-term financial considerations.
In contrast, mothers in professional occupations are more likely to be influenced by the expiry of unpaid leave, suggesting that the right to return to their old job - the 'right of reinstatement' - is a more significant factor because of longer-term career considerations.
THE GAP BETWEEN GIRLS' AND BOYS' SCHOOL PERFORMANCE IS WIDENING
National averages for GCSE exam results across all types of schools now consistently show girls outperforming boys. But until now, it has not been clear if girls always do better than boys or whether the 'gender gap' widens as they approach the age of 16.
New research by Adele Atkinson and Deborah Wilson indicates that the gender gap does indeed widen as children get older. What's more, the gap exists in all schools, indicating that grammar schools do little better in helping boys catch up than other types of school.
COMPETITION IN HEALTH CARE CAN LEAD TO HIGHER DEATH RATES
What impact does the introduction of competition have on the quality of health care? New research by CMPO Director Carol Propper and colleagues examines the relationship between competition and quality of health care for UK hospitals from the beginning of the internal market in the NHS in 1991 until 1999.
Using the rate of deaths from emergency admissions for heart attacks (AMI) as an indicator of quality of care, the research finds that rates in the 1990s were higher in hospitals located in areas where competition is possible. In other words, competition is associated with lower quality.
Internal markets in public services - in which publicly owned providers compete with each other to supply services bought by publicly funded purchasers - are supposed to offer efficiency gains in service delivery while maintaining the benefits of public funding.
The Conservative government was a strong proponent, introducing internal markets into health care, education, social services and housing. While the incoming Labour government officially eschewed the internal market in the NHS (claiming that it would lead to a two-tier system), the purchaser-provider split that is central to an internal market still remains. What's more, the creation of foundation hospitals seems set to herald an increase in the extent of competition between suppliers within the NHS.
DO UNPREJUDICED SOCIETIES NEED EQUAL OPPORTUNITY LEGISLATION?
To what extent should banks, insurance companies and employers be able to use personal information about the people whom they lend to, insure or employ in setting the terms of the contract?
Women tend to have less costly car accidents than men. Thanks to competition between insurance companies, this difference is reflected in premiums. But should such gender discrimination be legal? If so, does it follow that the disabled should pay higher premiums than the rest of the population? What if there is solid evidence of racial difference in accident rates? Or of differences in people's credit rating affecting their likelihood of having an accident?
New research by David de Meza uses economic analysis to make the case for equal treatment, and argues that this is a more effective method of redistribution from the able to the less able than a progressive income tax system.