Why do some countries appear to be far more centralized than others? This book examines the relationships between national and local government in Britain, France, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Italy, and Spain.

`This series provides a welcome and much needed boost for a more analytical and theoretically informed treatment of west European politics. Professor Patrick Dunleavy 'Dr Page's interesting paradox that the political importance of local government may be in inverse proportion to its functions conveys a message for councillors in this country.' Rodney Brooke, MT & AMA News, May 1992 'It is a work of genuine comparison, covering the relationship between central and local government in seven countries. His analysis is careful, rigorous and subtle, and aware of history and the particular circumstances of each country. It is a major work of comparative inquiry, stimulating, illuminating and suggestive of further questions.' G.W. Jones, Government and Opposition, October, Vol. 27, No. 4, 1992 'The book can be well recommended for its pioneering nature and the information that it brings together.' Alan Norton, Institute of Local Government Studies, Local Government Studies, Vol. 18, No. 2, Summer '92 'If the old questions about center-local relations come back to haunt Page it is not for lack of an ingenious and provoking effort to simplify the problem. Every student of decentralization should read this book carefully.' Douglas E. Ashford, University of Pittsburgh, APSR `one of the more original and coherent efforts to plumb the mysteries of center-local relations in Western Europe ... Remarkably stripped of jargon and unaffected by the many nefarious efforts to quantify center-local relations ... If the old questions about center-local relations come back to haunt Page, it is not for lack of an ingenious and provoking effort to simplify the problem. Every student of decentralization should read this book carefully.' Comparative Politics `Page's book will be of interest to students of politics outside the ranks of local government-experts. Relations between levels of government - local, regional, national and European - are likely to be a research theme of growing importance in Europe, and Page often offers valuable information and thoughtful arguments.' Public Administration