X-Inefficiency and Regulatory Regime Shift in the UK.

Concern over economic efficiency has increased in recent years in the U.K. and has been one of the major driving forces behind the regulatory reforms and privatisation measures which have been initiated since 1979. The amount of detailed work on economic efficiency, and especially on X-efficiency, in the U.K. is, however, relatively limited. The first part of the paper surveys the previous U.K. work in this field and explores the implications of the findings in terms of industry-wide studies and industry-specific studies. The second part of the study looks specifically at the issue of privatisation and the impact that this has had on X-efficiency in the context of the electricity supply industry.