Public awareness and interest in environmental and social issues as well as increased attention in the mass media have resulted in a higher demand for social disclosures from organisations. The aim of this study is to explain the extent and variation of content in social disclosures among...

Concerns regarding rising water and sewerage prices have generated a renewed interest in measuring and assessing water utility performance. An efficiency analysis can serve as a basis for price setting decisions. This article examines the influence of ownership structure and corporate size on...

Local governments are increasingly entering into partnerships with the private sector in the “externalization” of public service delivery. While the financial and non-financial interests of the partners involved may appear to be in opposition and potentially un-reconcilable, this is not...

<title>Abstract</title> During the last few years, the local government sector in European countries has undergone a number of important changes. Among the various reform initiatives has been the externalization of public services, such as corporatization, contracting-out, public--private partnerships and...

Purpose – The purpose of this viewpoint paper is to introduce the special issue and outline its major themes. Design/methodology/approach -The public governance literature is described, and the necessity for analysing challenges for accountability and accounting in the public sector is...

The influence of external factors on local government finances, particularly bankruptcies, is much debated. This paper investigates the relationship between regional socioeconomic features and those Italian municipalities that have been declared 'financially destabilized' (i.e. bankrupt)....