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January 13, 2008
In Fear and camouflage: the end of the liberal state? at Open Democracy Saskia Sassen says that:
The liberal state has changed profoundly with significant consequences for the type of society we have come to expect – whether in the rich democracies of the north or the struggling democracies elsewhere. At the heart of this emergent transformation lies the historical reshaping, firstly of the relations between the three parts of the liberal state (the executive, the legislature/parliament, and the judiciary), and secondly of the relation between the state (especially the executive branch) and the citizens, with the latter losing rights and entitlements. ...The privatising of the power of the government’s executive branch (or prime minister’s office) along with the erosion of the privacy rights of citizens is hollowing out the powers of the legislature. These shifts are no anomaly. These are systemic shifts. They transcend party politics and go beyond the much-discussed democratic deficits brought about by economic globalisation.
Similarly in Australia. The executive has become by far the most powerful branch of government: it has amassed undemocratic powers, become highly secretive, is increasingly a form of privatised power and has gained added control over public administration. The “people’s branch of government” – the legislature – was never strong but has lost much of its power.
We are aware of this shift in power in Australia but pundits haven't thought of it in terms of the end of the liberal state
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