摘要: Whilst devolution has primarily been presented as a response to a growing national political identity in Scotland (McGarvey and Midwinter, 2000), in Wales it has been viewed as a solution to a perceived'democratic deficit'. The government White Paper A Voice for Wales (Welsh Office, 1997) emphasized the importance of stronger public accountability as a key rationale behind the establishment of the National Assembly for Wales. Certainly UK central government has experienced difficulties holding public bodies such as quangos to account, and there is a belief that devolution provides an opportunity to resolve some of these difficulties in Wales:'Devolution to a Welsh Assembly offers another prospect for the extension of democratic control into quangodom'(Skelcher, 1998, 45). However, whilst devolved government clearly produces a new set of politicians who are more accountable to the electorate, it is less clear whether public-sector organizations in Wales will become more accountable to politicians post-devolution. That is, devolution may have resulted in greater political accountability, but not necessarily in greater organizational accountability. This latter form of accountability is crucial to the success of devolution. Previously, monitoring, scrutinizing and regulating public-service organizations was a key responsibility of the Welsh Office. Now this responsibility rests with the National Assembly for Wales. If politicians are to be accountable to the electorate for public services in Wales, it is essential that regulatory mechanisms governing public-sector bodies operate effectively. If public organizations are not regulated appropriately by elected …