Placed at a distance

Original title: Op afstand gezet The Dutch government has been hiving off government services since the early 1980s through privatisation or agencification. What do the Dutch public think about this? What are their views on privatisation and agencification? Do they actually think about it at all, and what do they know about it? How do people's views on privatisation relate to their attitudes towards the government? How plausible is it that privatisation is a source of political discontent? In Placed at a distance (Op afstand gezet), these questions are answered on the basis of new survey data and group interviews. These reveal not only what people think about privatisation and agencification, but also why they hold those views and how they talk about the subject. This study was carried out at the request of the Parliamentary Committee of Inquiry on privatisation and agencification, instituted by the Upper House of the Dutch parliament