What do you mean by Public
Services?
Public services are services that are provided by the
government (national or local) for the good of the
community.
Examples of public services in Scotland
are:
- Fire service
- Police
- Justice
- Education
- Social Work
- Health
- Water
- Street Cleaning
Some public services in Scotland are provided by private
companies - for example
gas and
electricity. But these services are
regulated by the government.
Other public services such as
transport are provided by private
companies but are regulated and are often subsidised by the
government.
The government is also involved in providing services
that relate to the
environment, culture, sport and tourism, housing
and social work.
Why Have Public Services?
Public services are those that are so essential to
modern life that for moral reasons they must be provided,
and should be available to all regardless of their income.
Some services, such as hairdressing, are useful but are not
essential to modern life and so would not be a public
service.
How do public services affect me?
You depend on public services to get you through the day
- you have a shower, you catch a bus, you put the bins out,
you go to school, you go to college. There will be
sometimes in your life when public services become even
more important to you - you might need a council flat, or
social work services, or medical help, or the police.
That is why the Minister introduced the Young Persons
Challenge Fund. We all need public services and we all want
them to work well and work efficiently. The way the
government provides public services will have to change in
the same way as the world constantly changes. The
government needs to keep up to date and to be kept up to
date. This is why he is asking for your ideas. You use
public services every day, you know what works and what
should work better. He needs you to be part of this
change