Making sense of remunicipalisation: theoretical reflections on and political possibilities from Germany’s Rekommumalisierung process

Cumbers, A. and Becker, S. (2018) Making sense of remunicipalisation: theoretical reflections on and political possibilities from Germany’s Rekommumalisierung process. Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, 11(3), pp. 503-517. (doi: 10.1093/cjres/rsy025)

Abstract

The increasingly discussed phenomenon of ‘remunicipalisation’ marks a global trend since 2000 for cities to take formerly privatised assets, infrastructure and services back into public ownership. It is most prominent in basic service sectors such as water and energy, but it is also evident in a range of diverse utility and infrastructure areas—from education, health, refuse and other areas of local government. As a reaction to the problems and contradictions arising from four decades of privatisation and marketisation of public services, remunicipalisation represents a compelling contemporary phenomenon of urban politics and governance. In this article, we critically interrogate remunicipalisation in the face of ongoing and mutating processes of neoliberal urbanism. Drawing upon evidence from the German Rekommunalisierung process in the energy sector, we explore both the wider conceptual significance of remunicipalisation and its progressive potential in contributing to an alternative urban politics beyond neoliberalism.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: The research behind this article benefited from the financial support of the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, Scottish Charity number SC015600 and the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdients (DAAD) programme for research stays by university academics an scientists (Förderprogramm 50015559/52856EB4371).
• Keywords: Geography, planning and development, economics and econometrics, sociology and political science
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Cumbers, Professor Andrew
• Authors: Cumbers, A., and Becker, S.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Management
• Journal Name: Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• ISSN: 1752-1378
• ISSN (Online): 1752-1386
• Published Online: 16 October 2018
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2018 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society 11(3):503-517
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher