Key interest groups’ involvement in the policy process offered government a number of possible benefits, including:
• Expertise and information — interest groups often have expert knowledge of a particular field and can therefore be a vital source of guidance and advice for government.
• Legitimacy — having the agreement of key interest groups in an area of government policy can afford the policy a legitimacy in the public eye which it may not have if simply the decision of civil servants or ministers.
• Implementation — the success of policy often depends on the cooperation of particular interest groups. It can be difficult to ensure effective implementation of policy if the groups responsible are not sympathetic to the policy.
Stuart McAnulla, British Politics: A Critical Introduction (London: Continuum; 2006)
