Is the hype greater than the effect?
PB processes need to demonstrate over time that money will be spent at least as well as through other methods. This is based on the notion that local people are the experts with regard to their communities. There is to date little hard evidence to either support or challenge this contention with regard to PB in the UK, as the sums of money so far disbursed have been relatively small. The ‘hype’, however, is not to be dismissed merely as hype. PB has already been shown to have demonstrable benefits in terms of community cohesion, networking between organisations and greater understanding of public finances, to name just three.
