Establishing a National Police Emergency Response Center: How Urgency Led to Delay

Abstract

This article describes and analyzes the decision-making process related to the establishment of Norway's National Police Emergency Response Center (NPERC). Following the July 22, 2011 terrorist attacks, Norway's Inquiry Commission recommended the establishment of a NPERC at one physical site. The goal was to enhance governance capacity and contribute to crisis mitigation, prevention, preparedness, and operational crisis management. Although the main actors claimed that such a center was urgently needed, it took several years for the government to reach a final decision. The main puzzle is, why did it take so long? To answer this question, we use a structural-instrumental perspective and a garbage-can approach, while also focusing on the issues of shifting attention and agenda-setting. We conclude that the decision-making process was marked by a lack of rational calculation but also influenced by external shocks, focusing events, and windows of opportunities. This led to changing expectations, shifts in attention and opportunities for new agenda-setting. Hence, the choices made throughout the decision-making process can be seen as the linkage of a specific policy stream, a political stream, and a problem stream. Our main conclusion is that the sense of urgency created by the terrorist attacks led to a delay in the decision-making process. This article has been accepted and published.