The Problem Factory

Nuclear power stations. Affordable homes. HS2. They're all announced with great fanfare - and then disappear into bureaucratic black holes, emerging years late, wildly over budget or not at all. Somehow, the harder we try to solve problems, the more of them we end up with. Welcome to The Problem Factory.

Meet the dedicated individuals behind this dysfunctional system - from the Berlin fire safety officers who kept an airport empty for nine years after it was completed, to the citizens of Atherton, California, who ending up closing their own railway station in an attempt to save some trees.

With razor-sharp insight and wickedly dry humour, Dan Davies investigates a world where avoiding blame is better than achieving results. Essential reading for anyone who has ever wondered why it's preferable to add red tape than to cut it, The Problem Factory explores the perverse world of organisational failure - and lays out a roadmap for a better future.