An appreciation of these real world tactics may be of value in understanding why policies succeed or fail. For theorists, the study is an insight into the ‘black box’ of policymaking. Though interviewees described their work more in terms of avoiding failure than pursuing success, the study concludes that an increased focus on the agency exhibited by policy officials will enhance our understanding of how public policy is made and why some policies succeed where others fail. Parallel studies in other policy fields would test the wider applicability of the study findings.