However, thus far regional enthusiasm for monetisation has been limited (e.g. Alexandrova and Struyck, 2007, Rasell and Wangle 2008). In principle, federal government functions can only be transferred to other tiers of government if relevant financial resources are provided. In addition, since the federal government sets the standards of quality of service (which are not allowed to diminish over time), regions do not have full discretion and unfunded mandates persist.