TORONTO — Philosopher and author Joseph Heath has won the Donner Prize for "The Machinery of Government: Public Administration and the Liberal State."

The University of Toronto professor was awarded the $50,000 honour in an online presentation Wednesday.

Founded in 1998, the annual award is given to the best public policy book by a Canadian.

Published by Oxford University Press, "The Machinery of Government" explores how the complexities of the modern state have empowered a class of civil servants to carry out many functions of government.

Jurors hailed the book as "a magnum opus on the philosophy and practice of governance."

Four other finalists for the prize will each receive $7,500. 

The runners-up are: 

- Sécurité, liberté et criminalité by Maurice Cusson, published by Les éditions du Septentrion,

- "Reset: Reclaiming the Internet for Civil Society" by Ronald Deibert, published by House of Anansi Press,

- "The Citizen's Guide to Climate Success: Overcoming Myths that Hinder Progress" by Mark Jaccard, published by Cambridge University Press,

- "The Age of Fentanyl: Ending the Opioid Epidemic" by Brodie Ramin, published by Dundurn Press.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 19, 2021.

The Canadian Press