Intuitively, shared services might be considered a natural model for delivery of ICT in the public sector. Various government agencies, particularly local authorities, share many common processes and have a requirement for similar applications with similar characteristics. Shared services can be also deployed in and extended to much of the wider public sector including health, policing and education. Despite its apparent advantages, the history of shared services computing the public sector has been a story of mixed fortunes. The reasons for this are part technical and part political, thelatter manifesting itself in, inter alia, power struggles, a desire for independence and fears about excessive central control. The paper considers some theoretical aspects of power and its potential influence on the effectiveness of the shared services model in the public sector.