This would be funny if it wasn’t so serious. It’s a eye-opening piece by Jacob Shapiro for Foreign Affairs, on the petty-minded, nit-picking mindset of your typical terrorist supremo: “In addition to being a ruthless jihadist, Ayman al-Zawahiri long ago earned a reputation for being a terrible boss. When he took over al Qaeda in […]
There is much debate about whether the Conservative pledge to hold an in/out referendum on the EU will win votes from UKIP, or whether UKIP supporters are more concerned with other issues such as immigration. However Lord Ashcroft's research last year suggested that UKIP's support base stemmed not from policy, but outlook. It found exasperation […]
With the Royal College of Nursing claim that nurses are “drowning in a sea of paperwork”, now seems a good time to re-visit the Francis Report. You remember that, don’t you? It only came out in February, documented the horrific neglect of patients at Stafford Hospital and then swiftly disappeared from the headlines – as […]
Local Government Minister Brandon Lewis MP with his series celebrating excellence in our Town Hall This week's champion council is very different from other examples I have shared over the last few weeks. Back in April 2011, Selby District Council became a 'commissioning' council. The service wing – the bulk of the organisation – split […]
Cllr David Burbage, Leader of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, says removing Town Hall officials should be made easier It’s the old story that it doesn’t matter who you vote for, the Government always gets in. Politicians are formally / properly / brutally (select your preferred adverb) held to account by the electorate […]
In a guest poster the blogger Systems Thinking for Girls advises on on what councils could really do to reduce discrimination Equality Impact Assessments are worse than polishing a turd. They add a new turd. Take the case of Adult Social Care. A council buys hundreds of level-access showers at a discounted price for disabled […]
The absurdity of "Equalities Impact Assessments" has been chronicled at the Systems Thinking for Girls blog – by someone who used to write dozens of them. Following the Prime Minister speech to the CBI, the Local Government Minister Brandon Lewis has sent guidance to councils to scrap them. Mr Lewis says: The Government Equalities Office […]
Cllr David Burbage, the Leader of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council and recently nominated for the Taxpayers Alliance Pin-Up of 2012, reports At our full Council meeting on Wednesday Members resolved to change the senior officer structure to remove the traditional post of Chief Executive Officer and replace it instead with a […]
Last year there were 11,200 Judicial Reviews. This compares with 4,207 in 2004. Only the very rich or the very poor can afford to apply for Judicial Reviews – usually they are undertaken by the latter who can claim Legal Aid. Thus the taxpayer is paying for the lawyers on both sides. Nobody knows what […]
I can see the advantages of unitary authorities. There is more accountability. For instance, if the Council Tax bill is made up of different elements, it is harder to be clear about who is responsible for it. There are also savings in having fewer layers of politicians and officials. Lord Heseltine is producing a report […]
Lettre ouverte aux Français – Open letter to the French (translation below) Le message de bienvenue du Premier Ministre Britannique David Cameron aux refugiés Français après l’annonce de l’introduction du taux d’impôt a 75% est une constatation de fait plutôt qu’une nouvelle. Depuis des dizaines d’années, des centaines de milliers de Français se réfugient chez […]
Greece is the word. Or is it? If it weren’t for the house of cards that is the Eurozone, the world wouldn’t be talking about the Greek economy – not when Chinese economic growth is creating the equivalent of a new Greece every three months. But what if all is not well in China? What […]
Despite the constraints of coalition in many areas the Conservatives have delivered on areas where the civil service might have been expected to be obstructive. But the promise to curtail powers of entry by the state into our homes has not been kept. Far from slashing the 1,400 different grounds under which council staff can […]
Deborah Orr is a Guardian columnist who doesn’t like the NHS bill and is rude about Conservatives. Somewhat unremarkable, you might think, but as the bill passes its final Parliamentary hurdles, she uses her column to smash a few taboos. She starts with some personal context – a letter from the NHS inviting her to book a […]
No doubt much money is wasted on management consultants in both local and central government – although this is an area where there is rather more rigour than under the Labour Government. While they grew rich the consultants would often find it frustrating – all the time wasting meetings, the reports that nobody read, the […]