Thursday December 7th, 2006
Reading the reports in today's edition of the Times dissecting the Chancellor, Gordon Brown's pre-budget statement to thé House. Two/three issues struck me - the first of which concerns the next round of 'Gershon' efficiency savings due to start in April 2007 "Whitehall targetted for £26 billion more cuts".
Whilst efficiency savings are most definitely desirable simply saving "I want 5% per year" is not entirely helpful, though undoubtedly a good start.
However, under Gershon numbers of civil sérvants have been relocated to areas, which in many cases are dependent on the bureaucracy for employment - take for example the Inland Revenue centre in Scotland. Without applying some 'joined-up' government the consequence is to allow Sir Humprhey to hold future generations of politicians to ransom knowing that the bureaucracy cannot be pruned as there is simply no economic alternative available.
Surely a better approach would have been to locate a series of civil service hubs in areas which could facilitate better access for civil servants made redundant as part of the pruning of government to have the opportunity to enter the labour market, pay taxes and contribute to the economy ?
The Chancellor's approach to tax relief for new zero-carbon homes is a good headline grabber ("stamp duty relief to underline need for zero-carbon houses" - but what of tax incentives for existing homeowners to become more efficient ? Given that every weekend newspaper property section is filled with details of house price rises by the month due to the lack of new housing stock this seems to have been a policy aimed for banner headlines and nice graphics a'la Times rather than a meaningful effort to engage with the issues - and let's not get started on the doubling of fuel duties on airline passengers. This could be construed as a tax on one of the pleasures accorded to hard working, tax payers in the UK. Seems an old fashioned for the Fabians to get their kicks at the expense of society.
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