Even when the Government claims to be ’empowering patients’ it manages to do it in a Whitehall-centric way.
Rate your doctor on-line? – another Whitehall-centric initiative
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
Modernising Government Mk II: ‘Working Together’
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
Back in 1999 ‘Modernising Government’ was finally published. After nearly two years gestation the general verdict was that it was indeed an elephant – huge, sprawling and ungainly. Everything including the kitchen-sink had been thrown into the lengthy, turgid and mind-numbingly boring document. Well, now we have Modernising Government II – or ‘Working Together: Public […]
Gizza Job? Jobcentres Plus stitched up by Minister.
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
“Gizza job”, those with long-enough memories will recall, was the catch phrase of the central character- Yosser Hughes – in Alan Bleasedale’s very dark BBC TV comedy ‘The Boys from the Blackstuff’ which aired in the middle of another big recession (1982).
From CPA to CAA – Local Government Gets Lost in Translation?
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
The Audit Commission published its final CPA (comprehensive performance assessment) report on English local government this week.
‘Joined-Up’ Children’s Services Failing – It’s Official
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
In my recent article for Public Servant magazine I speculated that the new ‘joined-up’ Children’s Services departments might have been a contributory factor in the failure to protect Baby P in Haringey. Now it turns out that Children’s Services across the board are the worst performing service in English local government. The Audit Commissions latest […]
Government bails out “Private” Finance Initiative
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
The old joke that consultants borrow your watch and then charge you if you want to be told the time has finally come true. The UK Treasury has announced it will step in to provide the finance for £8bn worth of PFI (private finance initiative) deals this year, as other sources of finance dry up […]
Government Learning – an oxymoron?
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
A new NAO Report – Helping Government Learn – sets out to encourage better policies and practice for ‘organisational learning’ in government.
Public Value – the next ‘Big Thing’ in public management?
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
Are we about to enter a new era of public management? There are good reasons to think that this may be the case.
Hard Times for Public Services
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
Whoever is in power at Westminster, public services are facing hard times over the next few years.
Sir Fred Goodwin’s Pension: Pay for Performance?
By Colin Talbot Filed Under: Whitehall Watch Posted:
One thing that the current financial crisis ought to do is raise a serious debate amongst public policy makers about pay for performance – in the private and public sectors.