And now — the QANGO
Quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations.
Wonderful things if you’re in government — as a means of passing the buck.
The acronym which can be translated into “a sort of free to do its own thing and not be directly tied to the government or any government minister body” that allows governments to delegate power, responsibility, and self determination from themselves to non elected bodies. Often staffed using the ‘fellow traveler’ principles.
And there’s bloody shed loads of the things. Over twelve hundred, the majority of which New Labour created.
And the vast majority burning up billions of pounds of tax payers money, outside of public scrutiny or control, often of very little real use, (and often none at all) self serving, self fulfilling, and a nice little earner for those involved.
Let’s take a quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisation at quasi-random. The East of England Development Agency (EEDA).
I say quasi-random because it’s an outfit that I’ve had dealings with in the past. In reality as much use as an ashtray on bicycle they claim ‘accountability’ because they are reviewed by — you might have guessed, two other QANGO’s.
The EEDA is an expensive utter waste of tax payers money. It creates more obstacles than it ever tries to deal with, and could and should be replaced by having Chambers of Commerce and local councils deal with regional business and social matters, and the remainder put under civil service resourcing with DIRECT reporting via the civil service chain to an elected minister who would be responsible for what was being done.
And that paragraph can and should be applied to all QANGO’s with the exception of the hundreds that serve no useful purpose whatsoever, they should be shut down forthwith.
OK, I understand that the lack of knowledge, experience, and simple intellectual capacity in government ministers, especially Labour ministers all too often selected for purely political reasons, means that the talent simply isn’t there to do the job in the useless SOB’s in spite of them being elected to do it.
I also understand that the Civil Service has been so dumbed down under Blair in order to replace knowledgeable and experienced and capable permanent secretaries and senior managers with ‘yes’ men that the talent that was there to do what these unelected undemocratic bodies that do the real governing of Britain now do has been largely lost.
But that doesn’t mean that what has been put in its place is right, is democratic, is doing what needs to be done, or is answerable to politicians.
Nor that they’re not a horrible waste and drain on taxes, or that they’re executing a series of programs unwanted by or in the best interest of the majority of British people.
No matter which political party is elected to govern the UK in the general election the abolition of QANGO’s really should be a priority matter. Not only because of the horrendous waste, nor because of the close to one MILLION people employed in mostly useless make-work, but to restore direct responsibility to elected politicians.
There’s more than money involved, there’s more than just responsibility, there’s the matter of policy making and policy execution that is now taking place by unelected people, often selected because of their ideologies, prejudices and personal objectives — and that simply ain’t right.
In conclusion here’s a lovely quote that sums up so much that is so foul about QANGO’s. It’s from an article in The Independent Newspaper in which John Walsh wrote :-
“Was it right, I hear Ms Squire enquire, for the Learning and Skills Council to wave cheques totaling £400,000 of public funds to sign up Konnie Huq and Richard Bacon, former Blue Peter hosts, and Jill Halfpenny from Strictly Come Dancing, to represent them?
I don’t see why not. After all, Ms Halfpenny had to employ considerable amounts of imaginative learning and skills when she left EastEnders to learn to pose in tight basques and scanty black pants for the lads’ magazines.
And Mr Bacon, after he was fired from children’s TV for snorting cocaine, clearly must have utilised a great deal of skill in getting another job with the Corporation and keeping it. “
Know what? You can’t give the boy wrong when he’s right.
Rog
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