This is the third
submission to the POLITICAL
AND CONSTITUTIONAL INQUIRY
By
Peter Webb, FCA retired, Romilly Cottage, 139 Binscombe Godalming Surrey GU7
3QL, 01483 425385; peter@pgwebb.com following the
REPORT ON VOTER ENGAGEMENT IN UK
It follows Edward Faulkner’s personal
invitation by email dated 23rd December 2014 which admitted that transparency
and accountability of government are not issues the Committee considered to a
great extent in their interim report.
THE STORY SO FAR
1.
The Report
discovers
· Lack of belief
in the meaning of elections as they are presented.
· Poor voter turnout is not due to apathy but lack of awareness and information on which
to vote.
· “Dissatisfaction with
politicians, political parties and UK politics”.
My first and second submissions give my status and
qualification. This one amplifies analysis and known solutions.
2.
Firstly we
can conclude that government fails to service voters in the established way of
doing things but which it nevertheless expects from those subject to its laws
and good practice. A cause would seem to be tardy evolution of governance during
growing prosperity allowing lack of stringency. The archaic Treasury is the
weakest link (paragraph 34), with the top civil service need of re-skilling and
reform dependent in turn on enlightened and insightful political leadership direction.
This paper proceeds in logical sequence through the Report’s findings above and
concludes with an illustrative parable with “guidance notes”.
BELIEF AND MEANING
3.
I will vote
for “none of the above” while my vote can be taken to legitimize government by ‘secret
society’ with its risks of totalitarianism. Rights of association and
networking notwithstanding Democracy is not served by an organised and
disciplined political party populating Parliament
and organs of the State when it is not itself
accountable, and is unconcerned about governance and managerial competence.
4.
We the people
are now the paramount authority as ‘shareholders’. This has not always been the
case. To choose or support someone with our precious vote we need assured information.
This needs consideration of the ‘by
whom, to whom, for what and how’ of accountability.
5.
Constitutional
and operational evolution has not kept pace in that there is no complete organogram
for the hierarchy of accountability,
direction and feedback (cf European
and UK audit failure). That condition persists with fiscal discipline being seen apparently as an optional choice rather
than a necessity. Antiquated accounting means that domestic government is
ill-equipped for control, forward planning, policy formation and implementation
6.
A very
current piece of evidence is the survey by ICAEW and PwC of 10,000 Europeans
finding that only one in five feel that their government provides them with
sufficient information about the state of public finances. “There is a wide crisis of confidence …in their
governments’ ability to manage public finances, 70% wanted more
action ….to reduce the debts of their countries”. There is little understanding
among the general public and “despite the introduction of whole of government
accounts” UK came fourth in that regard.
ENGAGEMENT
7.
Having placed
voters within geographical and/or constitutional boundaries and located them
then if engagement is to happen it is necessary to, well……engage. This means addressing them with a question supported
by facts and inviting an answer or result.
8.
For this
purpose these are three types of question:
·
That seeking
a specific single answer such as “do you wish for Scottish independence, yes or
no?”
·
That seeking
periodic approval and democratic renewal such as “do you approve of what we
have done and do you authorise my/our continuation in office?” Note that it is
easy to stipulate that abstention is to be either a vote of confidence, or not,
once notice is given and received.
·
That seeking
support for system change such as “do you wish to vote for X or Y for the new
position of Police Commissioner?” Comment: it
is reasonable to ask what difference that change makes beyond needing more
support bureaucracy, and bearing in mind that no change in accountability has
taken place only it’s routing within an overall but disorganised hierarchy.
LACK OF AWARENESS
9.
People will be unaware unless their attention is
sought. Proper NOTICE with purposeful agenda is
missing. Fulfilment by posted voting card might be sufficient constructive
communication if expanded to state:
§
In a sentence
what we are summoned/invited to vote for as well as who.
§
A list of official
documentation given in evidence.
§
Hard copy
pick up points (and cover price?) and
electronic links for downloading.
§
Personal CVs
including such as political Party affiliation could be included in this
process.
10.
Suggested
wording, having defined who is accountable to whom in the total government
hierarchy is as follows: “I am the appointed/elected leader of your xxxxxx.
Here for each of our entitled recipients is our formal Report on how we have
performed on our planned objectives outlined a year ago, including facts and
disclosures required by law and best practice and with statements about the outlook and immediate plans”. Then
for elected bodies: “At the forthcoming
election on xxxx you are invited to elect a candidate to represent you. In so
doing, or placing your X in the box “none of the above”, you will be indicating
approval or otherwise of the content of the Report and authorising
continuation, or otherwise”.
INFORMATION ON WHICH TO VOTE
11.
See above and
below. For elections for democratic approval and renewal the conventional prime
functioning document is the Annual
Report which is already defined by government for government use. Its
timeliness is important with each day of delay in publication to addressees
wastefully reducing its value. It makes no sense for local Annual Reports, when
produced, for the period ending before the election to become available weeks
after the election.
DIS-SATISFACTION WITH POLITICS
12.
That may
extend to the outdated nature of domestic
public decision-making, organisational and reporting hierarchy and formal
communications. If a politician’s wish for “vibrant (local) democracy” means
passionate but poorly informed argument without executive conclusion then it
needs to be challenged.
13.
There is
undoubtedly mistrust now of the
‘Establishment’ by the people. Communicated information of a trustworthy and
politically unspun nature would help alleviate this. Real mistrust is engendered
by the example at paragraph 32.
14.
It is also
noticeable that much duplication and
wasteful activity is built in to the system in order to protect us from
politics. A perfect example is the creation of the “independent” OBR (Office of
Budget Responsibility) to by-pass an archaic and demonstrably deficient Treasury.
Another example of muddled thinking is given at paragraph 33.
15.
The question,
for your Committee perhaps, is whether
politics is now fit for purpose for decision-making and control. If “all is
politics” as the air we breathe then we should move on and think managerially.
We understand that limited resource allocation is difficult but inconclusive
partisan argument is wasteful of time, effort and money. Perhaps government now
needs its own professional leadership cadre.
16.
Belief in
elections can be restored by the above measures and adaptation to them because
feedback, if formalised, would suggest evolutionary amendments to the process
and of course to the quality of governance. These are surely ongoing concerns
for your Committee? The Ship of State has no Chief Engineer – Systems.
THE
PARABLE OF THE SAFARI PARK
17.
There is a giant safari park in this country.
It contains prehistoric animals (political
governors) attended by primitive tribes (Party people), still
hard-wired for killing strangers from the other side of the forest, led by
Chief Ponzi and Chief Madoff. There are guides and invisible in the background
are groundsmen and servants (civil servants). Visitors and sightseers
are welcome on pain of taxation.
18.
Every so often visitors can assemble in the
clearing to watch and pretend to take part in a Ritual (election). Formalised games are played and a
tribesman is chosen as winner according to the colour of the adornment they
wear. Some wear red feathers round their waist, some blue feathers in their
headdress. Why? Its origin is lost but it is fun.
19.
A visitor asks “how do they know when to
assemble for the Ritual?“ A great cry
goes up from the governors in their long house which tribespeople just know is
The Call. They wait for the sun to rise seven times and on the 8th
day they come together.” Came the day when dawn was inconvenient so they all
stood about until the sun’s shadow was at its shortest.
20.
It was thanks to a visitor (the man from the Taxpayers Alliance) that they
were introduced to the idea of the clock. So now they have all been presented
with a little bag full of tiny metal shapes and pieces of glinting gem-like
things (spending details on line). This they were assured would tell the
time and keep them amused and be a great step forward for mankind. But it
didn’t, it didn’t, and it wasn’t.
21.
The governors hit on the idea of rule by TLA
(three letter acronym) and changed the Counting House to the OBI (Office of
Budget Irresponsibility)(Treasury).
22.
The Governors were troubled when their people
grew up, became restless and began to ask questions. “What do you do that we
should dance for you and bow down in the ritual? “ “What happened to those
promises made earlier?” “Why is your music not rhythmic and harmonious (method and systems)?” “What do you do with the
tax money?” “How is it that the water (money) hole is empty?” “We’ve
done the rain dance (the economy) for you and we’re knackered.” “Why
should we vote for you again?”
23.
On the verge of extinction the governors
heard at the back of the group of tourists the words “what you must do is to
prepare for the Ritual with a nourishing feast (Annual Report) that will satisfy all those
hungry questions!” But they weren’t listening because busy trying to work out
why the clock pieces wouldn’t tell the time: they debated what the time might
be without executive conclusion; the economists looked for statistical
correlations between the metal shapes and gem-like things inside the
clock-case; and the Party people believed they knew best what the time was. The
accountants assembled the clock, waited to be asked what the time was and why
it wasn’t something else, and announce what it would be 10 minutes hence and
whether that would be a good time to dance. A tiny group in the Counting House
were not allowed to simplify tax because someone believed complexity to be job-creating
and necessary for “fairness” of punishment.
EXPLANATORY NOTES FOR GUIDES (Comment
and explanation)
24.
It seems to be outside
government’s mind-set to deal in information communicated for a purpose when it
comes to its democratic responsibilities to its citizens for stewardship,
service performance, and explanation of managerial objectives and so on, and
electoral renewal.
25.
Politicians
piously profess transparency and open government. But that is a qualitative attitude
and passive. It too often means only access to lifeless and historical
mass data. It has no primary operational point, only
secondary availability for academic research or statistical purpose.
26.
Accountability on the other hand, which is professed but not
practiced by government, is an act of discharge or formal process for a
purpose. It is for a chairman, leader, group leader or other proposer to
support with evidence and organised data the formation of policy and
operational decision. That embraces the total management control system and
also democratic discharge and renewal. At root is the transaction which once
executed is not informative in isolation. All the Authorities, laws, customs
and so on have long defined and prescribed how constitutionally governed bodies
should go about this, pulsing annually. Government exempts itself.
27.
Electoral periodicity does not align with all
other connecting ‘heartbeats’, for Parliament, reporting, budgeting and
accounting and so on which are usually annual. Moreover untimely information
grows misleading and wasteful by the day. Examples are WGAs (Whole of
Government Accounts) and the inherently ridiculous performance of local
authorities stated in 11 above.
28.
According to
correspondence via my MP Rt.Hon. Jeremy Hunt it is now ruled by the Secretary
of State, Communities and Local Government that the Annual Report should
not be delivered because “unsolicited” nor should it coincide with elections to
inform voters. Is the council tax invoice with its tax calculation detail unsolicited?
29.
He goes on to say
that “openness and transparency in decision-making is important. That is why
Government has required councils to put details of their spending on-line.”
“Council publicity must ensure that the public are kept informed, but must be
proportionate and cost-effective”. But no data is ‘active’ for this purpose
unless communicated. The detail of line
by line spending is akin to the notch on stick method of counting which
preceded the invention of the balance sheet in 1492 (does government know ?).
It doesn’t inform and is therefore not cost-effective. Potholes don’t happen in
parcels of £500 nor get filled by let alone costed as individual payments.
Since 1492 accountancy has evolved as a tool in keeping with needs. Cost
and Management Accounting (CIMA is the professional body) are terms
still not yet much in evidence in the government lexicon.
30.
There is much
information and data which as voters we would be confused by and don’t need however “transparent” because
we are not and cannot be the deciders and operational users.
31.
Under current
permissive law the Annual Report can be
delivered electronically provided the entitled recipient has given consent.
The document must include those matters and disclosures required by law such as
senior pay scales and much more ( to government inexplicably a separate
novelty), but can be split so that an abbreviated version becomes with links a
gateway to the more detailed data.
32.
As reported in the
Telegraph on 31st December a Surrey local authority has admitted
that six of its elected members have not paid their council tax for three
years. Voters are not allowed to know who they are and judge the financial
management competence risk yet other
non-payers are pursued even to the Courts.
33.
A news report
(27th December 2014) is revealing: “Town Halls must spend their £21bn
stash, says Pickles” referring to the figure (£21bn) of reserves
“produced by the Office of Budget Responsibility”. He is talking about reserves
which are created by over-providing (in council tax) for expenditure in a later
period (not many people know that….it is profit by another name). There are
these implications:
·
The source of
the information is the OBR whereas the Treasury is supposed to be the National
Government’s Financial Department. The latter has only recently started proper
Accounts the probable factual source.
·
He is
interfering in and second-guessing local financial judgement for which he is
not accountable to the local residents concerned.
·
These
reserves in aggregate affect the amount of national debt and deficit yet he is
not exercising strategic managerial leadership at the level of his Department’s
overall responsibility, except accidentally.
34.
It is by no
means assured that current reform of the civil service recognises that the
archaic Treasury is the weakest link. Julian Kelly is
the new Director General of public spending and finance and the Review of financial management in government
is not yet in force. Mr Kelly is not
apparently to be alongside the new Chief Executive John Manzoni in cabinet and
the ICAEW (Chartered Accountants) says “.the appointment…does not go far
enough”. What are his chances when:
·
“One of our
interviewees (of Anthony king and Ivor Crewe in 2013-14 The Blunders of our
governments p309), after a long and wide ranging discussion, said there was one
important issue we had not raised. “What was that ?” we asked. “The Treasury”,
he replied. He blamed the Treasury for almost all of Britain’s ills dating back
over many decades and wondered aloud why an organisation that had presided for
so long over such poor economic performance was still held in such high esteem.
The short answer may be that, at least within Whitehall it is less esteemed
than feared.”
·
“The
archaically named Treasury is demonstrably 50 years out of date, operationally
illiterate and backward in its accounting and financial management” (Peter Webb to
first Lord of Treasury 13th June 2013, Who will mend UK government ?)
35.
Therefore the
absence of an Annual Report to citizens time aligned for elections is a
negligent omission on the part of out-of-date government as has been weak
financial management. The manifesto and Queen’s speech commitment might
usefully include actions for BETTER GOVERNMENT.
6th January 2015
