13 March 2007

What do we want? Re-organisation - now?

Maybe it's because they've never been in government but the SNP seem to think that their plans to re-structure the Executive will matter to the electorate.

OK, so the size of the cabinet would be reduced to the First Minister and five cabinet secretaries. But so what? It would cost a bit less, which might be a Good Thing. On the other hand, certain parties will be less than content that issues such as enterprise, housing and local government, transport, arts, culture and sport no longer have a dedicated voice in cabinet. But what matters is the quality of decision-making: there is nothing in the proposals to indicate that an SNP cabinet and its allies will do any better than the current mob.

Furthermore, what is the point of this?
"We will reduce the number of Scottish Executive Departments by one third from nine to six, through a series of simplifications, amalgamations and transfers of responsibilities."

Big deal! But, if nobody is going to stop doing anything, you are merely re-arranging the deckchairs. You don't make any staff resource savings, apart from at the very top (and, even then, civil servants have ways of protecting their positions). The only real outcome is that everybody needs to get new business cards.

It is of course necessary for an aspiring government to prepare for office. But there are more important issues to worry about than the shape of the administration, especially when at this stage the SNP can have no real idea of the demands of ministerial office.

If Mr Salmond thinks that messing about with government structure is going to set the electoral heather on fire, he is mistaken.

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