Pretending to make economies
WITH the second tranche of savings announced by Health and Social Services, it is clear that at least one department is committed to living within its means and, to date at least, is able to make cuts and reduce headcount without damaging services.
WITH the second tranche of savings announced by Health and Social Services, it is clear that at least one department is committed to living within its means and, to date at least, is able to make cuts and reduce headcount without damaging services.
It is a far cry from some other departments, which have already said that no economies are possible, and in rather marked contrast to Education, which was also singled out by Treasury and Resources in the 2009 accounts as a freely-employing area 'of considerable concern'.
That was triggered by Education's decision at a time of supposed economic stringency to take on a huge number of additional staff, some 50 full-time equivalents.
In that context, Education's announcement at the end of last month that it was looking to return £2m. in savings and unspent balances looks like a cynical attempt to get a good headline, especially since those unspent balances represent taxpayers' cash the department shouldn't have anyway.
Its minister compounded that sense of spin in saying the 'savings' (coming after expenditure that should not have happened) were to demonstrate that her board took its job seriously and realised that it was under economic pressure which, presumably, is why she allowed her officials to make such a spirited contribution to helping the States payroll costs increase by 9% – more than £14m. – the year before.
In any event, the offered saving, on a 2010 budget of more than £74m. is hardly significant given that Education wants to take it back with the other hand to launch nursery education.
Islanders need to be aware that there is little commitment across the States to meaningful savings. That's why there has been no blanket ban on recruitment or on training or travel. It is business as usual at the growing expense of the taxpayer because, well, there is plenty more where that came from.
In addition, repeat 'structural deficit' often enough and people might start to believe that there is a problem when it is simply ministers failing to control their departments.
