Guernsey Press

Substance trumps governance

ELSEWHERE in this newspaper concerns are raised about the prospect of a new ‘cost-reduction sub-committee’ led by States members, being able to have any significant effect.

Published

The enthusiasm for ‘action’ to salvage something from the Tax Review’s has led Policy & Resources to apparently desperate moves.

President Peter Ferbrache has called for ‘out-of-the-box ideas’, and when called out over an apparent lack of governance and transparency in allowing members of his committee to apparently select the membership of the sub-committees themselves, including surprise selections from outside the States, argued: ‘We just wanted to get on with something.’

So alleged substance seems to trump governance, in a committee which might buzz around a bit, but frankly won't be expected to trigger much significant change. Just like the ‘new direction’ announced when P&R admitted, back in September, that it was giving up on the long-standing Public Service Reform plan in favour of some rather woolly plans for 'practical improvements'.

Deputy Ferbrache told us he had ‘confidence’ in his colleagues. He told deputies that when Sir Alf Ramsey was allowed to pick his own England football team, rather than a selection committee, England won the World Cup inside three years. But we recall that Ramsey’s reign also ended in disappointment, failure, ‘joyless football’, and ultimately, the sack.