Smarter Government? No, desperate Government

Over at the FT's Westminster Blog, Jim Rickart has seen the leaked copy of the Cabinet Office white paper hilariously entitiled 'Smarter Government', and he's not impressed.

With an election drawing slowly - far too slowly - nearer, and no sign of this bloody recession ever fucking ending, the Labour government are getting desperate.

The 'last chance' document is according crammed full with talk of savings that will (or rather could) be made.

There's just one teensy, tiny, problem: as yet, no-one seems to know what the savings will be.

The paper sets out the dramatic, immediate, focussed action, and the effects we can expect:

“..reducing the administrative expenditure of arms-length bodies by at least X% will save up to £Xbn a year”

Oh. Well, duh. Reducing expenditure will save costs, will it? That's what we should do then, innit?  Just a little more detail might help. What will you do, oh masters?

“..modernising working practices and the way we locate the business of government could save X%”

'Modernising', 'could', 'X%'. Well, that's about as vague as its possible to be, isn't it? Even for a promise from this bankrupt-in-every-way Government.  There's even, for a grand finale, this bold call to action:

“(Prof X) has been appointed to advise the prime minister and chancellor on the scope for further relocations”

How utterly pathetic is that last point? Someone - oh god, please, someone - will be appointed to advise on saving through relocation. It's just that no-one knows who that lucky person will be. It's quite quite likely that this inept bunch of lying thieves can't actual find anyone.

Well, would you take the job?

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