All in a good cause
HOW MUSICALLY such advice must fall upon a departmental ear. At Marsham Street, the management board (oh, I say) has agreed in principle to set up a steering group under the chairmanship of the Per- manent Secretary. As a reward for calling the consultants in, the Office Services Divi- sion can-be the secretariat, and all that dis- seminating and co-ordinating in a good green cause should keep everyone's jobs safe for life. Now Robert Atkins, Mr Gum- mer's ministerial side-kick who succeeded poor Tim 'Paying for the past' Yeo, is writ- ing round to the department's clients, ask- ing them to account for their own house- keeping. Mr Atkins can have a busy Lizzie. Anyone still wondering why public spend- ing remains so obstinately high should turn to this case study of a bureaucracy's capaci- ty to create unproductive work for itself and other people. I have referred the Per- manent Secretary's steering group to NABC (Not Another Bloody Committee.) As for Mr Gummer, who could improve the environment by blowing up his office build- ing, he Should make sure that the secretari- at is inside it.
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