Author: Prof. Colin R Talbot

Professor of Government (Emeritus), University of Manchester Visiting Fellow, University of Cambridge Judge Business School

Universal versus targeted benefits?

One idea to resolve the universal benefits versus targeted benefits issue, at least for the elderly, comes from an old friend Anne Bradford who has, to put it mildly, quite a lot financial experience in banking and as an adviser to people in hardship: Continue reading “Universal versus targeted benefits?” →

The Audit Commission – chronicle of a death unforetold

Britain has one of the least corrupt public services in the world. Mistakes, yes they happen. Inefficiencies, certainly – what large complex organisations don’t have a constant battle with becoming overweight? But public servants pocketing public funds, or demanding bribes to do their jobs, is mercifully a very rare occurrence, now.
Continue reading “The Audit Commission – chronicle of a death unforetold” →

I predict a riot

No, not the irritating Kaiser Chiefs song, a real riot. The revelations that up to 15,000 jobs, and 22% of the budget, is probably going to be slashed from the Ministry of Justice – which runs prisons in England and Wales – started that little ditty running around my head again. Continue reading “I predict a riot” →

Smaller Desk, Sir Humphrey? Reality imitates TV…

The Daily Telegraph reports that Treasury civil servants are being expected to squeeze up a bit and use less floor space and smaller desks as part of Whitehall’s efficiency drive. Continue reading “Smaller Desk, Sir Humphrey? Reality imitates TV…” →

Monster Cuts versus Alien Reforms

All pretence that the Coalition government is merely trying to sort out the country’s public finances is long gone. It is a Liberal Conservative government, in the 19th century sense of wanting a small,  liberal, state with the minimum of compassion for the ‘deserving poor’ and as little socialized provision as possible. It is setting out to achieve what Thatcher tried and only half succeeded in – reversing much of the great liberal-social democratic reforms of the 20th century. Continue reading “Monster Cuts versus Alien Reforms” →

Labour’s Leadership Contestants – “It Weren’t Me, Guv”?

Is it just me, or does the dominant mood music from Labour’s potential leaders sound rather like  “it weren’t me, guv”?

I focus on Labour for purely expedient reasons – I haven’t been a member of any party for many years and have no party loyalty to any of them. I’m using Labour merely because they are now the sole major opposition to a Government that appears hell-bent of re-shaping the State in fundamentally regressive directions. Continue reading “Labour’s Leadership Contestants – “It Weren’t Me, Guv”?” →

OBR: Dead Duck Waddling?

The Financial Times has now established that OBR “massaged” the employment figures it so helpfully produced for David Cameron last week… see here. By inserting some completely invented assumptions about possible future government policy, OBR trimmed 175,000 public sector job losses from the total, enabling Cameron to claim their job losses would be less than Labour’s. So OBR’s forecasts, which were barely credible to start with, are now shown to have been manipulated in quite outrageous ways. Maybe it’s because I’m in Beijing, but I can’t help thinking of dead ducks.

Things Gove Wrong In Government

Education Secretary Michael Gove is learning a painful lesson – things go wrong in government. One could almost be sympathetic, if it wasn’t for the sanctimonious way in which Coalition Ministers have been gleefully highlighting every little, and big, error of their predecessors in the Labour government. Continue reading “Things Gove Wrong In Government” →

Off Budd (Office for Budget Responsibility)

The sudden announcement that Sir Alan Budd is to leave the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) after only 3 months may fatally wound the already less than fully credible flagship reform introduced by Chancellor George Osborne. Continue reading “Off Budd (Office for Budget Responsibility)” →