Monday, January 14, 2013
Yes Prime Minister
With a remake of Yes Prime Minister starting later this week, this article from former Prime Ministerial aide, Steve Hilton in today's Telegraph seems particularly apt.
Mr. Hilton has told students at Stanford University in California that Ministers are being overwhelmed by “horrific” bureaucracy dominated by “paper-shuffling” civil servants, often leaving David Cameron unaware of government decisions.
It is the age-old problem of senior officials trying to get their own way by wearing their Minster out with too much paperwork.
It is of course up to the Minister to suss-out these tactics and take action to deal with them. That is where special advisors fit in. If they are used properly, that is.
It reminds me of the episode of Yes Prime Minister, where the Israeli Ambassadro tips off Jim Hacker about the impending invasion of a British territory, which is then pre-empted by moving troops there on exercise.
When Sir Humphrey confronts him as to how he knew, the PM says that it was on page 650 (or similar) of that night's foreign office brief. In other words, they tried to bury it under an avalanche of paper work so as not to alert him.
Will the new Yes Prime Minister be as relevant? We will have to see.
Mr. Hilton has told students at Stanford University in California that Ministers are being overwhelmed by “horrific” bureaucracy dominated by “paper-shuffling” civil servants, often leaving David Cameron unaware of government decisions.
It is the age-old problem of senior officials trying to get their own way by wearing their Minster out with too much paperwork.
It is of course up to the Minister to suss-out these tactics and take action to deal with them. That is where special advisors fit in. If they are used properly, that is.
It reminds me of the episode of Yes Prime Minister, where the Israeli Ambassadro tips off Jim Hacker about the impending invasion of a British territory, which is then pre-empted by moving troops there on exercise.
When Sir Humphrey confronts him as to how he knew, the PM says that it was on page 650 (or similar) of that night's foreign office brief. In other words, they tried to bury it under an avalanche of paper work so as not to alert him.
Will the new Yes Prime Minister be as relevant? We will have to see.
