Auto Amazon Links: No products found. Blocked by captcha.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has called on Labour members to cease making excuses regarding the slow progress in public service reforms. Speaking at a think tank conference, he criticized what he described as an “excuses culture” within the centre-left, warning that such an attitude damages their credibility. “If we tell the public that we can’t make anything work, then why on earth would they vote to keep us in charge?” he questioned.
This plea follows remarks from Paul Ovenden, a former close aide to Sir Keir Starmer, who argued that the government faces significant restraints imposed by regulators, campaign groups, and various stakeholders invested in maintaining the current system. Ovenden, who stepped down from his role as Keir Starmer’s director of political strategy in September after his past messages emerged, wrote in The Times that the British state has grown extensively while simultaneously weakening itself. He further described a “political perma-class” existing across parties and departments, primarily focused on preserving their position within the system.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has voiced similar frustrations about institutional barriers hindering swift decision-making. During a Commons liaison committee session last month, he remarked that there are numerous regulations, consultations, and arm’s-length bodies that delay the delivery of policies after decisions are made. “Every time I go to pull a lever there are a whole bunch of regulations, consultations, [and] arm’s-length bodies that mean that the action from pulling the lever to delivery is longer than I think it ought to be,” he told MPs.
Streeting, without naming Sir Keir directly, made clear at the Institute for Government annual conference that those within the centre-left should take control of their destiny rather than blaming external forces. He emphasized belief in the state’s transformative power, stating, “We are not simply at the mercy of forces outside of our control. Our fortunes are in our hands.” He added that where “there aren’t levers, we build them,” and where “there are barriers, we bulldoze them,” underscoring the urgent need for public service reform. Highlighting the broader impact, he warned that failure in this arena fosters public cynicism and a rise in populism. During a Q&A session, he stressed how disempowering it is to give people the impression that elected officials lack the agency to effect change, calling it a “really bad place for a democracy to be.” His views found resonance with Dame Louise Casey, who was appointed by Sir Keir last year to spearhead the government’s “plan for change.” Casey urged civil servants at the same conference to abandon complaints and instead cultivate a “grip it and fix it” attitude toward improving public services
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
Auto Amazon Links: No products found. Blocked by captcha.