John Little

Comment on: Walker v Seddon - the debate goes on

John Little's comment 22-Jul-2009 3:09 pm

The last resort of an intellectually bankrupt organisation is to engage in personal attacks on those who have the timerity to suggest that the 'emperor' has no clothes. Clearly the Audit Commission, as represented by its communications managing director, is well past being relevant to public service. The sooner David Cameron removes this unaccountable quango the better off we will all be. The personal attacks by David Walker on John Seddon show the real issue with the Audit Commission. The AC arrogantly sees itself as having a right to exist no matter what it asks organisations to do and whether or not those things are adding any value to the public. The AC are ill-informed on what matters to the public. Equally they are ill-informed about what is actually happening in the organisations they inspect. The amount of time and money spent by many organisations in preparing for inspections by the Audit Commission and pretending to meet their target regime is the real scandal. I am aware of several organisations that have squandered over £100,000 each preparing for each AC inspection. I don't know of anyone who thinks the AC and its specification regime has ever added any value to anyone other than consultants who help organisations prepare for the AC inspection. I do know of organisations who think up silly scams to fool inspectors by having catchy internal programmes and coach their staff for weeks on what answers to give inspectors. Leaders who are career minded often drive their organisations to 'play the game' with the AC. Therefore, poor leaders do bad things and are duly rewarded with further promotions, because of star ratings, thus perpetuating the belief that compliance is more important than serving the public. John Seddon's apparent crime was to tell the truth as seen by his organisation. What he and his people appear to have seen is that complying with AC requirements actually makes organisations worse off than if they had not bothered to comply. Let's hope that in these financially constrained times the next government will dispose of the Audit Commission. Then Mr David Walker can go and get a real job!