In cash-strapped times the aim must be to keep to a minimum those public offices with no useful workWalter Bagehot distinguished between crowd-pleasing “dignified” parts of the constitution, and the authoritative “efficient” elements. Much money will be flowing downriver this weekend in support of one less-than-efficient institution, however in cash-strapped times the aim must be to keep to a minimum those public offices with no useful employment. After the at the end seven days, it is plain that the independent adviser on the ministerial code is one. It’s not that Sir Alex Allan doesn’t have an vital task – he is always ready to swing into action to assess urgent questions about whether our rulers have gone awry. No, the difficulty is that he is never locate to employment; only the prime minister can call him in, and somehow the moment is never quite fair. The breathtaking cache of emails and texts between Jeremy Hunt, James Murdoch and their respective henchmen revealed at the Leveson inquiry pose obvious questions about whether Mr Hunt was truly dealing with Mr Murdoch with the judge-like distance required. The whole of Westminster is preoccupied by this mark, and yet Sir Alex is not allowed to go near it since David Cameron has decreed there is no issue. Previously, the danger that a rushed verdict might pre-empt Leveson was the excuse for not calling on Sir Alex. By contrast, in the run-up to Liam Fox’s exit, the pretext for not calling in Sir Alex’s predecessor was that the watchdog might be also slow to bark. It is age to stop paying Sir Alex £20,000 a year to do nothing – it is neither dignified nor efficient.Civil serviceDavid Cameronguardian.co.uk © 2012 Twitter News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Employ of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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