Thursday 30 December 2010

Quangos - What you Pay for?

Tonight as I watched the crisis involving the Northern Ireland Water authority a guy from an organisation called Waterwise briefly appeared for a quote on a news programme. He was from 'Waterwise' which I had never heard of so I googled 'Waterwise'!

Now this is very interesting because 'Waterwise' has a mission, a vision and values! Please bear with me because you will not believe this...

The Vision - Water will be used wisely everyday, everywhere!

The Mission - We will ensure that water efficiency is integral to everyone's life!

The Values - (wait for it) partnership, innovation facilitation, independence.

Now have you got that...this is serious stuff...water falls from the sky free and they have formed a quango to deal with it! But wait because surely we cannot have too many people involved in this nonsense. I mean it is kids stuff. In the words of my brother ...'I cannot believe it!

But it is true and this is the extent of how serious they are because firstly let me introduce you to The Board...

Chair
Head of Water Environment Agency
Independent Corporate Finance
Advisor The Transition Studio
Freelance Communications
Chief Executive Straight PLC
Managing Director Waterwise
Managing Director Veolia Water Outsourcing Ltd (yes really)

Now that is the Board of Waterwise but it doesn't end there Oh no! After that we have the Team!

Water Efficient Product and Technologies Specialist
Operations Director
The Communications Director
Technical Research Manager
Policy Director
Head of Research and Tap into Savings programme Manager.

Tap into Savings? Never heard of it but it also has a team! Programme Evaluation Manager
Project Facilitator Mersthill and Redhill (what!?)
Project Facilitator for Coventry and ... there is a project facilitator for Braintree.

Have you had enough? well unfortunately we also have the usual consultants... Waterside Consulting Ltd... Kathryn Rathouse Social Research... an Internet Technology
Consultant from Sebenza Systems!

This how the quango system works. Somebody gets an idea and then they expand it. All the people earn loads of dosh so nobody ever exposes it for what it is. The reason is that they are all in the same boat. Their mission is a myth. None of them are needed but they all need that job. They all depend on that job because mark my words it is a well paid job.

This is what we face. Tens of thousands of university graduates who actually have non jobs but who take millions from the public purse without a backward glance. They cannot afford a backward glance because a backward glance is reality. A backward glance means hardship, a challenge and a meaningful life.

I have no grudge against 'Waterwise' or any of the people that I have mentioned. I do not know them but they are in my humble opinion typical of the quango that is taking far too much out of our precious economy.

Message Jacob.. don't go on the telly because people like me are watching!

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