Friday, March 04, 2011
How much does it cost to change a lightbulb?
Reading this story I was reminded of the scene in Independence Day when the President of the United States enters Area 51 for the first time and the question is asked how the costs for it were hidden away in the budget.
The answer is something along the lines of "you don't think it really costs £22 to change a light bulb or £103 for inch long screws or that military dog kennels cost more than five-star hotel rooms do you?" The money is hidden away in other budget lines.
I rather wish that this was the real explanation for the profligacy revealed by the leaking of these Private Finance Initiative invoices. Alas, I suspect that the actual reason is a bit more prosaic and no more defensible.
The answer is something along the lines of "you don't think it really costs £22 to change a light bulb or £103 for inch long screws or that military dog kennels cost more than five-star hotel rooms do you?" The money is hidden away in other budget lines.
I rather wish that this was the real explanation for the profligacy revealed by the leaking of these Private Finance Initiative invoices. Alas, I suspect that the actual reason is a bit more prosaic and no more defensible.