Sunday, July 03, 2022
Holding Boris Johnson's promises to account
There is not enough work carried out in the UK Parliament, or indeed any of the devolved Parliaments in holding administartions to account for their manifesto promises. This is despite the fact that Ministers will oftne gloss over or redefine their commitments in an effort to avoid being branded a failure. Often the problem is one of over-promising or not doing the homework necessary to ensure that the commitment is deliverable. In Boris Johnson's case it is that he believes that he can get away with anything, a belief that has so far served him well.
It is reassuring therefore to read in the Guardian that the government’s official spending watchdog is to launch an inquiry into Boris Johnson’s claim that 40 new hospitals will be built in England by 2030, as concerns grow in Whitehall that the pledge is unaffordable and has been greatly oversold to the public.
The paper says that in a move that could prove hugely embarrassing for the prime minister, the independent National Audit Office (NAO) has decided to conduct a “value for money review” into the entire scheme, which was a cornerstone of the Conservative party’s 2019 general election manifesto:
The NAO has also made clear that it is concerned at how the government still maintains that it will build 40 entirely new hospitals, when in reality many will merely be extensions or refurbishments of existing ones.
In a letter to the shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, who had raised questions about delays and the resulting rising costs of the scheme with the NAO, its top official – Gareth Davies, the comptroller and auditor general – said he was already preparing a full value for money review.
Davies also said that he had taken “particular” note of the “implications of delay for increasing costs at this time of high inflation and the matter of whether all projects truly meet the classification of ‘new hospitals’”. Davies said he would be reporting back in 2023.
This inquiry has the potential to raise further questions about honesty and standards inside the Johnson government following the long-drawn-out Partygate controversy and a series of recent sex scandals involving male Conservative MPs. I can't wait for the report.
It is reassuring therefore to read in the Guardian that the government’s official spending watchdog is to launch an inquiry into Boris Johnson’s claim that 40 new hospitals will be built in England by 2030, as concerns grow in Whitehall that the pledge is unaffordable and has been greatly oversold to the public.
The paper says that in a move that could prove hugely embarrassing for the prime minister, the independent National Audit Office (NAO) has decided to conduct a “value for money review” into the entire scheme, which was a cornerstone of the Conservative party’s 2019 general election manifesto:
The NAO has also made clear that it is concerned at how the government still maintains that it will build 40 entirely new hospitals, when in reality many will merely be extensions or refurbishments of existing ones.
In a letter to the shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, who had raised questions about delays and the resulting rising costs of the scheme with the NAO, its top official – Gareth Davies, the comptroller and auditor general – said he was already preparing a full value for money review.
Davies also said that he had taken “particular” note of the “implications of delay for increasing costs at this time of high inflation and the matter of whether all projects truly meet the classification of ‘new hospitals’”. Davies said he would be reporting back in 2023.
This inquiry has the potential to raise further questions about honesty and standards inside the Johnson government following the long-drawn-out Partygate controversy and a series of recent sex scandals involving male Conservative MPs. I can't wait for the report.
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Is it more likely that Johnson 'got Brexit done' was the winner in 2019 and all his other promises were pie in the sky never to really happen.That way he and Cummings sold a lie to the UK just to win the election for the Libertarians to succeed.
I note that Charities are now rampant in the country from food banks clothing banks and even NHS CHARITIES.iS THAT THE WAY jOHNSON IS REALLY TAKING THE COUNTRY,BACK TO THE DESERVING AND UNDESERVING POOR?I also note that it is NOT the 100,000 plus earners that are being taxed only the rest of us.
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I note that Charities are now rampant in the country from food banks clothing banks and even NHS CHARITIES.iS THAT THE WAY jOHNSON IS REALLY TAKING THE COUNTRY,BACK TO THE DESERVING AND UNDESERVING POOR?I also note that it is NOT the 100,000 plus earners that are being taxed only the rest of us.
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