Robert Ramsbottom Special - 1 + 4 = 4

As Councillor Robert Ramsbottom refuses to post any comments I leave on his blog, I guess I'll have to post them myself. Now if any of you look at Bobby Sheepsjacksie's blog about Dexter Whitfield, you will see that there are four comments. I, however, can see a mysterious fifth comment left by me. What is so special about this post? Well it has been awaiting moderation since the 13th May. Poor little Bobby doesn't know what to do? Maybe he's waiting till monday, so he can ask his boss and PR guru Brian Coleman? He does give me such fun. Anyway, I've decided to set up a fan club page for young Bobby -

http://robertramsbottom.blogspot.com/2011/05/welcome-to-robert-ramsbottoms-fan-page.html

Here's his real blog -

http://robertrams.wordpress.com/2011/05/09/who-is-professor-dexter-whitfield/#respond

Anyway here's what I see on his blog (with my comment awaiting modding at the Ramsbottom of the page) :-

4 Responses to Who is Professor Dexter Whitfield?

1. Mrs Angry, Broken Barnet blog says:

   May 10, 2011 at 8:56 am

   Oh dear, Robert. Does it not occur to you that it is a good thing to read widely on any given subject, and to make the effort to include material that opposes, as well as that which supports, your own position on a subject? This is the reason I try to read books, newspapers, blogs etc of all political persuasions, in order to reach a better perspective: I recommend this approach to you and all your Tory colleagues, and then perhaps you might feel inclined to moderate some of your group’s more extreme ideological policies. If you had read Prof Whitfield’s writings before committing yourselves to the One Barnet nonsense, Barnet might not be facing the same inevitable conclusion reached by your fellow Tories on Suffolk County Council, ie that massive outsourcing is dangerous, unworkable and benefits only the private companies receiving contracts.
   
2. John Dix says:

   May 10, 2011 at 9:22 am

   Robert,
   Dexter Whitfield isn’t the only one critical of the One Barnet Outsourcing programme. An independent review of the DRS business case by Adrian Waite, a former Local Authority Finance Director (Section 151 Officer), stated:
   “During the thirty years that I have worked in local government finance as a local government officer and management consultant, including some time as Finance Director of a Borough Council, I have seen and written many business cases, business plans and options appraisals. This business case is remarkable for the apparent lack of robust evidence to support its main conclusions that £28 million of savings and increased income is achievable and that this can only be delivered through outsourcing”.
   Southwest One is an example where outsourcing has gone horribly wrong. Ken Maddock, Conservative Leader of Somerset County council recently stated in an interview with the BBC that if they could tear up the contract today they would save £58 million.
   Outsourcing is not the panacea it is made out to be. Without robust evidence that savings will be achieved it just seems a reckless approach.
   
3. Julia Hines says:

   May 10, 2011 at 7:22 pm

   Robert, with respect, exactly what savings have been achieved? I would be fascinated to know. I thought that so far there has only been huge cost and some small savings which would have been achieved in any event. Having looked at some of his reports, my understanding is not that he has ignored savings as you say, but that they do not exist and there is no empirical evidence they will ever exist in the future.
   
4. robertrams says:

   May 12, 2011 at 5:10 pm

   My understanding is that former Chief Executive Leo Boland and former Leader Mike Freer agreed to give the unions a sum of money so they could hire consultants and fully participate in the dialogue around the ‘Future Shape’ of the council.
   The unions decided to use this money to bring Professor Whitfield onboard. They chose their own independent expert; the council did not suggest Professor Whitfield or anyone else. So indirectly the council paid for his initial reports, since then, the reports have been paid for by the unions.
   I have no problem with an independent assessment of the programme, I just wonder whether these reports are truly objective.
   It is important to remember that One Barnet isn’t just about outsourcing, it is a council transformation programme. It is about reassessing how services are provided and creating a citizen-centred council. This kind of transformation programme will inevitably be front loaded with costs but that doesn’t mean it won’t deliver savings.
   It is vital that the team managing these projects and contracts has the right capabilities and experience to ensure we avoid the pitfalls experienced by some other councils.
   As mentioned previously, the council needs to operate with a far smaller budget. The One Barnet programme is our solution, a solution that doesn’t reply on the widespread redundancies and cuts to frontline services that are proposed by other councils.
   I understand that the outsourcing projects are not popular with everyone, but how popular would the alternative be?
   
5. Rog T says:

   Your comment is awaiting moderation.
   

   May 13, 2011 at 11:14 pm

   Robert, is your failure to post my previous comments an admission of intellectual inferiority?
   
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   message to Bobby - You really could save us all a sackload of laughs at your expense by just putting the comments up on your blog and using your stunning wit and intellect to put us in our places. How hard can that be? Hope you like your fanclub. I will be looking for lots of lovely pictures to post on it.