Boris has done what a PM should do. He’s laid out a set of goals and high level approach (route map) that is intended to contextualise the guidance which the government will publish in much more detail at 2.00pm this afternoon. He’s also said that his route map will change as the journey evolves (no plan survives contact in military speak). Whether what he has done is good enough remains to be seen over the coming weeks but I’m not sure he could have done anything else given the huge short, medium and long term complexities that we all face. Guidance will need to be interpreted and put into practice, which will inevitably mean further work and acceptance of responsibility by those with the necessary qualifications and experience to apply said guidance to the specifics of the workplace, home etc. The last thing any of us want is a group of policy makers and politicians developing the detailed ways of working, method statements, risk assessments etc that govern our daily lives. IMHO one of the real problems with the approach thus far is that politicians and policy makers have too often reached into the spaces that should be occupied by those who are used to ‘doing’, including civil servants, hospital managers, NHS procurers, educators, businesses etc. Using military speak again, politicians and policy makers need to stay at the strategic outcome and constraints level and allow the professionals to deal with the operational and tactical details required to deliver those desired strategic outcomes.
Boris has done what a PM should do. He’s laid out a set of goals and high level approach (route map) that is intended to contextualise the guidance which the government will publish in much more detail at 2.00pm this afternoon. He’s also said that his route map will change as the journey evolves (no plan survives contact in military speak). Whether what he has done is good enough remains to be seen over the coming weeks but I’m not sure he could have done anything else given the huge short, medium and long term complexities that we all face. Guidance will need to be interpreted and put into practice, which will inevitably mean further work and acceptance of responsibility by those with the necessary qualifications and experience to apply said guidance to the specifics of the workplace, home etc. The last thing any of us want is a group of policy makers and politicians developing the detailed ways of working, method statements, risk assessments etc that govern our daily lives. IMHO one of the real problems with the approach thus far is that politicians and policy makers have too often reached into the spaces that should be occupied by those who are used to ‘doing’, including civil servants, hospital managers, NHS procurers, educators, businesses etc. Using military speak again, politicians and policy makers need to stay at the strategic outcome and constraints level and allow the professionals to deal with the operational and tactical details required to deliver those desired strategic outcomes.
Well said Chris.
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Boris Johnson (he isn’t “Boris” - that’s a character he invented to fool people into thinking he’s some sort of loveable rogue so they would vote for him) has messed this whole thing up from the start. His recent TV mumblings were just that - mumblings. He’s an over-privileged oaf who thinks only of himself.
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Strikes me as a bit bitter Fox T. but all entitled to their opinion.
Not bitter, just annoyed and frankly exasperated that he managed to fool so many. I had hoped that I had got it wrong and that he would turn out to be a good leader, and initially, with his simple clarity over Brexit, it appeared that way. However, it turned out that unless he had Dominic Cummings telling him what to do he was simply his rather vacuous (but clearly charming) "Boris" character. It's not a party political issue either - I was very critical of Jeremy Corbyn's leadership prowess.
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