General Election 2010

CCB on BBC debate

I watched PM's question time live today for the first time and witnessed the frenetic nonsense that seems endemic with any election. After being a returning officer for 15 elections over the past 14 years it is a relief not to be responsible for this election, which seems to be mired by empty rhetoric. Instead, I can reflect on the candidates and politics.

The first thing to say is that it will be a very different election than in 1997 when the mood of the country was for positive change and the turnout reflected this, we managed 81% in my constituency. There was an underlying optimism about politics and Blair rode the zeitgeist with gusto. 13 years later the Labour Party is tarnished by the expenses scandal involving a couple of ministers as well as the recession following the banking crisis. They failed to tackle the first, so Geoff Hoon and Steven Byers have become the despised, symbolic image of MPs whose greed was greater than their principles. But Labour also spun itself into a frenzy about lots of meaningless issues and failed to provide the leadership or take some of the tough decisions that are the hallmark of any successful government. The years of bickering between Blair and Brown and the reaction against the Iraq war have not played well.

They let the crazy rail privatisation continue, encouraged the finance sector to implode in its own unchecked avarice, and sacrificed the UN and other international bodies for a decade of deals to keep in with the USA on foreign policy issues such as Iraq, Sudan, Afghanistan and whatever comes next. Blair endorsed the celebrity culture and was duped by business, Bush and Murdoch into letting the economy rip and rewarding the most affluent. They continued to waste money on Trident and two aircraft carriers to be built in Gordon Brown's constituency. They inexplicably supported a third runway at Heathrow that defies any climate change policies. They allowed the manufacturing sector to almost disappear or be sold off to foreign companies or hedge funds. They created a big, centralised government that is the antithesis of the open, transparent and collaborative public policymaking that we require. And they showed little or no trust in localism or faith in public services that provide the social and physical infrastructure for the country. 

OK, so they introduced the minimum wage, increased international aid and invested heavily in schools and health but even that was made far more expensive than it could have been by the extensive use of Private Finance deals. The NHS is in better shape than I can ever remember. The UK has been supportive and effective in the European Union and has played an important role in world affairs and Gordon Brown was instrumental in shaping a global response to the banking crisis. Despite these achievements. it is a blemished CV and the government looks tired and lacking in a vision that will win over voters.

So what of the alternatives? Well, the Tories seem bankrupt of any ideas and all the energy and carefully honed presentation skills of David Cameron are spent on showing that he is not Gordon Brown. After 13 years in the wilderness, you would have thought that they had some policies other than not putting up National Insurance. What they would do is left for us to speculate but watching William Hague and George Osborne reminds me of Mr Burns in the Simpsons. They are for austerity and tax reductions with no empathy for the underprivileged. LibDem leader, Nick Clegg, is prancing around the country with Vince Cable, the housewife's favourite, but even their four priorities seem remarkably lacking in imagination or innovation. 'Trust us, we are not them' is the unwritten tagline for the LibDem campaign. The BNP and UKIP are a comedy of errors and the ScotNats are gathering nuts in May and hoping that a hung parliament will fetch them into a power-broking role and possibly the chance to secure an independence referendum. 

So how or should we vote? Maybe we need a new system of democracy based upon our (the voters') values and priorities, not the democracy of despair that the parties are acting out in the tired, antagonistic theatre of politics that we are obliged to watch. Political parties seem to be driven more by lobbyists and financial backers than their membership and supporters. Scrutiny and transparency are the essence of a pure democracy but these values are eschewed by the malign influence of the lobbyists who are more concerned about their narrow advantage than the well-being of the nation. The mother of parliaments has acquired some nasty habits and should be examining ways in which it can provide some moral and ethical leadership in the troubled times ahead. Like many others, I know who I won't be voting for but wish that there was a party that recognised that our governance systems are broken and promised to give us a constitution fit for the twenty-first century.

Running Again??

After 133 days without a run, following the damage to my right sciatic nerve caused by an over-enthusiastic day of patio building in November, I finally ran again this morning. Not very far, just one mile. But I kept going and felt no worse for the outing, although it was not far enough or fast enough to release any endorphins. The visceral pleasure was mainly from retrieving my favourite Asics running shoes from the rumble layer of the wardrobe and knowing that I would be adding to the 22,873 miles that I had recorded since I started training for the Glasgow marathon in 1983.

The next step will be to make a new playlist to accompany my first proper run - 12 of my favourite running tunes for an attempt on 6 miles.

Kathmandu Images

Everest from Buddha Air

Someone asked me the other day about Kathmandu and it prompted me to dip into my photos from last November to try and capture that crazy, coveted city nestling beneath the Himalayas. It abounds in colour, costume, religion and oozes a generous hospitality. A globally aware place that has its roots in local culture and tradition. Sadus, who may have given up material wealth, but still charge the world's travellers for a photo shot; street markets that vibrate with colour and energy; urbanized grazing animals that shit randomly; buildings that no architect could ever design; and an eclectic mix of religious imagery that is too complex to be hostage to bigotry.

We flew around Everest at dawn with Buddha Air and then spent the rest of the day inhaling the atmosphere of this quite stupendous World Heritage Site.

Trampling on Kettle Chips

Campsies from Lime Craig

Well, I know that visitors to this blog are a bit bored with more scenes in the hills, so I thought I would provide a soundtrack as well. It was another alpine-like morning, and pre-porridge found me heading up the woods to the hills again. The hard night's frost had created sparkling, hard and crispy snow, and the still air created a sound chamber of acoustic excellence. Even the gentle gurgling of the not-quite frozen water in the burns had a joyous jingle. The forest canopy was a natural aviary for the birdsong, which ranged from the knock-knock-knocking of a woodpecker to the twitterings of dozens of small birds. I disturbed a jay, and the flash of colour was accompanied by the whirring beat of its wings.

And providing the metronome for all of this was the rhythmic crunching of snow asI approached the summit of Lime Craig. It was like trampling on kettle chips. Listen below.

Early Morning Glories

Aberfoyle oak wood SSSI

Ben Ledi from Lime Craig

Waterfalls at the David Marshall Lodge

For the last two days, the cold sharp winter weather has returned and I have fallen back into the routine of climbing a hill before breakfast. The burns and waterfalls were frozen from a hard overnight frost but the still dry air made for the best of walking conditions. It is the perfect way to assail the senses and to appreciate the splendour of deciduous forests of oak and birch.

The icing on the cake this morning was a thin veneer of snow which let me follow the tracks of a fox up to the treeline. The sunlight shafting through the trees angled onto the snow crystals which acted as prisms to create a carpet of snow speckled with all the colours of the rainbow. The views from Lime Craig were sharply focused against the unblemished blue skies apart from a cloud cap over Ben Ledi. To the south, the Forth Valley was shrouded in a hazy white mist.

Orkney

Kirkwall airport

St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall

I have just returned from a week in Orkney carrying out a review of corporate policymaking and the governance of sheltered housing and care homes. It was something that I had spent a lot of time on in the late 1970s when my team had produced many recommendations on special needs housing. I visited all 19 District Councils in Strathclyde to encourage a more diverse range of housing to be built or adapted. It had prompted a much-needed investment in special needs housing.

Orkney was bleak in the cradle of winter, geese were grazing, snow showers blew in intermittently and there was a sighting of the northern lights on Monday evening, which I missed. I was buttressed from the expansive Orkney skylines in a comfortable flat in the centre of Kirkwall. Freshly caught Westray haddock became my staple diet as I became a regular at the Kirkwall Hotel. I worked about 12 hours a day for the first 4 days and completed 35 interviews with residential and care home occupants and staff as well as social work and housing managers and politicians.

On Thursday evening I was invited to visit Alistair and Lorraine for a relaxed evening with the easy hospitality of good Orcadian friends. We had a bit of a blowout with several bottles of wine followed by a bottle of whisky. Alistair and I talked until 3:00 am, by which time a lift back to Kirkwall or a taxi was about as likely as another sighting of the northern lights. I grabbed a few hours of sleep in the spare room and the next morning we had a lift into Kirkwall from a friend of Alistair.

Friday was less productive but I managed another 7 meetings and took the chance at lunchtime to walk around St Magnus Cathedral and to buy a book by George Mackay Brown that I had discussed on Wednesday lunchtime with a couple of intense local animateurs. I completed 42 interviews with a wide cross-section of people and met with 25 older people during the week. It unearthed all sorts of fascinating insights into island life as well as boxing the compass of opinions on the workings of the Council and the concerns of elderly people who felt they had not been consulted about proposed closures to their homes.

Dawn, who had organised my diary all week and chauffeured me hither and thither, extracted me from a debriefing with Alistair at 3:30pm and dropped me at the airport about 20 minutes before departure. I met a group of auditors I knew and we had an interesting discussion about public sector efficiencies before embarking on the 4:00pm plane back to Edinburgh. It was one of the faster commutes home and took just 3 hours door to door. I could get used to this.

February hills not budgets

Ben Lomond from Lime Craig

For the first time in twenty years, I had a February free from the frustrations and bickerings of the annual budget setting. And what a week, a high pressure had settled to the north east and the whole week was pitched below freezing but with crystal blue skies and still air - my favourite weather scheme. So each day at first light I sauntered through the oak woods behind the house and traced new routes to the tops of Lime Craig and Craig Mor. The views were simply stunning and the snow capped munros compassed the skyline - a veritable group photo of old friends.

My right leg was beginning to feel stronger again after the trauma of the trapped sciatic nerve and most days I managed to run for several hundred metres as well as making descents down the steepest slopes I could find. By 10:00am I was usually home with a copy of the Guardian and breakfast to look forward to. The only budget thoughts were watching the continued collapse of the equity markets in the face of the Greek budget deficit.

The rest of each day was spent preparing for my next work project, setting up a company and then an afternoon cycle ride or walk. I landed another 3 bits of work for my portfolio - none of which I had bid for, although 2 of them are unpaid but interesting assignments. I never knew that February could be so pleasant or quite appreciated what a beautiful place the hills and forest of Aberfoyle can be in winter. But then again I have seldom been here in February when it wasn't dark.

Angelique Kidjo

Ten years ago I watched Angelique Kidjo on Jools Holland, she was irrepressible and her music was infectious. I went out and bought the CD Ayé. It was the first of many. Last night I went to see her live at the Glasgow Fruit Market as part of Celtic Connections. She is a mesmerising live performer with more humanity than the entire Simon Cowell showcase. 

This was music for a better world and it was interspersed with beautifully constructed short stories of her passion for improving the lives of children. She is a UNICEF ambassador and dedicated to many causes: eradicating disease and poverty, saving young people from unemployment and, in all of these she is a champion for Africa. 

She electrified the audience and danced her way around the entire hall of a thousand well-lubricated Glaswegians with the energy of a twenty-something, not a 49-year-old who had only managed 2 hours sleep before travelling up to Glasgow. There are some good YouTube videos of her doing similar concerts in almost every continent and even a slot on Jools Holland, Agolo. If you get the chance, go and see her. She has musical depth and rhythm but is also a very special voice for the sort of world we should all aspire to in these dark days of austerity and selfish populism.

At Celtic Connections

Ben Lomond

Towards the Arrochar Alps

Summit looking NW

Loch Lomond islands

Saturday 26 January 2010
1005metres of ascent, distance 12 km., 4hours 48minutes

Ben Lomond 974m, 2hrs 33mins


This was the first munro of the year after a long walk over the Menteith hills yesterday afternoon and then a late night at the Angelique Kidjo concert. Alan Geddes had phoned on Friday, he was staying at the Lake of Menteith for the weekend, and we decided to have an easy day on Ben Lomond (or Ben Lemonade as it was spellchecked when I sent a text to Gregor in the Andes). The hill was plastered with new snow when I peeked out of the bedroom window in the morning. We had a late start and there were lots of walkers ahead who traced a dotted line against the persil white slopes to show the route to the summit. I had spotted Mark's car in the car park and when we were halfway up he came bounding down in his nearly new PDSA Berghaus red jacket. (My last visit up Ben Lemonade had been just over 2 years ago with Mark. We had spent the morning cantering along the Aonach Eagach ridge in Glencoe and after a 2 hour drive round to Rowardennan in the afternoon we had set out at 4:00pm. It was Bonfire night and we watched some splendid firework displays from the summit on a perfect still winter's night. We were pleased with ourselves for attempting and enjoying such an absurd combination of hills.)  We spent a while recalling this and other crazy outings and generally catching up on life and gently steaming in the warm midday sun.

As Alan and I continued we emerged from the soft snow and the conditions became icy with ever increasing depths of snow above 600 metres. It gave me chance to put on my crampons for the final 150 metres of ascent to the sun kissed summit. The views to the west were stunning with light reflecting on the Arrochar Alps.  We had 15 minutes at the summit and I took photographs for various other parties before we started the descent.  The islands were like inkblots in the sparkling waters of Loch Lomond and we marvelled at the ever changing vista as the sun, sky and clouds mingled in a sort of celestial kaleidoscope. We were down by last light and home just after 5pm. A good start to the munro year and my right leg had stood up well  although still lacking the strength of its pair.

Peer Reviews in Local Government

Between 1999 and 2005, I was the Scottish columnist for the Local Government Chronicle, writing a monthly piece on whatever was burning me up. I came across this article I wrote about Peer Reviews on the internet while preparing to act as an external assessor for some Best Value Audits. It made me think about what we had forsaken in setting up Best Value Audits. Having been on the receiving end of a Best Value Audit, and now being engaged as an assessor, I am convinced that Peer Reviews were so much more insightful, speedier and helpful than Best Value Reviews that have become more an examination than a constructive dialogue that assists the Council to address its weaknesses and share its successes. I would really have liked to work on Peer Reviews rather than Best Value Reviews after retirement. Particularly since Best Value Reviews have never been extended to the growing phalanx of public sector organisations that have flourished since the creation of the Scottish Parliament.

The Improvement and Development Agency (I&DeA) was set up by the Local Government Association for England in 1999. It was led by Mel Usher, a radical thinker who had been the Chief Executive of South Somerset Council and someone I knew through our involvement at the Local Government Research Centre at the University of Warwick. He devised a system of whole Council reviews for English local government that were carried out by a team of half a dozen people drawn from other councils, involving two Councillors, two Directors,  a facilitator from the I&DeA and chaired by a serving Chief Executive from another Council. The theory was that, as insiders, we would be more likely to gain the trust of councillors and staff in a council than outside-led inspections that were seeking to grade councils. I was impressed by the concept and was asked to chair such a review for Poole in Dorset. The article below was published in the Local Government Chronicle on 30 March 2001.

"Some months ago, Steve Bundred, (the then CEO of Camden Council) writing in this column, extolled the benefits of the Improvement & Development Agency’s local government improvement programme. It was fresh in my mind when I received a phone call asking me to participate in a peer review team.

Apart from the tribulations of travelling the length of the country on Virgin Trains, it was as transforming as Steve had suggested. I arrived at the hotel on Sunday to meet the review team, which consisted of two councillors, two directors, and our I&DeA review manager. Team-building was facilitated by alcohol.

Spending a week with this council allowed us to collect layers of evidence through more than 50 meetings with 230 people – staff, partners, citizens and councillors. We were awestruck by how much had been achieved by a unitary council in just four years. But we also recognised areas for improvement that could not be easily identified or acknowledged from within the council.

We were privileged to witness the energy, commitment and public service ethos that was alive and flourishing across the 25 professions found in the authority. What other organisation has two-thirds of its staff qualified to degree level or equivalent, and the majority of staff are also customers and citizens? The quality of staff and commitment of councillors was a testament to the effectiveness of democratic accountability as a mechanism for the management of sustainable public services.

Innovation and change were evident throughout the complex organisation. It also coped with the constant visits from the various inspection agencies, some of whom overlapped with our visit. But we had the advantage of being local government insiders, and things were said that would not have been shared with government inspectors.

Scotland did seem to have an advantage here – we have an acknowledgement of diversity by the Scottish Executive, and we are allowed to diverge from the template without prosecution. This applies to best value as well, a recognition that this must extend over the public services if we are going to get better outcomes. 

The power of community initiative in England seemed toothless. Had it encouraged active citizenship or the community to be engaged in defining a vision and keeping the council and its partners under scrutiny? Extending democracy to the governance of all public agencies is surely one of the touchstones of community leadership.

But one thing is, unfortunately, the same across the UK. Where are the youngsters in local government? We have spent the past five years downsizing, retiring older staff and failing to provide opportunities for the next generation. It would appear that this is typical of most councils.

How do we raise our game and image to make local governance a career for the 21st century? If I&DeA’s peer reviews have a single message, it is that we are engaged in a remarkable industry which constantly learns, innovates and changes.

Sustainable local government needs to be refreshed with younger workers. How are we collectively going to do this? LGC could start by creating an award for the council with the highest proportion of under-25s – perhaps New Deal could sponsor it."

After my experience of a peer review, I argued for the remit of the I&DeA to be extended to Scotland. The I&DeA were keen, and one such review was carried out for the Highland Council. However, COSLA decided to set up its own Improvement Agency. At the same time, Best Value Audits were introduced by the Scottish Executive. It was a shift towards a top-down inspection regime led by the Accounts Commission. It was also a departure from the earlier recognition that diversity of policies and priorities amongst councils was necessary in a healthy democracy. The Scottish Improvement Service decided, in discussion with COSLA, not to focus on peer reviews. Best Value Audits took far longer, generated much work in preparation for the audits and as a result failed to impart the insider knowledge and goodwill that were such important components of peer reviews. It was just another step in the way the Scottish Government was misusing devolution to centralise policies through the prism of Holyrood and emasculating local government.

The Perfect Day for a Bonspiel -8 January 2010

The perfect day

Sadly not a Bonspiel

Lake of Menteith at dusk

Brush, brush, brush

Lake Hotel

For 15 days, the temperature had been below zero and the Lake of Menteith had frozen over by the New Year. The early curlers, made brave by whisky, were out on the ice by 3 January and speculation about a Bonspiel was growing by the day. Conditions were well nigh perfect on both the 7 and 8 January but instead of the authorities focussing on what precautions should be taken to facilitate a Bonspiel the Royal Caledonia Curling Club, Central Scotland Police and Stirling Council evaded any positive responsibility and instead hid behind Health and Safety matters and the opportunity to stage the Bonspiel was lost. Roads would need to be cleared, shuttle buses from the nearby villages provided, traffic control in place and a clear statement about risk being a matter of personal responsibity.

The issues should have been addressed in a positive fashion starting in earnest at the end of December but the overly long festive break meant that most authorities were not back until 5 January. By this time there was no time or appetite for constructive discussions and, with the roads clogged with snow and the fear of recrimination, the decision not to proceed was the sad but inevitable outcome. But it is a lesson for everyone: focus on seizing the day not strangling a unique event in what were blissful conditions. Our ancestors knew how to extract joy and fun out of severe winters, oh that we were not so risk averse.

We did the next best thing and had an amazing afternoon sauntering across the Lake in this magical arctic winter.

Buchaille Etive Beag

Buchaille Etive Beag - Stob Dubh

Buchaille Etive Mor from Stob Dubh

Gregor on Buchaille Etive Beag - Stob Dubh

This post refers to a walk I made a year ago before the blog began, but given that I intend to complete another post-retirement Munro round, it will hopefully contribute to the complete record of all Munros.

I had always intended to retire at some stage between 2008 and 2010. After a difficult year in 2008, when my father had died, work had become increasingly stressful. The multi-member wards had created tensions in the Council ad a new administration in April 2008 had exacerbated the stress at work. I had spent a day in London as a witness at an Employment Tribunal a couple of days before Christmas. The claimant accused the respondent of giving me a damaging reference that led to her not being offered a senior post following an interview. The new administration had decided not to appoint her but to ask for a reference before confirming their decision. The reality was that she did not have sufficient experience and had performed poorly in the group exercise given to the candidates. When her previous Chief Executive (the respondent) had indicated that there was a settlement agreement that did not allow him to give a reference. She lost her case, but I had spent days dealing with the case, requiring me to read a 500-page report of her claim before the Employment Tribunal and spend 2 hours in the witness box. It had to travel to London the afternoon before for a 9am start, and I did not get home until 1:30am on the Saturday. 

It reinforced my decision, made over the Christmas/New Year holidays, to retire in late June 2009. I had felt tired by the long hours of work and frustrated by the ever-increasing edicts and inspections from the Scottish Government. I had also been diagnosed as having atrial fibrillation by the GP over the holidays, which made me think that 70-hour workweeks were not helping my health. I drafted my retirement letter and gave 6 months' notice when I returned to work on Monday, 5 January. After 38 years of uninterrupted service, with only a week off for a broken leg in 1977, it felt more like an earned freedom than a resignation. 

Saturday, 3 January 2009

Ascent:       970 metres

Distance:    9 kilometres

Time:         3 hours 12 minutes  

Stob Dubh                   958m     1hr  25mins

Stob Coire Raineach   924m      2hrs 19mins

It was a perfect morning as Gregor and I left Aberfoyle at 9:00am, and the views on the drive to Glencoe were outstanding in the early morning light. Unfortunately, by the time we reached Bridge of Orchy, high grey clouds had begun to fill the sky, but the visibility remained good. It was a crisp winter morning with no wind as we started the walk at 10:45am with the temperature at -4°C. We followed the good path up the Lairig Eilde; there were patches of hard ice, but it presented no problems. We climbed at a good pace to the bealach at 760 metres achieved in just 45 minutes. We had overtaken a dozen walkers and Gregor had charged ahead, arriving 6 minutes ahead of me. We headed south for the summit of Stob Dubh first; it was hard-packed snow frozen hard, but we were able to use previous boot steps to climb the excellent ridge that gave stunning views across to Buchaille Etive Mor.

We had some coffee at the summit and soaked in the excellent views in all directions. We returned to the bealach and ascended the northern top, Stob Coire Raineach, which provides a balcony view over Glencoe. Gregor was charging ahead again, and we passed another 7 walkers by the time we had jogged down to the bealach for the third time and began the descent to the Lairig Eilde. Several difficult patches of black ice slightly slowed progress. We were down by 2pm and called in at Tyndrum for a roll and some chips to bring in the new year and celebrate my pending retirement. 

I wanted to spend more time on the hills and less time trying to fight the tentacles of Scottish Government controls and political shenanigans in the Council. I wanted to be in fine fettle to enter the next phase of my life, and I could sense that continuing on a diet of 70-hour weeks was not helpful.