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Donald Savoie is a finalist for the Writers’ Trust Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing for Whatever Happened to the Music Teacher? How Government Decides and Why.
The following is an excerpt from his piece in the Huffington Post this week.
I decided to write this book because I became convinced that the public service has lost its way.
The Canadian public service has witnessed three major developments – the first, in its early years, when it was designed to help develop the country’s basic public service infrastructure and the second, when it expanded on all cylinders with the arrival of Keynesian economics. We are now living the third and by far the most challenging development. We have tried to make the public sector look like the private sector but failed. We have introduced one major management reform measure after another but none have lived up to even modest expectations. We are seeing a public service collapsing under its own weight, producing performance and evaluation reports feeding accountability and oversight requirements that do not resonate with Canadians or even Parliament.
The public service does not need yet another vision exercise from on high, another management reform package that does not respect its traditions and values. It can however regain credibility by being accountable the old fashioned way and answering simple questions that matter to Canadians. The Canadian government spends about $10 billion a year on consultants. Why? The Canadian public service added about 70,000 positions between 1999 and 2011. Why? In some departments, there are nine management levels between a Director and the Minister. Why? Front line managers have seen their operations reduced substantially in recent years while units in Ottawa have multiplied and grown. Why? Vaguely worded reports designed to deflect criticism and manage the blame game do not measure up.
Now in its fourteenth year, the Shaughnessy Cohen Prize is awarded annually for a book of literary nonfiction that captures a political subject of relevance to Canadian readers and has the potential to shape or influence thinking on Canadian political life.
The winner will be announced in Ottawa on April 2nd at the Politics & the Pen Gala. Details available here.
To learn more about Whatever Happened to the Music Teacher?, or to order online, click here.
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