Summary - 10 reason for bad policy

 

Now, you might look at this blog and think so what, that’s all common sense, I knew that. In that case, it sounds like you agree with what I have written.

In the years since Jess and I were at university she hasn’t changed her attitude to politics. As far as she is concerned, all politicians are spineless and unwilling to solve problems. She blames the state Premier for the problems in our hospitals. She blames the Prime Minister for allowing coal seam gas mining to risk the environment. But, as we know, that is a raw, unsophisticated, even childish, way of looking at the situation. The world is much more complex than that.

Politicians may very well be ordinary, and hold responsibility for being bad leaders from time to time. However, even the best government ministers are very busy and are only one person overseeing departments with thousands of bureaucrats. It is impossible, at least in the current state of how our government systems operate, for them to keep bureaucrats accountable and oversee them properly. Lobbies and opposition political parties often force them to abandon certain policies, and compromise their implementation so that they are weak. Often the only advice given to them is to implement free-market template solutions, no matter what the problem. They are pressured by journalists to make snap decisions that look good, and have less incentive to seek long-term solutions.

We often see problems come up, and we get angry about them and hope they get changed. My old mate Cam gets angry and slams down his beer. Jess gets angry, ranting and raving at coffee shops to anyone who will listen.

If an issue is big enough, sometimes a protest group or government officials will come along and try to do something about it. Now that you have read this book, you know more about what to expect when a politician or someone else tries to get government to solve a problem.

That said, I wish politicians like Sam knew more about how the business of government actually worked. When you talk to her, or see her interviewed, she focuses on her image, on making sure she sounds like she knows what she’s talking about. But she doesn’t know everything – she can’t. Pretending to know and be in control is therefore like a form of lying. Without knowing it, Sam patronises voters and creates a disconnect with us all. She alienates us. Communication breaks down, and we learn to hate politicians, or lose trust in them. That we do not trust our politicians is therefore a reasonable response. This is one reason why there is a sense of disillusionment with modern politics.

I must admit that I often find experts like Dr Dexter a bit objectionable. It’s amazing how often they encourage politicians to show ‘leadership’ when they are advocating policies that the general public doesn’t support. If Sam was listening to voters’ concerns and failing to implement radical free-market policies, Dr Dexter would say she lacked leadership. I find that repugnant, arrogant and undemocratic. In the case of economists, too often they advocate simplistic, template-like free-market solutions for any problem, and then talk patronisingly about anyone who doesn’t agree with them. I’m sceptical of experts: not all experts, but certainly any expert who appears to know everything. We should be sceptical of experts that never show doubt or uncertainty, what John Ralston Saul calls ‘the virtue of doubt’.¹⁷ That type of expert is really a fraud.

For us living in the real world, knowing what to expect from government – and from those who seek to influence it – stops us from having unrealistic expectations that get dashed. For myself, I think it keeps me healthier and saner. I still get angry at politicians when they are stupid, but even then it’s just anger on the outside and I learn to move on with my life, even when some of the stuff that governments fail at can be really bad, even cause death. This is the everyday reality of how our political system works.

On the other hand, it always helps me to remember that there are things that governments can do, not just technically, but also politically. If we think strategically, keeping in mind the possibilities and restrictions, then we can at least have a chance of achieving something. If we keep in mind how politicians like Sam work, and how bureaucrats like Peter work, we will be able to see what really might happen when someone promises change, or when we try to make it happen ourselves.

Governments have been responsible for some amazing things that never could be achieved by the private sector without the help of government. Virtually every road is a result of government action. Our hospitals provide health care to anyone who needs it, within limits. The public parks around Australia are great and improve our quality of life hugely, and our schools are getting better over time. Over the last century, life has got better for most of us, and government successes have been one of the major reasons why.

The one thing about Peter the bureaucrat is that he is resistant to change. He is set in his ways, and is comfortable in his job. He will continue to go about his job just as he always has. I have suggested some changes to improving the quality of public policy-making within the public sector, and a lot of them centre around trying to make Peter a more effective policymaker. For example, we need to improve his policymaking expertise, and we need to improve hiring and selection processes to make sure he is the right person for the job. Even improving free speech for the public and other public sector employees would have a big impact on making Peter and his senior managers more accountable for actually achieving outcomes.

 I try to remember that if there’s something I’m angry about, something that I hope changes, even if politicians like Sam respond favourably, that really what they’re probably focusing on is getting positive media coverage. Within a few days, Sam usually forgets all about the original problem and hands it over to the bureaucrats. Sometimes it’s hard to know which politicians are the right ones; they all buck-pass and they all want to take the credit. The truth is, although the Australian states are the ones responsible for most things that affect our everyday lives, it’s often the federal government that won’t give them the money, or who wants to play politics and take the credit, or avoid the blame.

Be considerate of politicians, though. Governments are mega-big, and truly it’s impossible for them to know everything about how the whole world works. It’s unrealistic for us to expect them to instantly know the best solution to every problem. They don’t just exist as our slaves to fix all our problems for us.

Everyone has a role in solving social, political and economic problems. If money is the issue, of course, we ourselves might be to blame if we continually tell governments to cut taxes and fees. The next time you ask a politician to cut a fee or a tax, just remember that if they do that it might lead to cutting services somewhere down the track, or it will encourage them to desperately seek cheap compromise solutions that are even worse in the long-term.

If you work for the government, or you ever find yourself providing advice or input or recommendations,  just remember the virtue of doubt. There’s a chance you don’t actually know what you’re doing, so think carefully about what you ask politicians for, and how you ask for it. If you’re a politician or a senior public servant, take accountability for policy outcomes from your department seriously.

Question the opinions of economists, climate change sceptics or anyone who recommends a policy position who doesn’t actually have expertise in government or know what they’re really talking about. If the people who are making a recommendation are biased or have self-interest, if they represent some big business or they have something to lose — like their job — just keep that in mind.

Next time you get involved in some activist group, or you get all excited about some new government initiative, or if you’re ever involved in leading one, take five minutes to go through the ten sections of this book. Can you see where the initiative or the policy is likely to end up? Who’s likely to try to stop or compromise it? Can the community be involved somehow? Use the information to think strategically. Use the information with your friends or work colleagues to encourage them to think strategically about social problems.

Most of all, contact me and tell me anything you think I’ve got wrong. I don’t know everything, either.