Let someone else do it! – Can you outsource public engagement?

The Government would like to achieve a culture-change. It feels – rightly or wrongly – that people are fed up with rather too many public servants beavering away doing bureaucratic tasks of various descriptions, whilst the rest of the private-sector economy shoulders the burden of paying for them. This is why we hear a lot about police officers having to do too much paperwork instead of chasing criminals or Council chiefs organising stakeholder away-days instead of emptying your bins. By squeezing budgets it is hoped that public bodies will learn to focus on their core activities and cut out the frills. Is public engagement such a frill?