The Waiting Game – There’s no need to wait until some good ideas become law!

One of the abiding characteristics of our public service is obedience to the law – and a reluctance to take risks by over-reaching ourselves. There’s an old rule of thumb that states that if it isn’t expressly allowed … in writing…. then you better assume it’s forbidden! The private sector has traditionally followed the opposite dictum; anything goes – provided it isn’t expressly outlawed.

So when a Department of State finally produces a long-awaited White Paper – with 171 pages in Volume 1 and 59 pages in Volume 2 (price £32.50, but free if you download from the web), the task of figuring out what will change, and when, is quite a challenge.