Every organisation operates in an environment that is regulated and/or funded by Government (be that local; national; or European, or a combination of all three). The intelligent organisation therefore seeks to understand not just the rules and regulations but the system that puts them in place. It monitors not just the content or outcomes but the drivers that result in them. The smart organisation does what it legitimately can to ensure that opinion formers within governance are aware of its needs to achieve success. There is both a duty and a right in democratic society for organisations to make their views heard.
A better informed governance makes better decisions which therefore benefit wider sections of society, and should do so without being unaware of unintended consequences. That is the essence of what is known as public affairs activity,
The civil service apparatus is one route through which Ministers receive advice (and in the absence of any other, they are likely to defer to it). The civil service is driven by its own long term perceptions of its role; the Treasury; and political input. The last one can be the weakest source unless there are coherent messages from the political process. That process also feeds semi independently into the ministerial team, both directly and by setting the tone in Parliament and in the Select Committee system.
Almost needless to say, wider public relations activities aimed at the political process via the general public through the media, and collateral material such as printed and electronic, also help to set the tone but of themselves are generally insufficient to achieve desired outcomes.
In just over a years’ time there will have been a General Election; there will be a tremendous squeeze on public spending under way because of the levels of public debt (regardless of which political party wins); possibly the Government’s administrative structure will have changed yet again. This new situation will be a challenge to organisations but to the well informed it is also an opportunity.
Bergmans Research can ensure you have continuing visibility of your operating environment – this we would do through detailed parliamentary research and monitoring. This tracks all parliamentary and departmental public activity within your range of interests – we rely on you to agree key words, phrases and topics with us. This could then be turned into a daily email bulletin for your specific or general use within your organisation.
We recognise the assertion of former Prime
Minister Harold Wilson that a week is a long time in politics. We believe we
are particularly well placed to observe what is important to parliamentarians
on an ongoing basis, and react accordingly to unfolding events and concerns.
Sample monitoring of activity in Parliament
Misc
:
Building Schools for the Future
See also:
Partnerships for Schools
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Bergmans
monitoring -
Misc :Building Schools for the
Future ,
19/03/2009
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Bergmans monitoring:
Misc
: (
Building Schools for the Future)
Date:
19/03/2009
PARLIAMENTARY
WRITTEN ANSWERS
Building Schools for the Future Programme – House of Commons,
18/03/09
Mr.
Laws:
To ask the Secretary of State for Children,
Schools and Families what recent assessment he has made of the effects of the
economic downturn on the delivery of private finance initiative contracts
relating to the Building Schools for the Future programme; and if he will
make a statement.
Jim
Knight:
The Department is continuing to monitor
the impact of the current economic conditions on capital programmes such as
BSF, and is working with Partnerships for Schools (PfS) and HM Treasury to
ensure the programme moves forward as planned. On 3 March 2009, my right hon.
Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury announced Government action to
safeguard capital infrastructure investment in projects being delivered
through the private finance initiative.
PfS have been able to secure a commitment
in principle from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for £300 million to
support BSF schemes that have PFI investment. PfS were also successful in
closing the BSF Tameside deal in February which included a significant PFI
contribution.
Building Schools for the Future Programme – House of Commons,
18/03/09
Bob
Spink:
To ask the Secretary of State for
Children, Schools and Families if he will make it his policy to bring forward
capital spending under the Building Schools for the Future programme in (a)
Essex and (b) Castle Point for economic reasons; and if he will make a
statement.
Jim
Knight
: It is not our policy to bring forward
Building Schools for the Future (BSF) investment to act as a fiscal stimulus
because of the strategic planning that underpins BSF. BSF typically involves
the building of entire new schools; so design and planning need care and
time. Accelerating the construction would curtail this planning and would
thereby jeopardise the quality and transformational nature of the programme.
We are however working with Partnerships for Schools to simplify procedures
and accelerate delivery, and the procurement process has already been
accelerated and costs reduced.
BSF investment already announced and in
the pipeline provides substantial underpinning to the construction industry.
It is now building momentum so that by 2011, over 200 revamped or rebuilt
schools will be being opened. Over 1,000 BSF schools across 80 local
authorities already engaged in the programme. This includes two major school
investment projects in Castle Point which are proceeding on schedule for
delivery in 2012.
In December 2008, we offered local
authorities the opportunity to bring forward schools capital allocations from
2010-11 into 2009-10 where they could accelerate projects to provide a fiscal
stimulus and give pupils and teachers the benefit of early investment.
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Defence
:
Armoured Fighting Vehicles
Supacat; M-WIK; Jackal; Coyote; FRES; OUVS
(Operational Utility Vehicle Strategy)
See also:
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Bergmans
monitoring -
Defence :Armoured Fighting
Vehicles
: Supacat; M-WIK; Jackal;
Coyote; FRES; OUVS (Operational Utility Vehicle Strategy),
12/12/2008
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body
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Bergmans monitoring:
Defence
: (
Armoured Fighting Vehicles: Supacat;
M-WIK; Jackal; Coyote; FRES; OUVS (Operational Utility Vehicle Strategy))
Date:
12/12/2008
PARLIAMENTARY
WRITTEN ANSWERS
Armoured Fighting Vehicles – House of Commons 11/12/2008
Andrew
Rosindell:
To ask the Secretary of State for
Defence with reference to the answer given to the hon. Member for Congleton
of 25 November 2008, Official Report, column 1170W, on armoured vehicles (1)
for how long it has been his Department's policy to refit unarmoured Jackals
with armour;
(2) whether his Department plans to buy
more unarmoured Jackals; what the cost of the improvement programme is; and
where the vehicles have been operating.
Mr.
Quentin Davies:
The Department has not procured
any unarmoured Jackals, nor does it intend to in the future. The Jackal
configuration has always included the armour and, as the armour fit is a part
of the vehicle base standard, there is no additional cost for fitting it. 13
vehicles were, however, released early to the training fleet before the
armour was fitted to facilitate training. These vehicles have not been used
on operations and are in service only within the UK-based training fleet. 12
of the 13 vehicles are currently undergoing a programme to fit the armour
retrospectively at no cost to the Department.
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Sample monitoring of other sources
£919m
acceleration for school building projects in next 12 months
Thousands of school modernisation projects
across
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2009_0045
Safeguarding
Government infrastructure investment
Treasury
Media Release, 03/03/09
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Yvette Cooper, today announced Government action to ensure vital PFI infrastructure projects will go forward as planned despite the current financial market conditions.
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/press_20_09.htm
BAA
statement regarding Stansted G2 Planning Inquiry
BAA,
02/03/09
Following the Government's announcement that the G2 Planning Inquiry start date has been temporarily deferred, a BAA spokesperson said:
"We note the decision by Government to temporarily defer the start of the Stansted G2 planning inquiry. As the Competition Commission's market investigation concludes in March, we recognise that the Secretary of State has decided that deferring the inquiry may be the best way of preventing long term damage to the process of delivering this important infrastructure development project."
Stimulus
to super-fast broadband: Promoting investment, ensuring fair competition
Ofcom,
03/03/09
Ofcom today cleared the way for companies
and organisations to invest in super-fast broadband services for
http://www.ofcom.org.uk/media/news/2009/02/nr_20090303 http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/nga_future_broadband/statement/