MEMBERS of the Environment Department – no strangers to controversy having already defied the will of the States over paid parking – are currently facing the prospect of a vote of no confidence if they implement a huge percentage increase in bus fares without a debate in the Assembly.
If it happens, not only will the department deserve it, its board will have brought it upon themselves.

Having inherited a valid integrated transport strategy based on reducing congestion in St Peter Port by beefing up the bus service at the expense of those commuters who chose not to use it, Environment emasculated it because they put their narrow views ahead of those of the Assembly.

As a result, the taxpayers’ money it lavishes on the bus service has very little point, provides no measurable benefit and rightly is wide open to criticism from the fundamental spending review.

Having achieved that remarkably unhelpful position, its political members now have to decide whether to back down on fares or else tough it out and see what happens.

To some extent, the outcome is irrelevant, at least in the bigger picture.

Environment’s embarrassing performance has brought it into the gaze of Frossard House and the hard men of the machine, who asked: ‘what purpose does it serve?’ Their response? Very little. There is nothing in its mandate that would not fit more comfortably with other departments, particularly Public Services, representing a nice little saving on duplicated management and administrative services – plus a ministerial salary.

This thinking, plus other rationalisation of departments, is well advanced. Not only is Housing set to disappear, there is general agreement that it should.

Today, six years after the review of the machinery of government was introduced, the then new departmental structures now look increasingly ‘clunky’ and the sheer number of chief officers just too cumbersome to operate as an effective senior management team.

Few would disagree with further streamlining of the bureaucracy – the only issue should be when it happens and who leads the process which, politically, is a turkeys and Christmas affair.

A vote of no confidence in Environment should be just enough to get the ball rolling.