Open Prison

I for one felt somewhat overjoyed after watching last nights Panorama.

Ever since I started working in the public sector (two years next month) I've noticed a bad attitude towards us from Joe Public (via the press). There is this bizarre misgiving that the private sector is automatically better than the public sector and that we're all lazy/useless/greedy/overpaid*.

*Delete as applicable (If possible)

The example of privately run prisons is one that shows this myth of private sector superiority isn't true. The prison guards are paid 25% less than they would get in the public sector but the company paid to run the prison is paid more than the prison would cost the taxpayer if it were a public asset. It doesn't take a genius to work out where the difference in money goes.

But for some reason Joe Public is happier feeding some inept private company than they are in paying someone a fair days pay for a decidedly unpleasant job.

How exactly is privatising the prison service in the public interest anyway? It's not like a prisoner is something you can get a return from like you can with telecomms, utilities, transport etc. They will only ever cost money, so why waste it on a multinationals profit margin?

My favourite bit of the whole programme was when the prison officers admitted they didn't inform the home office rep of any 'incidents' as the company would get a fine for it... Now there's an incentive to improve things.

The private sector invasion isn't limited to prisons either.
There are an increasing number of consultants popping up where I work and yet some of us are twiddling our thumbs because we've not got enough to do. Hardly cost effective is it?

There seems to be this government belief that simply by involving the private sector, everything will magically improve. It won't as the private sector will cream the government for everything it can get.

Just look at the NHS IT fiasco. The private sector knows that any government will throw good money after bad rather than cutting its losses and pulling the plug.

There is no magic wand for the public sector. If you simply remove it and contract everything out then you pay more and have less control.

I'm not saying the public sector is perfect (far from it) but it exists for a reason. Would the government seriously contemplate privatising the police or the armed forces?