Speaking at a Centre for Policy Studies seminar yesterday David Cameron acknowledged that the best way for government to help people struggling with higher living costs is to reduce their tax burden. To achieve that reduction, government must do less. And the way to ensure that government does less is to place fewer demands upon it.
Hence the virtuous circle which a Conservative government would seek to create in the 'post-bureaucratic age.' The aim is that voluntary, private and social enterprise organisations will be given much greater freedom to provide services currently in the public sector. Dismantling the bureaucracy which at present inhibits this freedom is a huge task. As Eric Pickles explained in the same seminar, public services today are dominated by the requirements of 'structure' rather than 'function.'
This series of seminars continues to wrestle with the difficulties inherent in moving to the 'function-led' approach. The goal is worthy - to create a stronger society in which fewer individuals depend on the state. The dangers are that the project can sound too daunting (how many governments have tried and failed to reduce bureaucracy?) and that the language can be too esoteric. David Cameron's remarks yesterday succeeded in bringing the discussion down to earth. Less dependency= less government= lower tax.
