Given that my old stomping ground, the Energy Saving Trust, was one of the principle subjects of DECC's Delivery Landscape Review I thought I should have a look at its findings. To be honest, I'm not overly surprised. The key statement is that EST will lose its core grant funding from 2012/13 but will be expected to bid for DECC/HMG delivery contracts.
Part of the rationale for this change is that DECC should have closer control over what is delivered and at what cost. The Review claims that such control has not be present in the past. Now, it is true that as a private company EST is not accountable to the SoS or other DECC ministers. However, certainly in my time at EST, we would have welcomed more direction from DECC (and previously Defra). We were forever being told "It's your plan, not ours, deliver it how you wish". So the Review is being, at best, somewhat disingenuous.
The document also states that EST has begun to ramp up its commercial operations to ensure that it continues to thrive in the absence of guaranteed DECC funding. True, but it's a big ask by April 2012, and it disguises the radical downsizing that has taken place (to the extent that one big leaving bash was held at the end of March because there just wouldn't be time for all the individual ones).
As a consequence a number of good people have gone elsewhere. One hopes that we are not in baby and bathwater territory.
No comments:
Post a Comment