Quality of MHKs

[SleepyJoe]

6 hours ago, The Phantom said:

Chamber of Commerce made a pretty good point about trimming down the size of Govt. Huge labour shortage everywhere at rhe moment. Every job in Govt is taking someone our of the private sector that could fill the shortage. 

I haven't seen them say this but it is absolutely correct

It was ludicrous for Dippy Dave to seek to fund the gargantuan government establishment on a deficit budget for the full term of this administration - Tynwald should have thrown his budget right back at him

The number of Keys members could be reduced by promoting digital (ie. online) democracy & creating greater interface between the voting public & more highly paid MHKs able + trained to make full use of 21st century media. LegCo should be abolished

Anyway, here is a picture of an MHK who ate prunes for breakfast 

[Two-lane]

1 hour ago, wrighty said:

See what happens when you selectively quote

Selective quotes, evasion, and procrastination - I'm a perfect MHK, Putin style. I'm going to annex Bride. That place will be like Dodge City in the gold rush days once the gas starts to flow ashore.

[Newsdesk]

8 hours ago, The Phantom said:

Chamber of Commerce made a pretty good point about trimming down the size of Govt. Huge labour shortage everywhere at rhe moment. Every job in Govt is taking someone our of the private sector that could fill the shortage. 

I’d take the Chamber of Commerce a little bit more seriously if it’s head didn’t look like Patrick Bateman straight out of Bret Easton Ellis’ American Psycho. But they miss a point - the government workers are too well paid and have too high expectations. Even if they were let go they aren’t going to fill any employment gap waiting on tables for £12 an hour. The job shortage is largely in shitty jobs that nobody wants to do anymore now the Romanians have gone home due to Brexit. There is no labour shortage in real jobs. 

[cissolt]

1 minute ago, Newsdesk said:

I’d take the Chamber of Commerce a little bit more seriously if it’s head didn’t look like Patrick Bateman straight out of Bret Easton Ellis’ American Psycho. But they miss a point - the government workers are too well paid and have too high expectations. Even if they were let go they aren’t going to fill any employment gap waiting on tables for £12 an hour. The job shortage is largely in shitty jobs that nobody wants to do anymore now the Romanians have gone home due to Brexit. There is no labour shortage in real jobs. 

Is it true that some civil servants receive an additional payment to align their salaries with the private sector? I can't think of the name, R&R?

Poaching might be an issue with the too regulatory staff, like bill mummery and the sort. But the rest? Not so sure.

[Newsdesk]

3 minutes ago, cissolt said:

Is it true that some civil servants receive an additional payment to align their salaries with the private sector? I can't think of the name, R&R?

Poaching might be an issue with the too regulatory staff, like bill mummery and the sort. But the rest? Not so sure.

Honestly outside of some senior compliance roles where regulatory experience is very handy and e-gaming nobody wants them. Some haven’t been at the coal face of anything for so long commercially they have no value. 

[747-400]

4 hours ago, Numbnuts said:

Seemingly , and I've been impressed with Claire Christian as at least she asks questions which some haven't done in their first 5 years never mind this term .

Me too. I was just going to add her name. 

She seems to work damn hard, knows her stuff, and is willing to speak up. 

 

[The Phantom]

20 hours ago, Newsdesk said:

There is no labour shortage in real jobs. 

Really? Pretty much most business owners I know are crying out for staff and can't find anyone. Mostly finance, tech or hospitality. 

I've seen some pretty shoddy candidates employed recently (minimal experience/qualifications) through sheer desperation and an absence of any other options.

[Non-Believer]

Just now, The Phantom said:

I've seen some pretty shoddy candidates employed recently (minimal experience/qualifications) through sheer desperation and an absence of any other options.

That's no way to talk about Tynwald...

[Manx Resident]

On 5/21/2022 at 7:33 PM, cissolt said:

Is it true that some civil servants receive an additional payment to align their salaries with the private sector? I can't think of the name, R&R?

Poaching might be an issue with the too regulatory staff, like bill mummery and the sort. But the rest? Not so sure.

At one time, probably still, IT staff received a recruitment and retention allowance of several £000s per year that made Government jobs very attractive especially when coupled with a good pension and the opportunity to return to work on and support specific long running IT projects (eg Tax System).

In recent years the  IT sector have imported hundreds of workers who are probably far more creative and able than the government staff, so whether there is still a need to pay an R&R allowance if one is being paid would be a question I would look at if I was reviewing the civil service.

[Stu Peters]

On 5/21/2022 at 12:20 PM, Non-Believer said:

We have in the past voted people in on the grounds of their being loose cannons who might shake things up a bit, Geoff Cannell, Peter Karran, maybe Stu Peters this last time.

The system quickly assimilates and neuters them and they quickly realise that the way forward is to stay schtum (though perhaps Karran remained prickly to the establishment).

Not assimilated or neutered yet, and still waiting for some of those fabled brown envelopes. Don't make the mistake that government does by confusing outputs with outcomes. It's easy to make lots of noise, but much harder to make worthwhile changes.

[buncha wankas]

On 5/21/2022 at 12:37 PM, finlo said:

Artificial intelligence!

We have lo many local authorities and to many mhks, in the mix we end up with a load of air flowing from local authorities mistaken for ‘fresh air’ but in reality it’s just ‘hot air’.  You can almost see the mouthpieces in local authorities who are putting out their stall for 2026 who have no knowledge, experience or backbone but believe self advertising get you the ‘mhk’ job

the public keep allowing this cycle

we need change

sort the obese local authorities out. 

[Boris Johnson]

On 5/24/2022 at 4:15 PM, Stu Peters said:

Not assimilated or neutered yet, and still waiting for some of those fabled brown envelopes. Don't make the mistake that government does by confusing outputs with outcomes. It's easy to make lots of noise, but much harder to make worthwhile changes.

Stu, no offence aimed at you but can't you see now YOU CANT MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

One man against the rest of the independent MHKs and the CS will never win.

It is like this because the HMG likes it so, we are a tame crown dependency.

What it means is we, as in the public, have no input or say in what happens here.

You Stu, as an MHK, may be able to get a fence fixed or a pot hole filled but that is about the sum total of your "Power"

[Josem]

On 5/21/2022 at 8:34 AM, Gladys said:

what can be done about it?

I think two things could improve the quality of MHKs:

1) If they were more involved in their local community. Joining the local gardening club, or the football club, or other service/faith/interest/sporting groups would help us to build stronger institutions, and I believe that stronger institutions build better humans. Unfortunately, we live in a very atomised society where institutions of all sorts are breaking down, and therefore, people have reduced experience and reduced training in confronting challenging issues. The Tynwald Register of Interests reveals that there are many MHKs who are not a member of "any trade union, professional society, political grouping or party, or of the Freemasons or any body outside Tynwald."

2) Some MHKs would benefit from reading books. Listening to one the other day say out loud, "What is free speech anyway?" made me realise that there are some people who have very little intellectual curiosity for issues before they arrive on their plate.

[ManxTaxPayer]

10 hours ago, Josem said:

I think two things could improve the quality of MHKs:

1) If they were more involved in their local community. Joining the local gardening club, or the football club, or other service/faith/interest/sporting groups would help us to build stronger institutions, and I believe that stronger institutions build better humans.

Hey, yeah, but what would we call them? I know, how about Community Volunteers? Although I have alternatives. 

[2112]

31 minutes ago, ManxTaxPayer said:

Hey, yeah, but what would we call them? I know, how about Community Volunteers? Although I have alternatives. 

I think the current trend is to call them social activists, or community organisers. In the past they would be labelled community elders.