Is the Isle of Man Government becoming despotic?

[Gladys]

3 minutes ago, Roxanne said:

Do you think?  Maybe I’m in danger of donning my rose tinted spectacles but i seem to remember lots of occasions where things were sorted out in the nod and the wink. A bully to me a far more likely to wield their power passively rather than face to face or by telephone. In the olden days when email was getting going, I’d get into some long winded cyclical discussions with staff/parents/heads and my boss would say, ‘just pick up the damn phone or drive in to see them. Somehow it always got sorted. Sending a cease and desist (or it’s equivalent) would have been ridiculous. What was I paid for if not to sort it out? 

Totally agree.  The problem with emails, particularly,  is they often become written conversations, often reactive and not thought through,  and without the very important body language input.  Body language conveys something daft like 90% of meaning in a face to face conversation.  You can quickly see the reaction to what has been said and can either correct or reinforce.  

A quick chat, providing it is respectful and open, can solve much more than 20 feet of emails. 

[Blade Runner]

2 hours ago, Banker said:

The emails Moulton wanted are being published 

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/foi-that-triggered-row-between-reporter-and-govt-published/

Link not working

Even so just reading the clips above about the "gate keepers" needs a proper investigation

[Blade Runner]

1 hour ago, Non-Believer said:

Assumed knowledge and qualification. Rife within senior IoM PS.

Just senior PS/CS?

My experience from a few years ago on the rock says even the lowest level PS/CS think they know what they are doing because their managers don't, so they never get pulled up on it.

[cissolt]

17 minutes ago, Blade Runner said:

Link not working

Even so just reading the clips above about the "gate keepers" needs a proper investigation

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/foi-that-triggered-row-between-reporter-and-govt-published/

It's on the front page of manxradio. The fois make for alarming reading, I can see why Dan and Co wanted to bury it.

[cissolt]

3 minutes ago, cissolt said:

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/foi-that-triggered-row-between-reporter-and-govt-published/

It's on the front page of manxradio. The fois make for alarming reading, I can see why Dan and Co wanted to bury it.

The presentation on the foi is for April 2020.

Hopefully when we see slide 15 compared to what actually happened things will be clearer.

[Blade Runner]

5 minutes ago, cissolt said:

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/foi-that-triggered-row-between-reporter-and-govt-published/

It's on the front page of manxradio. The fois make for alarming reading, I can see why Dan and Co wanted to bury it.

 

There has been some speculation about the use of the words ‘toned down’ in an email from the CEO DHA to other officers. On reviewing the email in the context of other emails, this appears simply to have been a poor choice of words.

Almost all the original information in Dr Ranson’s presentation, in terms of the potential impact faced and the nature of mitigations that should be considered, was included in the final presentation to CoMin.

Some information was not included, simply to give a clear focus to the policy decisions sought by officers from the Council of Ministers at the end of that meeting.

 

WTAF

I will leave it there

[Barlow]

Dan was a good Manx Radio DJ. I thought he'd go far, but jeez, not putting on a shiny suit and becoming a top CS.

Isle of Man Where You etc.

[Manx Yeller]

1 hour ago, Blade Runner said:

 

There has been some speculation about the use of the words ‘toned down’ in an email from the CEO DHA to other officers. On reviewing the email in the context of other emails, this appears simply to have been a poor choice of words.

Almost all the original information in Dr Ranson’s presentation, in terms of the potential impact faced and the nature of mitigations that should be considered, was included in the final presentation to CoMin.

Some information was not included, simply to give a clear focus to the policy decisions sought by officers from the Council of Ministers at the end of that meeting.

 

WTAF

I will leave it there

"Almost all" - wow that's some stretch in the definition of that phrase 

[Two-lane]

30 minutes ago, Barlow said:

Dan was a good Manx Radio DJ. I thought he'd go far, but jeez, not putting on a shiny suit and becoming a top CS

I went searching - and this time I found that it was not a self-generated memory. He really did publish this (presumably along with many other blogs). The summary is - "I/we screwed up a re-organisation so we had to start again. That makes us really good". Note that only four years before making these difficult decisions, he was a disk jockey.

https://www.manxforums.com/forums/index.php?/topic/52494-dj-management/

 

[Roxanne]

35 minutes ago, Barlow said:

Dan was a good Manx Radio DJ. I thought he'd go far, but jeez, not putting on a shiny suit and becoming a top CS.

Isle of Man Where You etc.

He used to post regularly on here.  

[Gladys]

Who knows what the pressures were?  

To play devil's advocate, perhaps the imperative was to keep the island functioning until a proper plan was in place.  You know, stuff like the Steam Packet still being able to bring in supplies, get people home and so on.

The biggest fail, IMHO, was that there was no emergency plan that was on the shelf, or if there was, it was never taken off the shelf to even think how it could be implemented.  There must have been something from the Cold War when we were all going to be nuked, surely? 

It is easy to attribute blame to individuals, but it is likely that  historic complacency was more to blame. 

That is not to excuse how Dr R or Dr G were treated.  In an open debate their contribution would have been fully considered, but alongside the other imperatives, and properly considered decisions made.  And the basis of those decisions recorded. 

 

[Mongoose-Man]

2 hours ago, cissolt said:

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/foi-that-triggered-row-between-reporter-and-govt-published/

It's on the front page of manxradio. The fois make for alarming reading, I can see why Dan and Co wanted to bury it.

You must have read something else. Nothing remotely alarming. Someone thought they had a smoking gun. Turns out they have a damp squib 🤷🏻‍♂️ 

[Non-Believer]

1 hour ago, Two-lane said:

I went searching - and this time I found that it was not a self-generated memory. He really did publish this (presumably along with many other blogs). The summary is - "I/we screwed up a re-organisation so we had to start again. That makes us really good". Note that only four years before making these difficult decisions, he was a disk jockey.

https://www.manxforums.com/forums/index.php?/topic/52494-dj-management/

 

Whatever happened to all the benefits that this restructuring was to bring about?

[cissolt]

15 minutes ago, Mongoose-Man said:

You must have read something else. Nothing remotely alarming. Someone thought they had a smoking gun. Turns out they have a damp squib 🤷🏻‍♂️ 

Thanks Dan.

[Gladys]

16 minutes ago, Mongoose-Man said:

You must have read something else. Nothing remotely alarming. Someone thought they had a smoking gun. Turns out they have a damp squib 🤷🏻‍♂️ 

TBF, there is a lot to be alarmed about when taken at face value,  but as ever context is all.  The real alarm is caused by the seeming procrastination and obfuscation.  Being open and frank (and responsive) would dispel those concerns.  

There is a great deal of public confidence to be recovered after the Ranson case.  This skirmish has done little to help that.