Local MP Norman Baker appeared on the floor of the Commons yesterday to encourage the government to spend less public money on Civil Service spin doctors, and more on improving services to help people in Sussex.
In a question to Cabinet Office Minister Dawn Butler (full text here, under "Government Information Service"), Norman Baker criticised the amount of money spent on the Government Communications Network, the body of Civil Servants which is responsible for co-ordinating media and internal communication across government.
Norman told the Commons:
"I am sure that the Government Communication Network does a marvellous job, but at a time when we are looking to ensure that public money is well spent, will she explain why, for example, it is necessary for the Ministry of Defence to have 255 people employed in communication?"
Lib Dem Norman Baker later commented:
"At a time when people across East Sussex are feeling the effects of the recession, the government should consider its priorities more carefully than ever.
"Given that our soldiers in Afghanistan are suffering from a shortage of equipment, it is very worrying that the Ministry of Defence is employing so many people on spin.
"The government should be spending more money on sending equipment to support our troops on the frontline, not featherbedding the third battalion of pen-pushers in Whitehall."
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