It’s not too often that politicians will spare praise for the public service, and according to one Liberal candidate in Hull-Aylmer, they don’t get much respect, either.
Former Liberal Party National Director Greg Fergus told a crowd this past Wednesday that the government is supposed to make decisions based on evidence, not ideology, and the advice of public servants should be respected. “They are experts in their field with a long history of dealing with important issues,” he explained.
Fergus also accused the government of treating the public service, in some cases, like it wasn’t even there, linking ignorance to long-standing morale problems.
According to Ottawa Citizen Reporter David Reevely, who covered Fergus’ event, the ones who do get noticed have traditionally been turfed. “The Tories’ approach to the genuine challenges they have with the public service has, in the main, been to dump on public servants generally and get rid of specific senior ones who get too uppity.”
While it is true that the Tories have made headlines trading blows with tall poppies in the public service, Reevely also noted that Fergus didn’t offer too many suggestions on improving the relationship outside the obvious; i.e., Allow public servants to speak and then listen to what they have to say.
For more on this, visit: http://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/reevely-sticking-up-for-the-public-service-a-tricky-line-for-ottawa-politicians
