Verheugen sees red tape

For many of us Maltese, the face of Günter Verheugen is the face of the European Union. By one of life's whims, Mr Verheugen was born in Germany in 1944. This was a time when many of his countrymen were under attack from the Red Army, and retreated from East Europe. Sixty years later, Mr Verheugen was in charge of the process that extended the EU up to the Russian doorstep.

Mr Verheugen started out as a journalist but went on to study history, sociology and politics. In 1982, he joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany and a year later he was elected to the Bundestag. At the age of 55, Mr Verheugen was appointed as EU Commissioner for Enlargement. For the last two years now, he has been responsible for enterprise and industry and has been a vice-president of the Commission. I have no intention of writing Mr Verheugen's biography. And I am not really interested in his having, while on holiday in Lithuania, held the hands of Petra Erler. Even though, earlier this year, she was promoted chief of his staff with a monthly salary of about Lm5,000. What hit the headlines was Mr Verheugen's verbal attack on the Commission's high ranking civil servants. He accused them of being power hungry and of hijacking the EU's policymaking and communication channels with the member states to suit their own personal agendas. "Many people still have this concept of Europe, that the more rules you produce the more Europe you have ," he said.

Mr Verheugen complained that he has seen a lot of change within the EU policymaking structures in the seven years that he has been commissioner. He feels that now too much time and effort is spent trying to control the executive; that there is a permanent power struggle between commissioners and top bureaucrats. The latter believe that commissioners come and go while they stay on. Mr Verheugen claims that he had plans to simplify 54 EU laws but he had found the stubborn resistance of the bureaucrats. He estimates that if the EU curbs its red tape it could reduce 25 per cent of administrative costs in the next five years. This could lead to an economic benefit of about 1.5 per cent of GDP or €150 billion saved. Mr Verheugen's statements have drawn a fierce reaction from the trade union representing the commission staff. The union has asked for an official apology. He does not intend to do so. He insists he never questioned the loyalty, competence or qualifications of the commission officials. It is just that in his opinion "...too much is decided by civil servants".

Josè Manuel Barroso, president of the Commission, has expressed his support for Mr Verheugen. Mr Barroso pointed out that such statements had to be seen as generating a "creative tension" which is critical for the evolution and modernisation of the commission.

Mr Verheugen may not be the most skilful of diplomats, even though he boasts otherwise. Like or dislike him, one has to admit that Mr Verheugen does make his point. Indeed, it is not a new point. The ever-green television series Yes, Minister was all about red tape and civil servants manipulating the agenda of their political masters. For a while it seemed that in Malta these issue had disappeared from the political agenda and our collective consciousness. The White Paper entitled A Public Service For The 21st Century (published in 2003) failed to attract public attention. It was perceived as being more concerned with meeting hazy future challenges rather than addressing present-day realities.

There was a time when the local social partners spoke strongly about the need for an efficient and effective civil service. Possibly all the talk about privatisation and the advancement in e-government could have created the impression that all is well with our civil service. Until the Prime Minister in the Budget Speech announced that the government was not satisfied with the progress that had been achieved. A simplification action plan is now to be launched so as to combat excessive red tape.

Gone are the days of the much-hyped, expensive Management Systems Unit, which was set up in the early 1990s to push government reform. Significant financial resources are now being channelled into e-government. This is a good thing; yet the benefits of e-government, measured in terms of greater convenience to citizens as well as reduced administrative costs, still need to be determined. Our civil service requires a strategic plan that defines the expected outputs and determines the required resources. A business planning culture needs to be cultivated at all levels. Given that a lot of public policy formulation is now taking place in Brussels, there should be more focus on policy implementation and customer service. Malta's competitiveness and attractiveness as a location for direct investment depends a lot on the quality of our civil service. Maybe it is time for Mr Verheugen to pay us another visit.

fms18@maltanet.net