So what are you for, Margaret?

Our local social development minister, Margaret Ritchie, has unwittingly given us another glimpse of the comic-opera nature of our colonial administration with a breathless complaint about social security jobs.

Margaret warned that the Treasury was trying to impose a 5% cut in social security and other services. Up to 1,500 social security jobs could be under threat. She said she would be making a case to the Treasury because if the cuts go ahead, claimants would have to wait longer for benefits. Job losses would impact on the "delivery of front line social security services to the people most in need."

"It means the claimants have to wait longer for benefits, and it means that they do without money," she said. "Those people can ill afford to do without money, they need it in order to provide food on the table," adding that the Social Security Agency had already suffered because of a previous comprehensive spending review, with 674 job losses. Overall 40% of existing jobs would go.

Ms Ritchie told the assembly's social security committee that, taken together, that amounted to the Social Security Agency losing 40% of its staff. She now plans to lobby Gordon Brown for an increase in funds.

Two questions:

What new land of milk and honey is the assembly leading us to where the first item on the agenda is truly astounding job cuts?

What are you for Margaret? What is the toy assembly for if all you can do is write to Gordon? Can’t we write ourselves and at least save your salary and that of the rest of the inflated windbags with long titles posing in the great white elephant on the hill?

Posted by North