Labour has been making plenty of noise about cutting back the bloated state. Excited briefings that Pat McFadden had written to every department demanding they justify the existence of hundreds of arms-length bodies led to headlines breathlessly reporting that quangos would be cuts, merged, or have their power handed back to ministers. That lofty promises barely lasted a few days…
Labour has now announced plans to create a brand-new equal pay quango, focused on race and disability. The government is now seeking views on the formation of an ‘equal pay regulatory and enforcement unit’ designed to offer “oversight” and “support” for equal pay claims, with the help of trade unions brought into the mix. Equalities Minister Seema Malhotra declared the move essential to “maximise individual opportunity” and ensure “the best person gets the job.” That means that since taking office Labour has created 28 new quangos and scrapped only two. Quite the ‘bonfire’…
UPDATE: Add another – the government says Great British Railways is almost fully approved as an arm’s length body.
Read the full list of Labour-created quangos below:
Sarah Pochin at Reform Scotland’s manifesto launch event: “I really wanted to come on in a Reform tartan burka, but apparently I wasn’t allowed… One day let’s do one of these events not live-streamed. We’ll do all the naughty stuff…”