Jack attacks BBC programme (no not Question Time)

Reluctant Hero · Jack attacks BBC programme (no not Question Time)

McConnell attacks BBC programme

Frontline Scotland, 21 February
Watch the programme
The first minister has attacked a BBC Scotland programme which questioned the administrative costs of providing Scottish Executive aid to Malawi.
The Frontline documentary revealed that nearly a third of the £2m spent on the programme had gone on running costs.

Mr McConnell said the Malawi Aid Game used the widest possible interpretation of administration.

BBC Scotland defended the programme, stating that it was legitimate to question executive spending.

Mr McConnell challenged BBC Scotland to provide a detailed breakdown of figures, which he said would enable the executive to address the claims.

However, he did not meet requests from two MSPs for a breakdown of the costs involved for administration.

I can give an absolute guarantee to this parliament that the misrepresentation of funding for organisations here in Scotland, as administration, was untrue

Jack McConnell
First Minister

Mr McConnell defended the parliament's involvement in international aid and said it "should not flinch" from a continued commitment - even though this was a reserved issue.

Last month's documentary said that 31% of spending was allocated to administration.

Mr McConnell said: "The scandalous misrepresentation of the facts in relation to the work of the international development fund, should make those responsible ashamed of their actions.

"I can give an absolute guarantee to this parliament that the misrepresentation of funding for organisations here in Scotland, as administration, was untrue.

'Numerical critique'

"The reality is that people here in Scotland are being supported in innovative projects that support people in Malawi to help them stand on their own two feet, to develop education and training services, to support their economy in a sustainable way and to improve the nature of governance in Malawi."

Mr McConnell was unable to provide independent MSP Dennis Canavan with a "numerical critique" of the figures produced in the documentary.

He said: "If it was possible, Mr Canavan, to understand misrepresentations it would be easier to respond to them.

"If there was a detailed breakdown of that fanciful claim, we would happily - and I'm sure all the organisations involved would happily - respond.

Calls have been made for continued aid for Malawi

Lib Dem Mike Pringle called for Mr McConnell to clarify the costs of administration.

The first minister said that his best estimate was that the programme took the widest possible definition of administration "way beyond what any reasonable person would expect".

A BBC spokesman said: "It is legitimate for BBC Scotland to examine how public money is being spent in Malawi.

"The programme looked at the operation of aid projects in Malawi, heard a variety of views about their cost-effectiveness and considered relevant financial details under Freedom of Information legislation."

The spokesman said Patricia Ferguson, the minister responsible for international development, was interviewed on the programme and the production team had requested an interview with the first minister but this was declined.

"Unfortunately, the Scottish Executive were unable to provide figures to show that the money dispensed so far has been spent as effectively as in other similar aid programmes," he added.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/6409141.stm

If Mr McConnel can't produce any figures, then how can he call the BBCs findings a "scandalous misrepresentation of the facts"?

IF Convenor · Re: Jack attacks BBC programme (no not Question Time)

Jimbo

Mr McConnell defended the parliament's involvement in international aid and said it "should not flinch" from a continued commitment - even though this was a reserved issue.

Strange that Jack doesn't want commitment to other reserved matters such as Iraq and Trident2.

Aventinian

I know, it's an abuse of his powers.

As I've said before though, if you're going to abuse powers, this is probably the most decent way of doing it.

IF: incase you haven't noticed, the people of Scotland are very well off, the people of Malawi are not.

IF Convenor

My point, Aventinian, is that it would be nice if the Scottish Executive had the same ambitions for the people of Scotland as they appear to have for Malawians.

As someone who is at least 4000 miles closer to Malawi than you are at this very moment I expect I have at least as good a notion of the relative wealth of Scots and Malawians as you do.

Aventinian

It's very hard to have ambition for a people who already have everything, yet don't even seem to care or be any the better for it.

I'm sure the great reformers out there who thought of universal healthcare and education in Britain, decent housing, enough food to eat for all, a welfare state if you fall on hard times and so on didn't think it'd end up like this. They had something to strive towards, now those goals are realised - I think they'd be as cynical as we are today if they knew that we have not advanced in terms of social interaction, education or governance. No, now we have little electronic boxes in our homes so we can argue with someone four thousand miles away about the constitutional politics of four hundred years ago.

This is far from off-topic, very much bordering on a rant - but I, ever the optimistic idealist, find it very difficult to have any sort of collective ambition for any of the people of the developed Western world. So I doubt there are many jaded politicians lining up to do that. So my point: ambition must be personal, and we live in a system where personal ambition is rewarded. In other words, f**k what Jack thinks.

Jack attacks BBC programme (no not Question Time)

Re: Jack attacks BBC programme (no not Question Time)