Ashford: Should he stay or should he go?

[quilp]

41 minutes ago, John Wright said:

But that’s a totally separate issue to whether Ashford needed to resign.

Taken as a whole, Walter resigned as a result of everything we've seen and heard. He apparently said he knew nothing of what was going on and that I feel is fallacious. Ewart had a role and influence in both scenarios (and other stuff yet to come to light) she was a significant player in the game and thus part of the reason Walter resigned. So hardly an irrelevance in the wider picture.

She may not have pulled the trigger but she was undoubtedly integral in loading the gun. 

[Gladys]

With all of this going on, I wonder at the terms on which Magson was engaged.  Was she given a sabbatical from her NHS post to take up the appointment directly or was she provided by her employing NHS Trust as a secondee?  I just wonder what recourse there may be against her.  It would seem that so far any repercussions are reputational.

I suppose there is the "you didn't manage me adequately" get out.  

[quilp]

Will the tribunal decision affect her other employments? Is the other trust employing her aware of how she has behaved? 

[Cascarino]

Ashford's resignation speech has taken his lack of self awareness to a new level. No contrition whatsoever, just praise for himself. No remorse for the shambles that took place on his watch.

[rachomics]

2 hours ago, John Wright said:

The situation is quite simple.

The situation giving rise to the Tribunal, where his megalomaniac CEO bullied and was out of control, happened on his watch as Minister. Whether he involved himself, knew, was deliberately blind, is irrelevant. He has ultimate responsibility politically. He should have resigned immediately the Tribunal decision was distributed, and if he didn’t then Cannan should have sacked him.

All the stuff about whether Ewart, or Ranson, or Glover, were right, or wrong, is irrelevant.

Who was minister for DHSC? David. Which department did these terrible things? David’s. Who has to resign? David.

if he’d done the decent and honourable thing there’d have been much less of the opprobrium. Why is there so much opprobrium? Because he didn’t do the decent thing. He’s now tarred, as is Cannan, with being tone deaf, attempting to cling on to power, not taking ultimate responsibility.

A simple. “ It happened on my watch. The behaviour of the department towards Dr Ranson was insupportable. I apologise, as former DHSC minister to Dr Ranson, unreservedly. I regret it happened. I take full political responsibility. That is why I have resigned.” Would have been good.

I may not always see eye-to-eye with @John Wright but this, for me, is the post of the year. Spot on.

[Johnny F]

14 minutes ago, Gladys said:

With all of this going on, I wonder at the terms on which Magson was engaged.  Was she given a sabbatical from her NHS post to take up the appointment directly or was she provided by her employing NHS Trust as a secondee?  I just wonder what recourse there may be against her.  It would seem that so far any repercussions are reputational.

I suppose there is the "you didn't manage me adequately" get out.  

I've just been thinking exactly the same thing, if Magson is guilty of professional misconduct will anyone go after her for the reputational  damage caused to the DHSC or Manx Care. Once someone has to cough up for Dr Ransons potentially eye watering damages it may sharpen their focus on suing Magson. Is she likely to have professional indemnity insurance?

[Roger Mexico]

21 minutes ago, Gladys said:

With all of this going on, I wonder at the terms on which Magson was engaged.  Was she given a sabbatical from her NHS post to take up the appointment directly or was she provided by her employing NHS Trust as a secondee? 

It's another mystery.  From the ever-informative Decision:

33. The position of Miss Magson was different. From early January 2020, she had the essential role as Interim CEO of the DHSC until termination of her fixed-term contract on 7th January 2022. Mr Will Greenhow’s evidence, as the Chief Secretary, was that Miss Magson was an employee of the Public Service Commission. Contrastingly, after some hesitation, Miss Magson’s evidence on 7th January 2022 was that she remained employed by the NHS in the UK (confirmed by Dr Ranson to Mr Greenhow in an email dated 8th January 2022 - page Z319).

34. Miss Magson’s evidence was that she had been seconded by the Herts Valley Clinical Commissioning Group, where she was CEO. Whilst not doubting Mr Greenhow’s evidence, legally it seemed to be a curious position because Miss Magson had explained that she had retained her UK NHS status for continuity of her pension arrangement. This inferred that she continued to be employed and paid by them whilst seconded. Presumably, Herts Valley was reimbursed by the Manx Treasury. However, nothing turned on this contractual arrangement.

So no one seems to have known - including the people in charge.  And especially not HR, who see to have no skills other than enabling abuse.  To confuse the issue she doesn't seem to have gone back to her original employer either.

[Gladys]

27 minutes ago, quilp said:

Will the tribunal decision affect her other employments? Is the other trust employing her aware of how she has behaved? 

Pretty certain they would have been made aware.

[Bandits]

1 hour ago, Roger Mexico said:

Sarah Maltby (MLP Douglas South).  Most of the approval seemed to relate to things done at the Treasury (or praise for their staff) since Ashford moved there, and as she's a Departmental member you'd expect her to approve. 

She still gave the impression of being the only Man City fan sat in Old Trafford. 

[Gladys]

10 minutes ago, Roger Mexico said:

It's another mystery.  From the ever-informative Decision:

33. The position of Miss Magson was different. From early January 2020, she had the essential role as Interim CEO of the DHSC until termination of her fixed-term contract on 7th January 2022. Mr Will Greenhow’s evidence, as the Chief Secretary, was that Miss Magson was an employee of the Public Service Commission. Contrastingly, after some hesitation, Miss Magson’s evidence on 7th January 2022 was that she remained employed by the NHS in the UK (confirmed by Dr Ranson to Mr Greenhow in an email dated 8th January 2022 - page Z319).

34. Miss Magson’s evidence was that she had been seconded by the Herts Valley Clinical Commissioning Group, where she was CEO. Whilst not doubting Mr Greenhow’s evidence, legally it seemed to be a curious position because Miss Magson had explained that she had retained her UK NHS status for continuity of her pension arrangement. This inferred that she continued to be employed and paid by them whilst seconded. Presumably, Herts Valley was reimbursed by the Manx Treasury. However, nothing turned on this contractual arrangement.

So no one seems to have known - including the people in charge.  And especially not HR, who see to have no skills other than enabling abuse.  To confuse the issue she doesn't seem to have gone back to her original employer either.

And again DA is in the thick of it, saying in early 2020 (I am pretty sure) that there was no issue with a DHSC CEO working remotely,  you know, in this day and age of electronic  communications and all. 

Defending what turned out to be a disastrous decision and completely oblivious to the implications of someone not on the ground steering our health service through the most challenging health emergency ever to hit us since the health service began. 

But he has publicly stated his regret, hasn't he?  Oh no, he regrets nothing, is responsible for nothing, and feels no remorse or regret for anything because it wasn't him, he was only the Minister. 

When faced with an opportunity to redeem himself, he stubbornly, arrogantly and stupidly hangs on to his own reality.  

[Two-lane]

44 minutes ago, Gladys said:

Was she given a sabbatical from her NHS post to take up the appointment directly or was she provided by her employing NHS Trust as a secondee? 

I was always confused about this. So she said to the board of the Herts Clinical Commissioning Group - "I know I am CEO here, but I'm a bit bored  - spending all day drinking coffee - do you mind if I take a couple of years off? You can get by without me. You still have to pay me, though"

Weird.

[Roger Mexico]

8 minutes ago, Johnny F said:

I've just been thinking exactly the same thing, if Magson is guilty of professional misconduct will anyone go after her for the reputational  damage caused to the DHSC or Manx Care. Once someone has to cough up for Dr Ransons potentially eye watering damages it may sharpen their focus on suing Magson. Is she likely to have professional indemnity insurance?

But Magson is an administrator, she doesn't have a professional body to report her to or sanctions that can be taken against her.  Any actions she took will have been as an agent of the DHSC who will have the responsibility.  If there were actual criminal charges there might be consequences, but I suspect any forging of documents etc might be difficult to pin on her.  Perjury might be a possibility, but it's more difficult to prove than people think.

[Happier diner]

3 hours ago, John Wright said:

The situation is quite simple.

The situation giving rise to the Tribunal, where his megalomaniac CEO bullied and was out of control, happened on his watch as Minister. Whether he involved himself, knew, was deliberately blind, is irrelevant. He has ultimate responsibility politically. He should have resigned immediately the Tribunal decision was distributed, and if he didn’t then Cannan should have sacked him.

All the stuff about whether Ewart, or Ranson, or Glover, were right, or wrong, is irrelevant.

Who was minister for DHSC? David. Which department did these terrible things? David’s. Who has to resign? David.

if he’d done the decent and honourable thing there’d have been much less of the opprobrium. Why is there so much opprobrium? Because he didn’t do the decent thing. He’s now tarred, as is Cannan, with being tone deaf, attempting to cling on to power, not taking ultimate responsibility.

A simple. “ It happened on my watch. The behaviour of the department towards Dr Ranson was insupportable. I apologise, as former DHSC minister to Dr Ranson, unreservedly. I regret it happened. I take full political responsibility. That is why I have resigned.” Would have been good.

Whilst I agree that his resignation is inevitable and pretty much all you say is correct, the minister is normally the chairman of the board isn't he. It's not an executive position so it's possible (although unlikely) that he might just possibly have had no knowledge of the goings on. 

[Gladys]

8 minutes ago, Happier diner said:

Whilst I agree that his resignation is inevitable and pretty much all you say is correct, the minister is normally the chairman of the board isn't he. It's not an executive position so it's possible (although unlikely) that he might just possibly have had no knowledge of the goings on. 

Read the decision. 

Just to be a bore, here are the Nolan Principles again:

Integrity

Leadership

Accountability 

Selflessness 

0penness

Honesty

Objectivity

[Passing Time]

2 hours ago, Two-lane said:

Who is the lady who provided the polite applause, and several approving head-nods?

That's her...