Caesar's wife has rarely been less
above suspicion than in the alleged
cover-up of infant deaths by Jill
Finney and Julia Bowers, the two
top officials at the so-called Care
Quality Commission.
That a veil of secrecy should have
been drawn across such events is
truly shocking. Equally so, is how
these women were appointed to
head the NHS watchdog responsible
for patient protection.
Jill Finney qualified for her £140,000
a-year post as director of strategic
marketing and deputy chief executive
on the basis of her experience as a
promoter of spaghetti, cash and carry
and frozen foods. Another factor that
may have played a part in her
appointment was her husband, who
set up the CQC.
Cynthia Bower, on the other hand, did
come to her post as chief executive
with previous healthcare experience.
She was in charge of running the
health trust, responsible for the
scandal-hit Stafford Hospital, where
at least 500 people died through
neglect.
The outcome of any public inquiry
and possible criminal prosecutions
remains to be seen. However, what
must be addressed by David Cameron
is the electorate's growing cynicism
and loss of confidence in the body
politic. As we are seeing in Brazil
and elsewhere, this can have
disastrous consequences.
Riven by bureaucratic waste,
incompetence and sometimes worse,
the State consumes almost half of
GDP and the public is getting poor
value for money.What is needed is
a renaissance in shared cultural
values, but who will clean out the
Augean stables?
John Barker, MA, accepts commissions
to reseaarch and write articles on business,
economics and politics, together with market
research reports.
E-mail: executiveprofiles@btconnect.com
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