Public services exist for sake of those in charge

In the last century when what we might call public services were born, they were exactly that. They served the public.

Today, the equation between the public and the service has been reformulated. These services now stand apart, aloof, above.

The departure of Alison Clarke as principal of Canterbury College is just the most recent example of the chasm between public service and the public it is meant to serve.

What do they want us to know about Ms Clarke’s leaving? Two things. That’s she’s going as part of a reorganisation which involves a merger with East Kent College. And that her last day will be July 25.

That’s it. Everything else is hidden behind a wall of official secrecy and – even more depressingly – legally enforceable confidentiality agreements.

This arrangement is no reflection of Alison Clarke herself. It is the just way things are done now – with the public excluded, refused access to information about how organisations operate or how they spend your money.

We don’t know how much money Ms Clarke will depart with and whether it was her decision to suddenly “retire”.

Confidentiality agreements are by far and away the most egregious aspect of any such situation because they are designed to make it impossible for anyone to speak publicly.

The NHS is particularly fond of them. They buy the silence of senior staff with vast amounts of taxpayers’ money in order to protect those who continue to work within it from any unwanted scrutiny.

Elsewhere, publicsector whistleblowers are increasingly finding themselves facing criminal prosecutions. The objective is to deny the public access to the truth, to build an unreality in people’s minds.

And the reason for this is straightforward: These organisations no longer exist to serve the taxpaying public, they exist for the sake of the people who earn vast amounts of money running them.

Alison Clarke