Outsourcing companies aren't trusted - Liberal Democrats must show they are taking a stand

This blog by director Cat Hobbs was first published on Lib Dem Voice.

Last week We Own It released new polling which shows that outsourcing companies are trusted less than central government, the civil service, the police service and the NHS. 64% of the public distrust companies like Atos, Capita, G4S and Serco while only 21% trust them. Only 16% think there is currently adequate regulation of private companies running public services. Political parties ignore public reactions like these at their peril.

We Own It is an organisation that campaigns for public service users and for public ownership. Last Thursday Serco held its AGM and we took the opportunity to hold a protest, ‘Sick of Serco’, to show how much of the public feels about outsourcing.

We singled out Serco for its a track record of bad behaviour when running public services, from allegations of abuse and deaths at detention centres to falsifying NHS records. Most recently, the company has defrauded the taxpayer and is currently under criminal investigation by the Serious Fraud Office.

Our polling, carried out by Survation, shows that nearly 80% of the public think Serco should not be allowed to bid to run public services. 63% believe it should never be allowed to run public services again. This reaction goes completely against government policy – Serco has been cleared to bid for government work despite the fraud.

Liberal Democrats have an opportunity to show they are taking the public’s concerns about outsourcing seriously. In the recent Liberal Democrat paper on public services policy, transparency and accountability were two key themes. In response to the consultation on this paper, nearly 500 of our supporters wrote to Jeremy Hargreaves, the chair of the Federal Policy Committee and the manifesto working group on public services. They asked him to include a Public Service Users Bill in the Liberal Democrat manifesto. We are looking forward to his response.

The Bill has already been introduced to parliament as a Private Members Bill with cross-party support. It would promote transparency, accountability and public services that work for the people who use them. The public should be able to access data about companies like Serco, look at the contracts we’ve agreed with them and recall them when they do a bad job. Government – local and national – should always look at the public ownership option first and put forward an in-house bid if they do contract out. And they should be required to show how contracts maximise social value.

The Liberal Democrats have a real opportunity to show they are taking this issue seriously, to show they are not dogmatic, and that they want the best for the public. People are sickened not only by Serco but by the way they are left out of decision-making about their services. Our Bill is the first step towards a healthier relationship between government, outsourcing companies and the British public.