Quango-itis! A frightful disease

I've come to expect quango chiefs to behave like headless chickens when the chicken shit hits the fans. From hospital executives to the less well-known sinecures of government, these wallahs only take the credit for the good stuff and run a mile when things get sticky.

The DVLC is a prime example. Thousands of blank DVLA log books have been stolen. The police have been informed. Now it is expected that law-abiding car owners may be targets for criminal scams. However, instead of trying to uncover the appalling lack of duty, the DVLA chief executive Noel Shanahan suggests its everyone else's concern but his.

"When we discovered that these documents had been stolen, we actually went to the police because it is a criminal act. If it's a criminal act then clearly we can't be held responsible for that. Most importantly our website, at that time and now, has current information on it, on how to avoid being duped into buying a stolen vehicle."

Not exactly words of comfort. Mr.Shanahan says, "clearly we can't be held responsible" and this is the general mantra of these jobsworths. Well, he may not be totally responsible, but he must be the only man in the country who thinks he has no responsibility at all.

A shake-up is much needed in this country!