The Actus Reus

Introduction and preface to the article:

This topic, difficult at times in terms of identifying causation, requires looking at various issues related to the legal tenet.

For example, closely related issues such as the requirement to have a voluntary act, what categories include a non-voluntary action – such as reflex actions, automatism and somnambulism – and, pertinently, liability for omissions such as the duty to act and causation itself?

This topic bridges law with many aspects of medical science. A considerable amount of time has been spent in researching the subject and, as readers will note, a significant number of case-law histories have been identified for inclusion as proof within the journal.

Where references have been made to external sources the author will identify these within a bibliography at the end of the work.


© Copyright MarkDowe 2007: all rights protected

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PART 1:

The voluntary act requirement -

Ladies and gentlemen, in my last delivery on Scots Criminal Law (The nature and administration of Scots criminal law), I ended that article stating that it is a fundamental requirement for liability under Scots criminal law that there is some form of voluntary act.

It is often stated, there can be no conviction for a "thought crime" alone without a related criminal act. 'Thought crimes' are instances where a person has had a criminal thought but has done nothing to put it into effect. That act may amount to very little, for example an attempt to commit a crime which fails to come to fruition. Nonetheless, there has to be some form of act which moves beyond preparation and does show the accused's criminal intent sufficiently to provide a basis for conviction. There appears to be two main reasons for refusing to punish 'pure thought crimes':

1. It is impossible for the prosecuting authorities to know what someone was thinking at a particular time, unless those thoughts were put into action and,

2. Even if those thoughts were evil, it is likewise impossible to predict whether they will necessarily lead to criminal actions.

- It is often felt that the legal system cannot justify interfering with a person's freedom simply because his thoughts are such that he might behave criminally in the future.

What is required is an act which shows that the accused is capable of actually harming society and which is prohibited under criminal law. Thus, the combination of criminal act and criminal state of mind gives the legal system its justification for intervention.

There are two classifications of crimes, depending on the type and duration of the conduct involved. A crime which is encompassed within a single event is know as a conduct crime. For example, the law prohibits the possession of illegal substances under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. The mere fact of possession, which is an aspect of the accused's conduct, is sufficient enough for conviction. Specifically, there is no need for a result to flow from that possession and thus deemed a conduct crime. However, some crimes require a specific result to flow from conduct in order to make that conduct the subject of the particular crime. In such cases, these are known as result crimes. The classic example is murder. If the accused commits murder, he is guilty. However, it is the unlawful result (the killing of the victim) that secures conviction. It does not matter what form of conduct the accused has engaged in order to achieve that result. He may, for instance, have stabbed, beaten or poisoned the victim, but the conviction will still be the same, because the crime of murder simply looks for a resultant unlawful killing by the accused.

Although it is not possible to convict for a guilty mind without a criminal act, it is possible to convict an individual on the basis of a criminal act without any intention. These are known legally as 'strict liability offences'. It is not my intention at this moment in looking too closely at strict liability offences, suffice to say that such offences will be examined later under a separate journal posting of statutory offences.

On finding that the accused has committed an act of some kind, it must amount to a voluntary act. This should not be confused with an act which the accused wanted to perform. A voluntary act is one over which the accused has exercised control, or one of which he is aware. There are established categories of voluntary and non-voluntary actions, which will be looked at in the next chapter.

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PART 2:

Nature and Administration of Scots Criminal Law:

Part 1:

All areas of law can be classified under broad descriptive headings. These headings include 'European', 'International', 'Jurisprudential', but the greatest divide is between public and private law.

Private law is the classification under which come all areas of law which regulate an individual's rights and claims against others. Thus, it includes property law, family and contract law, to mention but a few.

Public law is that which describes all those areas of law which involve the state or some organ of the state. It includes constitutional law, administrative law and, the subject under consideration here, criminal law. Criminal law is treated as an aspect of public law because it involves the state in its capacity as prosecutor. Except in very rare cases where a private prosecution may be brought, the accused and his defence team face the procurator fiscal, the Lord Advocate (or one of his deputies), all of whom are representatives of the Crown. Prosecutions are thus run by the state, albeit for the benefit of society. It is this state involvement which characterises criminal law as public law.

The scope of criminal law can be more difficult to justify, particularly at the boundaries of liability. It covers all criminal behaviour by any person over the age of 8, although the blog author understands that the Scottish Law Commission has published proposals for reform. Nevertheless, difficult theoretical issues can arise in merely defining criminal behaviour but, at its most basic, criminal behaviour is simply that which legislation or case law prohibits, and to describe something as 'criminal' adheres to some notion of proscribing immoral or unacceptable behaviour.

The problem is this: who is to say what is immoral or unacceptable? One man's immorality may be another's pastime. However, those in charge of creating the criminal law have decided, and continue to decide, what is and is not criminal behaviour. The proper question is whether the accused has overstepped that line. If he has, he deserves punishment.

The question of the nature and purpose of punishment is also a difficult area, one in which there is a vast body of literature. The classic divide in theories of punishment falls between retribution and rehabilitation. The retributive theory postulates that punishment is based on the state's duty to subject the criminal to such unpleasant consequences as the gravity of their offence deserves. The oldest version of retribution, in practice, can be seen in the Biblical notion of 'an eye for an eye'. Judaism, for instance, bases much of its punitive retribution on this authority. Other theories concentrate on the need for punishment to provide the offender with the opportunity to reform and rehabilitate or re-educate himself, or stress that its primary purpose is to deter the criminal from committing a similar, or indeed any other crime, in the future and thereby prevent recidivism (repeat offending).

Scots criminal law is unusual among its fellow systems in that it is based almost entirely on the common law. There are relatively few statutes, and most of them tend to relate to criminal procedure - that is, they relate to the handling of the criminal process from detention and questioning to trial and sentence, rather than specify what actually amounts to a crime under Scots criminal law. However, the courts deal with statutory provisions on a regular basis, given that both road traffic offences and drug related offences are governed by statute, and are among the most frequently prosecuted offences. Ladies and gentlemen, there is no such thing as a criminal code in Scotland, as is favoured by many European systems, which sets out the types of conduct which will be prosecutable in one document. For example, the French Code Penal and American Code Penal are both legislative documents that highlight precisely what types of conduct are deemed unacceptable and what actions of punishment will be enforced if such criminal acts are committed.

Because no criminal code as such formally exists in Scotland, cases are resolved on the basis of the doctrine of precedent, whereby previous established decisions from higher courts, usually the High Court of Justiciary as an appeal court, are used as authority and followed by lower courts in coming to a decision in the case in hand. The most noticeable result when examining Scots criminal law as a body of law is that the definitions of crimes tend to be broader and more generalised because they have developed from a series of authoritative decisions throughout the years. Criminal law in Scotland does not suffer from the stringencies of statutory definitions, which tend, as a rule, to be far tighter and exclusive in nature. The writer accepts that common law definitions are more flexible and it is easier to adapt them to changing social circumstances and thereby retain the 'relevance' of particular crimes over a longer period. However, this breadth and broadness of definition has become problematic following the incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights into Scots law. Article 6, for example, of the Convention, requires that the accused be informed, in a language which he understands and in detail, of the nature of the charge against him. Arguably, some of the more broadly defined crimes actually fall foul of this provision.

There are several historical texts which are viewed as authoritative statements of Scots criminal law and which are used by the courts in Scotland on a regular basis. In the next part of my work on this topic I will examine more closely what these historical texts are.

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Part 2:

There are several historical texts which are viewed as authoritative statements of Scots criminal law and are used by modern day courts on a regular basis. The most important of these is Hume's 'Commentaries on the Law of Scotland Respecting Crimes'. This, despite dating from 1797, is still referred to in judgements and remains the main source for an initial definition of many crimes.

The account given in Hume's latest edition - based on Hume and updated after his death - is founded on principles which could be drawn from the decisions of the High Court prior to that date which Hume used as his sources.

Use of law reports:

There are numerous series of law reports which reproduce the text of criminal cases. In modern times, it is fairly safe to say that no one series is more or less authoritative than another, although some are certainly much more brief, providing only a short summary, while others are reproduced with the text and, for notable cases, a short commentary.

The two main series of reports are the 'Scots Law Times' and the 'Session cases'. Each are bound by year and cover civil as well as criminal cases. Each volume of the Session Cases is divided into three sections dedicated respectively to House of Lords cases, Justiciary cases and Session cases. All criminal cases reported in the Session Cases are found in the Justiciary cases section.

The doctrine of precedent:

The doctrine of precedent basically requires lower courts to follow decisions of higher courts in cases that deal with the same area of law. These cases are said to be 'in point'.

However, the 'doctrine of precedent' is weaker in criminal law than it is in civil law because, within the arena of criminal law, there is no possibility of appeal to the House of Lords as it only deals with Scottish appeals on civil matters. Instead, the 'doctrine of precedent' means that the Scottish criminal courts will follow decisions of the High Court of Justiciary, which sits as the most senior court within the jurisdiction. The High Court sitting as an appellate court binds the High Court sitting as a trial court: the appeal court will follow its own prior decisions, although it is quite possible for a larger bench to be convened in order to overrule an earlier appellate decision.

A judge sitting in the High Court on his own is not bound by earlier decisions made by another sole judge. A Sheriff will be bound by the High Court on appeal, and will usually also follow prior decisions by a sole judge in the High Court, or by a Sheriff, although he is not bound to do so. Decisions retain their authoritative status until overruled or, exceptionally, until they became so old that they fall into disuse. Although older decisions of the High Court are clearly still authoritative and are referred to on a daily basis in court, the emphasis on the text will, where possible, be on more modern day precedents.

Even if a prior decision is not actually binding on the court in question, it can be treated as persuasive and therefore may carry some weight. It is known as 'persuasive', rather than binding, precedent. Binding precedent can become even more authoritative if it has remained unchallenged, been cited with approval, and been followed by other courts for many years. Conversely, the weight of any binding precedent can be diminished if the decision was by majority and the dissenting options were strong, or from a particularly respected judge.

Once a case has been identified as binding, it then becomes necessary to isolate the part of the decision which is binding. Only the ratio decidendi is binding; that is, the underlying basis for the decision, which will be expressed as a general principle, without any of the specific details particular to the case from which it is derived. In practice, the ratio is not always actually expressed by the judge in his opinion, and often has to be deduced instead.

Any statement which is obiter dicta is not binding, although judges may take note of what has been said in, for example, English rulings. This applies to all statements made 'by the way' and which are not necessary for, or strictly related to, the decision in hand.

The declaratory power of the High Court of Justiciary:

The declaratory power is one of the most unusual features of the High Court of Justiciary. It was described by Hume as: "an inherent power ... to punish ... every act which is obviously of a criminal nature".

The power allows the High Court to declare as criminal, conduct which which was not, at the time the act was committed, subject to criminal sanction. In effect, the power allows the High Court to declare the accused's conduct to be criminal retrospectively.

In determining what types of conduct would justify such retrospective criminalisation, older authorities suggest that the conduct should be so clearly and grossly immoral that it would be obvious to everyone and, crucially, would or should have been obvious to the accused that it was criminal in nature. Indisputably, it is necessary for the common law to be able to adapt and move forward and, in order to do so, it is accepted that new types of criminal activity will be brought before the court and will, ultimately, lead to the gradual development of the definitions of existing crimes. The accused would be convicted of an existing crime because, for example, his act amounted to a new means of committing theft, fraud, or any other common law crime. However, the nature of the declatory power is somewhat different; instead of allowing the new form of conduct to be assimilated into an existing crime, the High Court simply declares this conduct to be criminal in and of itself.

The existence of the declaratory power has been recognised in a number of cases, most notably the case of Bernard Greenhuff which expressly states the existence of this power. More recent cases have acknowledged its existence, although they have not actually used it. Such cases include Khaliq v. HM Advocate [1984: SLT 137] and Grant v. Allan [1988: SLT 11]. In Grant, the accused had been charged with unlawfully taking, detaining and offering to make available to another, confidential information belonging to his employer. It was argued that this was not a crime known to Scots law. The High Court on appeal were very cautious about using the declaratory power. Although they acknowledged Hume's statement that the power allowed the court to punish every obvious criminal act, and that it would sometimes be appropriate to use such a power, it was also noted that any such exercise should be carried out with great care. Simply stating that conduct is immoral or reprehensible is not sufficient to make it criminal, but the court felt it was proper for Parliament, and not themselves, in declaring new law. If Parliament is not so minded, the courts are generally reluctant to step in.

The declaratory power is also subject to strong criticism to the extent that it offends against fundamental principles. It is axiomatic that there can be no crime without the existence of a law which makes that conduct criminal at the time of its commission. It is irrelevant, under this principle, that it became criminal within a very short time of its commission. If legislation had come into effect on the Tuesday, and the accused had carried out the act in question on the Wednesday, but in ignorance of the new law, he will be prosecuted for his acts because they were criminal at the time of their commission. It does not matter that he did not know they were criminal, as ignorance of the law is not a defence.

The declaratory power also faces criticism from a different source, in that it offends against Article 7 of the European Convention on Human Rights which enshrines the principle of non-retroactivity and prohibits *any* law from attaching liability to conduct which pre-dates the implementation of that law.

The nature and impact of the European Convention on Human Rights:

The Convention was incorporated into Scots law by virtue of section 57 (2) of the Scotland Act 1998, which forbids the Scottish Executive from acting in ways which are incompatible with the Convention and the rights that such European rights enshrines. Likewise, the same prohibition has been imposed on public authorities (section 6 (1)), which are defined so as including the courts. Thus, even if legislation was passed by the Scottish Parliament which was Convention non-compliant, the courts could not lawfully enforce it. This has brought into Scots law a number of rights which are now explicitly identified. Of particular note to the criminal law, these give the accused the right to a fair and timely trial and of the right to be informed of the charge laid against him in detail. This, in itself, has already caused problems in relation to the ‘charge of breach of the peace’.

The Human Rights Act 1998 (section 3) further requires that all domestic legislation should be interpreted and given effect to in a way which is compatible with the Convention rights. If legislation is not compatible with these rights, the court may make a declaration to that effect under section 4 of the 1998 Act. Section 6 requires that all public authorities act in ways which are likewise compatible, unless they are prevented from doing so by primary legislation – but, as explained above, would then itself then fall foul of section 3.

The Convention sets out broad rights with little explanatory detail. Several articles impinge to a greater or lesser extent on the criminal law. Article 1 enshrines the right to life, but gives no guidance on issues such as when life begins and ends. Thus, there is for example no specific guidance on the contentious issues of abortion and euthanasia. Article 4 provides a right to liberty and security, unless those rights are compromised by a lawful detention or arrest. Article 6 is perhaps the most frequently used and comprehensive Convention right. It gives the accused the right to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable timescale before an impartial tribunal. It also encompasses the presumption of innocence and allows the accused to insist that he is informed promptly, in detail and in a language to which he understands and, of the nature and cause of the charge against him. He is assured of adequate time and facilities to prepare his defence, and is given the right to choose in defending himself, hire a representative of his choice, and in applying for legal aid to cover his costs if he meets the financial criteria. Article 7 enshrines the principle of non-retroactivity, such that the accused can only be charged with an offence if his acts were criminal at the time they were committed. If an offence has been created after the date of the accused’s acts, they cannot be penalised, as they did not constitute an offence at the relevant time. Articles 10 and 11 assure freedom of expression and assembly, and the 6th. Protocol, Article 1 outlaws the use of the death penalty unless reintroduced by the State in exceptional circumstances during wartime.

As part of the move to Scottish devolution, the role of the Lord Advocate as head of the prosecution system has been subject to scrutiny. The problem was caused by the inclusion of the Lord Advocate within the Scottish Executive, which requires that the Lord Advocate take account of Convention rights. For instance, as head of the prosecution service in Scotland, the Lord Advocate has a core role in the appointment and reappointment of temporary sheriffs. Temporary sheriffs are vital to the administration of the criminal justice system, as they help to deal with the increasing volumes of work which come before the Sheriff Court. However, in the context of antagonism, the argument was pledged that, as they were appointed by the Lord Advocate - and therefore by a member of the Executive - their appointments were to closely connected to the Executive as a whole in being viewed as independent and impartial. It was alleged that this lack of independence (in the form of a judge) was an infringement of Convention rights to a fair trial before an impartial tribunal.

Ladies and gentlemen, difficulties have also been faced in relation to criminal procedure, and particularly the accused's right to a timely trial as enshrined in Article 6. For example, the blog author notes the case of O'Brien v. HM Advocate: In this case 23 months had elapsed between the original charge and the trial. This was due to pressure of work on the forensic laboratory and the police. It was held - "If this type of delay was a regular occurrence as the inevitable result of the limited resources available, it would amount to systematic under-funding by the state and therefore a failure to connect this inadequacy would be unreasonable in terms of Article 6". But, in this particular case, the appellant had 'failed to show' that his case had suffered due to anything more than a temporary problem and his appeal was dismissed.

In another case, noted by the author, Dyer v. Watson [2002: SLT 229 (Privy Council], the High Court held that a delay of 27 months was to long in a case involving sensitive matters. The Crown had argued that, since the case was one requiring sensitivity and was to be dealt with by particular and specifically trained skilled people, it was inevitable that it would take longer. It was held that Article 6 (1) did not lay down any precise time limits, but instead looked to provide an objective level of protection to all parties against procedural abuses. The test for establishing that a delay had been unreasonble is a stringent one, and it must be shown that the length of delay gives real cause for concern on its face, before it is necessary to look into the details and require an explanation from the prosecution for the delay.

The courts:

There are a number of criminal courts in Scotland, and the decision to which court is appropriate for a particular case depends on several factors. For example, a child under the age of 16 who is thought to have committed an offence will usually be dealt with by the Children's Hearings system instead of the criminal courts.

There are geographical considerations; all the courts in Scotland, with the exception of the High Court of Justiciary, hear those cases involving crimes committed in their area. The High Court of Justiciary is a peripatetic court - in that, it can hear cases in its buildings in either Edinburgh or Glasgow or, for convenience, it can also move around the country sitting in local Sheriff Court buildings in the area covering the crime scene.

The severity of the crime committed may also determine the type of court used, as each court has different (maximum) levels of sentencing powers. There is little point prosecuting a serious assault before a court which can only sentence the accused to a maximum three months imprisonment. This decison, ladies and gentlemen, is for the prosecutor in the individual case.

Readers might like to note that a seperate journal is being considered for the different types of courts in Scotland which, I would argue, although linked to the nature of this topic in hand, is a subject within its own right.

Before embarking on works relating to the various courts in Scotland, in my next delivery I intend to concentrate on the difficult area of Scots Criminal Law known as 'The Actus Reus'. This will be presented via a seperate journal and to which will be available through RSS updates. In essence however, and as a guiding legal tenet, it has always been a fundamanetal requirement for liability under Scots criminal law that there is some form of voluntary act. This is directly related to the Actus Reus maxim.

THIS IS SCOTLAND AND MATTERS JOURNALLED HERE ARE IN REGARDS TO SCOTS LAW.

IF YOU ARE IN DOUBT AS TO THE CONTENT OR ANY MATTER REQUIRING LEGAL CLARIFICATION CONCERNING YOUR RIGHTS, IF YOU ARE SO CONCERNED, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A SOLICITOR IN SCOTLAND REGARDING THOSE RIGHTS IN MATTERS THAT MAY CONCERN YOU WITHIN THE ABOVE COMMENTARY.

© Copyright MarkDowe 2007: all rights protected.

Scots Law: The Modern Period

The two most outstanding features in the development of Scots law since 1800 have been:

• the influence of English law; and
• the increase in statutory law.

The entry of the United Kingdom to the European Communities has, since 1973, opened up the way for a further important feature and, in particular, how it has affected the development of the law in Scotland.

English law has been the principle foreign influence on Scots law since 1800. That influence has been exerted mainly through two channels, legislation and decisions reached by the House of Lords.

Parliament may, and some times does, pass Acts which apply only to England. Devolved matters attributed to Scotland under the Scotland Act does give Scottish Ministers powers in creating laws but the area of contention remains matters reserved by Westminster. This article is concerned how Scots law has been influenced by factors since 1800.

Ladies and gentlemen, with the ever increasing number of Acts of Parliament which have accumulated during the modern period, the result has been to make Scots law much more similar to English law than it was at the beginning of the nineteenth century. This was particularly true of those branches of the law, such as commercial and industrial law, which the London parliament had been most active in controlling and reforming throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

After the Union of the Parliaments in 1707 the House of Lords had become the final court of appeal for Scottish civil cases. This fact alone led to the importation of much English law into Scotland, especially as the doctrine of judicial precedent came to be more strictly applied as part of Scots law.

Considerable dissatisfaction has been expressed by many Scots lawyers with the power which the House of Lords, composed mainly, and sometimes entirely, of judges trained in the Anglo-American school of legal thought, and how that was exerted over the development of the law in Scotland. Readers might like to note that English law is primarily driven by the Anglo-American model. This model is alien to Scotland whose roots of existence extended from Roman and Canonical laws.

Judgements of the Court of Session in Scotland had often been reversed by the House of Lords. There have been, in many cases, displays and confessions of ignorance of Scots law on the part of the English judges. The principles and terms of English law have sometimes wrongly been assumed to be the exact equivalents of those of Scots law.

In the modern period there has been a great increase in the volume of statutory law, which includes, as well as Acts of Parliament, all those detailed rules and regulations made by government departments, local authorities, and other bodies in accordance with powers conferred on them by Parliament. The "common law", that part of the law which is not statutory and which consists of principles and rules developed over the years by decisions of the courts, is now a much smaller part of the whole of Scots law than it was in 1800. Legislative Acts passed by the Westminster Government over the centuries has diluted very much the substance and origins of the law in Scotland. The establishment of Scotland's parliament prior to the millennium, firstly by Donald Dewar, and succeeded by others - has to some extent curbed that dilution from rotting Scots law into almost oblivion. For decades, history clearly shows that the Westminster parliament had attempted in making Scotland a mere region or extension of England.

The Blog Author's support for Scotland's First Minister - Mr Alex Salmond - is well documented throughout this site but, I strongly believe, that the SNP will be able to deliver the long-term objectives it has set-out to do, by making possible the legislative framework for an independent Scotland. In my view it cannot come soon enough. I strongly recommend readers to obtain the Scottish Government's draft proposals for a Referendum, as well as thinking over the details put by our First Minister in the consultative document entailed, 'A National Conversation'. The document is a starting point and inspiration for that conversation, which will be had over the coming weeks and months. It explores areas in which Scotland could take on further responsibilities - such as employment, national finances, or legislation on public safety. The concept of independence is central to the paper.

Parliament is as much about law-making as it is in looking after its citizens. The need for a stronger and more effectual legislative body is, in the view of Nationalists, a pressing argument. Scotland is a country and deserves to be brought back via restitution, particularly as far as the law in concerned is Scotland. The parliament in Edinburgh, in its current form, is not adequate enough. It needs the additional powers, those many areas 'reserved' by Westminster, in securing a better and more prosperous future for Scotland. The SNP are right in seeking that mandate.

Scotland is culturally different and could favourably export with our European neighbours, as an independent nation. At present, British foreign policy dictates what Scotland can and cannot do. This is not in Scotland's best interests. I challenge anyone to suggest otherwise.

Reform of the law is made necessary because of how society changes. Ignorance can tend to be blind to this as people adapt without thinking to a rapidly changing society. But, this doesn't necessarily mean it is favourable or even acceptable to a country that has become use to changes by stealth. A country that is different means it should be afforded autonomy without the fear of interference from elsewhere.

I do not apologise for being a Nationalist, I seek the best outcome for Scotland. I abhor all political measures purported in the name of free markets and strongly refute the repulsive assertions made by Conservatism whether that be the abolition of death taxes or the operation of a free market economy as advocated by Cronies of Thatcherism. Equally, I detest educational policies that do not push hard enough on English language and Mathematics, whether that be in England or elsewhere.

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© Copyright MarkDowe 2007: all rights protected

Ideology & Politics:

PART 1:

As a nationalist, I believe that the core of nationalism as an ideology is reducible to four propositions. Nationalists tend to believe in a given set of principles, namely:

. That the world is 'naturally' divided into nations;

. Each nation has its own unique character resulting from its history and culture including, especially, its language;

. Each nation should be independent or, at least, should possess a large measure of autonomy; only in running its own affairs can it achieve self-realisation, and

. The first loyalty, the primary allegiance of the individual, is to the nation-state.

The Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) is the political party that governs Scotland. Before Mr. Salmond was elected as First Minister, recently, even so-called respectable people tried calling the bluff of those opposed to a tired union. There attempts back-fired, as now they swallow-hard at the laughable contempt they had for those opposed to the present political settlement. Why do we not hear much from those people now? What do I feel when I see someones back: that someone who was adamant that the continuity of the union was as good as when it was forced upon the will of Scotland by those who had governmental influence and wealth prior to 1707?

The course of Scotland will change further. I have no-doubt about that, and the sooner the better. However, this is a topic that is focused around the concept of 'ideology', nationalism is only just one small part of a larger jigsaw in the overall context of things.

An ideology is basically a belief-system which serves as a guide to action. The importance of ideologies in politics is that they shape political behaviour. They do this by providing pictures of the world which shows how it has come to be as it is; how it is likely to change; what changes are desirable and undesirable, how the former can be facilitated and the latter controlled. Ideologies appeal to people as members of particular social groups - governing, business, ethnic, racial, national, religious - as classes, and as sexes. Ideologies aim, intrinsically, to extend such groupings by, for example, building up morale. It is interesting to note that empirical evidence suggests that in extending such groups this may also include 'sympathisers' - those who are able to add - but, who are not actually 'members'.

The word 'extend' - being used here - I believe, calls for further explanation. It is obviously not possible for a socialist to increase the actual numbers of the working class, for a Scottish Nationalist to make the population of Scotland greater than it is or for a feminist to augment the number of women in society. What each ideologist can, and does, strive to do is to enlist more workers, Scots and women to their respective causes. A shift in individual perspectives on the world and to effect a more intense identification with a specific category of people are prerequisites for extending an ideological belief system further than the current parameters. To an extent, the Scottish Nationalist Party has slowly used these underlying principles to great effect. More needs to be done, however, in rolling out those aspects that are having a significant and involuntary bearing and influence on Scotland such as the continuing influence of the English legislature on Scotland. Scotland is a separate country, not a mere extension or region of England. Scotland has its own unique legal, educational and religious establishments.

The core of a political ideology, then, is its commitment to some political ideal, be it national independence or resurgence, the social ownership of the means of production or the equality of the sexes.

"Ideology is any set of ideas about human nature, society and history which can gain the commitment of significant numbers of individuals for or against political change." (Dowe, July 2007)

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PART 2:

I believe that ideologies make politics more than a struggle for power and material benefits. I suggest to you that ideologies are called upon in providing legitimacy both for forms of varying government and for economic systems. Inherent within any form of government or economic structure belies an ideology that will ultimately attempt to endorse the existing social and political systems and, pertinently, set goals that may yet be achieved. This might not necessarily imply that ideological beliefs leads directly to political action or discourse.

No straight line can be drawn between beliefs and action, the relationship between what we believe and what we do often being indirect, and usually subtle. Can Marx be held responsible either for the Bolshevik Revolution (1917) or for the French Revolution set-out by Rousseau?

The intention of ideology is to persuade. It was the ideologue in Marx who was speaking when he said that whereas in the past philosophers had sought to understand the world, the point was to change it. Academic disciplines - history, for example, or philosophy or physics - aims at understanding which is very much distinct from an ideologue that persuades change.

Ideology aims to convince that this or that course of action is the right one; and it is, of course, true that we expect people to act upon their convictions. Ideology need not act as a powerful influence upon political behaviour, but in practice it often does so. Do people, for instance, wish to do anything regarding a freer and more tolerant society, in today's climate of fear and anxiety? If they do, ideologies kick-start that process.

Interestingly, the forms taken by ideologies vary from country to country and from century to century. In the former USSR, for instance, the official ideology is the Marxist-Leninism model. The writings of Marx and Lenin are regarded as sacred texts and were continually used as justifications in either setting or changing policies. Throughout Africa and Asia, nationalism has been the predominant ideology since 1945 - to rally peoples against the occupying power in anti-colonial liberation wars, to integrate disparate tribal elements in post-independence regimes and - often allied to some variant of Socialism - to mobilise the new country behind a drive to modernisation. In the West, liberal values are generally all pervasive and deeply rooted advocating and supporting individualism, with its associated ideas and practices - freedom of conscience, speech and association, legal and political equality, the rights of private property, toleration, and the separation of State and civil society.

Ideologies may change their function over time. The same ideology appearing as revolutionary to one generation may appear later for conservative purposes in the future. Liberalism was certainly a revolutionary ideology in the late eighteenth century: as encapsulated in such slogans like, 'the rights of man' and 'liberty, equality, fraternity', it expressed the demands of the American and French Revolutionaries. By the mid-nineteenth century, it had become the dominant ideology in Britain - the so called 'ideology of age' - but, was itself under attack from Socialists, the new enemies on the left.

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PART 3:

Ideology is also closely related to those versions of the past which mould social and political behaviour - namely, myth and tradition. The link between ideology and myth can be simply illustrated by reference again to socialism, nationalism and feminism. Each of these ideologies seeks to mobilise and spur to action the particular groups to which it appeals (respectively, the working class, the nation and women) and accordingly, allocates each a specific role; respectively, to fight the capitalist, imperialist and male oppressor.

Looking at history is an important factor because, invariably, roles are often presented in an ideal light, an idealisation which, extending into the past, can involve a highly selective version of history? Past moments of ‘heroic’ activity by a group in question can receive especial stress: for example, the mass action in the streets of Paris in 1789 which overthrew the French old regime, Petrograd in 1917 which broke the tsarist autocracy (by Socialists); past battles (not always victorious) and charismatic leaders (by nationalists), and historical campaigns like the one for political equality led by the Suffragettes (by feminists). The point here is not that the episodes referred to are not true; they often do contain a great deal of truth. The point is rather the ideological intention of such exercises: there is no attempt to be critical, to depict the protagonists on the ‘right’ side in such struggles with all their failings, ‘warts and all’; only to persuade. They appeal to the romantic in all of us, our liking for the heroic, our desire to be identified with a group in the achievement of a good cause, our sociability.

Ideology can make use of another selective version of a particular past – a political tradition. The concept of political tradition refers to those modes of political behaviour, a mixture of values and practices, which have come to be widely-accepted in a society. In Britain, for instance, the political tradition includes a respect for parliament as an institution, a belief in free speech, tolerance of what in many other countries would be regarded as a very secretive system of government, and a repugnance for violent behaviour and behaviour which is outside the law. Part of the answer lies in how political parties have used an ideology in shaping how the party befits society. The proposal for proportional representation (already activated in Scotland) has had to contend with not only the opposition of the party in government which is content with the electoral system by which it has gained power but also with the general public belief that the existing system ‘works’, a belief which the governing party itself, acting ideologically, seeks to mobilise.

The leading ideologies of the modern world include conservatism, nationalism, fascism, liberalism and socialism. For interests of this article I will be focussing attention towards nationalism. For example, what is nationalisms concept of human nature? What are its leading tenets or articles of faith? What about social class, nation, progress, history, participation, power and authority? At the beginning of this article I suggested to you that the core of nationalism as an ideology was reducible to four propositions.

Conservatives may, as of right, be deemed strongly patriotic, potentially nationalistic in their outlook. Conservative perspective on the world is demonstrated, normally, by the very high political priority they accord to the preservation of the integrity of the 'nation'
against internal separatist pressures and external threats. Distaste for behaviour which divides rather than binds together the nation, including that which exacerbates class hatred as well as ethnic disintegration; a pride in the nation's historical achievements - political, literary, scientific, military; and a permanent preoccupation with matters of national security and defence, which may well include shame for policy episodes when the country's external posture was weak, such as appeasement. It might sound familiar to you, and I hope it does because trait theory in any individual is easy to detect - and yet, many attempt to hide from it. All the aspects I mentioned are of an ideology which sees the 'nation' as the primary historical and political unit. Conservatives will attempt to unify in religion, where no base actually exists, for example. In Scotland, 'conservatism' has been stripped virtually clean and yet, it is there, underlying, hoping and anticipating a move towards a more unified Britain, as in the historical sense. Those days are gone. Move forward.

Ladies and gentlemen, as is perhaps immediately apparent, the central concept of nationalistic ideology is the idea of the 'nation'. Its basic political doctrine flows from this idea: that each 'nation' should form itself into a State. It has proved to be a doctrine of striking potency in the modern world.

For the emergence of nationalism as an ideology, the era of the French Revolution (1789-1815) was decisive. During those years a number of ideas fused in creating that modern doctrine.

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© Copyright Mark Dowe 2007: all rights protected

‘Expert systems’ architecture:

Introduction:

In recent years, the systems design process has been witness to a tremendous leap within advanced system design and, in the next few years, certain professionals will be introduced to the enormous potential that ‘artificial intelligence’ (AI) in business can offer. This will be particularly true, as projects under development come to fruition.

One of the greatest limitations of current information processing systems is that their scope has been restricted to the fast and accurate processing of numeric and text data. Broadly speaking, this processing has involved numeric and algebraic functions on numbers, or various forms of insertion, deletion and retrieval of text. This process is controlled largely, by operating system memories and by programs working on the numeric and text data. The accountant added debits and credits to arrive at balances, the scientist performed statistical tests on survey data, or the office administrator inserted or deleted files in cabinets.

The doctor having a knowledge of diseases, comes to a diagnoses of an illness by reasoning from information given by the patient's symptoms and then prescribes medication on the basis of known characteristics of available drugs together with the patient's history. The solicitor advises the client on the likely outcome of litigation based on the facts of the particular case, an expert understanding of the law and a knowledge of the way courts work and interpret this law in practice. The accountant looks at various characteristics of a company's performance and makes a judgement as to the likely state of health of that company. All of these tasks involve some of the features for which computerised systems traditionally have been noted - performing text and numeric processing quickly and efficiently - but, the distinctive feature largely absent from a totally effective system has been 'reasoning'.

Ladies and gentlemen, reasoning is the movement from details of a particular case and knowledge of the general subject area surrounding that case to the derivation of conclusions. Moreover, the primary function of 'expert systems' will be to incorporate this reasoning by applying general rules in a knowledge base to aspects of a particular case under consideration. Such systems, by definition, will be of importance to a whole array of professions including medicine, law, accountancy and science.

In commencing this article, it would perhaps be relevant in defining exactly what an expert system is. The short answer is that it is certainly a computerised system that performs the role of an expert or carries out a task that requires expertise (Dowe, July 2007). In order to understand what an expert system is, then, it is worth paying some attention to the role of an expert and the nature, generally, of expertise. Ascertaining what types of experts and expertise there are in business and what benefits will accrue to an organisation when it develops such a system, are, equally, valid follow-on questions. If we are to design and implement such 'artificially designed intelligence' systems, then we need to understand fully how an expert in human form has traditionally operated. We must try to understand his mindset - in given situations - to develop a system that accommodates his or her needs.

I have an Irish dentist. She is very capable at what she does and very thorough and methodical in her approach. She is also a highly trained professional that utilises and accesses various forms of information, at times, through her databases. Without going into the finite details of what dentists can and do record you will perhaps appreciate the degree to which AI systems could help such practitioners. The analogy could easily be applied to doctors, medical consultants and scientists from varying branches.

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Part 1:

AI systems (Artificial Intelligence) are systems that, to a large degree, eliminate ignorance. The basic premise underpinning such designs is that it removes the need for operator, human or clerical error. Artificial intelligence and how such systems are driven is based purely on a body of knowledge, at source, within a particular subject area. Legally, such systems could, by definition, be held-out to be contracting in their own right. This point is perhaps worth considering a little further.

AI should base its access facilities on a high level of security, particularly on who and who cannot gain access to AI. The premise underpinning AI is that information has been fed from authoritative sources and, as such, an outcome driven by an autonomous AI server should be deemed professionally correct and competent. If, at some stage, the system creates errors in driving out that information for advice purposes, that is later found to be wrong or even negligent then, I believe, a liability and obligation exists on an organisation as to why such outcomes were delivered in an incorrect manner.

To deliver AI, in a given situation, is not by any means an easy task but one, if correctly implemented, will have an enormous benefit on reducing costs in the long-run and on a company' or organisations efficiency and productivity. It will likely reduce wastage such as excess manning by delivering information at a touch of a button that previously, would have taken many hours, in given situations, to compile and disseminate. Business efficiency, ladies and gentlemen, is about how organisations gain a competitive edge, not by remaining stale and out-of-date. Although this may very well sound condescending, the chief purpose of any business is to deliver its objectives quickly and effectively, in reducing costs. The only real way that this can be improved, beyond current standards, is by introducing, through a high level skill base, the 'reasoning' frameworks that are, in many institutions, clearly absent. This not only applies to many small type organisations who could benefit hugely from AI, but is equally apparently absent within large UK organisations such as the NHS. How good could AI be for the NHS?

I was first introduced to AI by an Irish gentlemen whose pulse ticked business. Irish businessmen have a clear philosophy of creating effective systems that are in accordance with the objectives of their companies. This is not particularly true with how so many companies in the UK wish to progress. Why this is the case is a little baffling suffice to say that British short-termism around the world is often acknowledged as its main downfall. Cultural diversities in many Irish companies also aids the process of business development: notably within the field of logistics, IT and electronics. AI is as much about integrating diversities and professional competencies as it is to do with the overall delivery of such systems.

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Part 2:

Organisations have experts and specialists in many areas. A business organisation will probably have general expertise in such areas as tax, accounts, marketing, production and personnel as well as specific expertise in the narrow area of its activity – for example, the design, production and retail of motor cars. As well as ‘high level’ expertise there will also be ‘low level’ expertise. An example of this might be the knowledge possessed by a clerk of the way that an organisation stores its records with cross-referencing and the handling of exceptions. In general terms however, the author of this site believes that a major step towards AI, is the necessity in today’s era of creating, as far as is possible, a paperless driven system. Added bureaucracy, by definition of acquiring effective streamlining, cannot aid expert systems. Anything that slows or retards the information flow is a bottleneck, unwanted by experts acquiring information from such systems.

Expert systems will require, at some early stage, an appraisal and justification of the costs to be incurred in such systems if the benefits envisaged to the organisation are to be realised at some future date. Expert systems and related architecture does, in broad terms, offer an array of benefits to the organisation. For example, the implementation of such systems could become a cost-effective consultancy system in aiding or even replacing the existing expertise within the organisation. Being computer based, expert systems perform consistently unlike ‘human experts’ who themselves may have ‘off days’. Such infrastructures are also likely to create a standard or benchmark against which human experts can be compared. An archive of special skills that the organisation currently possesses and on which it is dependent for its continued successful functioning: experts may leave or retire from that organisation.

Ladies and gentlemen, any area of expertise should involve the analysis of a complex set of conditions, and the application of these to a specifiable area of knowledge which is amenable to computerised representation. This might not be so easy, as expert systems tend to remove the necessity in applying an element of general knowledge or common sense. Invariably, any system that is robust – even the most technically driven systems – will, at some stage, create an element of conjecture. However, the differential between expert systems and systems that many organisations currently have, is not the same. Expert systems are designed and implemented so as producing outcomes in line with AI. The basic parameters, for instance, will be so markedly different, that future predictions and outcomes will, as a result, differ from how current organisational systems function. Expert systems represent such a paradigm shift in systems philosophy that the onus on such systems implementation in the future will, unquestionably, bring human experts more closer to the systems implementation process. This, for the blog author, is an incredibly exciting time for future systems development because the opinions of many senior professionals from an array of professions will be sought. The conceptual notion of any expert system is to deliver and aid the process for those who ultimately sanction and authorise decisions.

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Part 3:

Because of the way that parameters are built into expert systems, such systems should be able to cope and handle uncertain or incomplete information. It may also be able to learn, that is, modify its knowledge base or inference engine.

Expert systems have been gradually developing and are currently being developed for a wide variety of areas of expertise in business. For example, systems which provide advice to employers on the dismissal of employees. Other notable developments worthy of mention include systems which aid auditors in providing an effective and complete audit of a company's accounts or quick and effective assessments of a company's health from various perspectives such as government agencies, the trade creditor, and the financier of loans.

Ladies and gentlemen, the creation of an expert system, particularly from an accounting perspective, can only evolve once an effective and fully tested management information system (MIS) has been installed and can, equally, be relied upon, as a 'decision support system'. Failure in any one of these parts would, without question, render any expert system unreliable. In essence, an expert system seeks to move into a different league but the prerequisites, fundamentally, are linked to company systems that have maintained a competitive edge in terms of economies of scale and how certain levels and types of information can be used for a variety of purposes.

In building an expert system we must look at those individuals who can compliment the construction phase with certain skills. This involves the creation of advanced databases because at the heart of such systems lies the inference engine built on domain specific facts within the knowledge base. Here, we are not talking about basic database operations but more complex matrix's that can act and serve in proliferating information more widely within the system. An expert system seeks to replicate the human expert in whatever area that might be. This means removing inadequacies, or anything that stifles productivity. Expert systems do not take prisoners.

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© Copyright MarkDowe, 2007: all rights protected

Freedom of Information (Scotland)

Introduction:

The aim of this article, expected to be fairly lengthy, is to provide guidance relating to the rights afforded under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. In addition, and in relating FOI to environmental concerns, Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 also exist. Provisions under the Act and the 2004 Regulations allow individuals legal rights of access to see information from Scottish public authorities or institutions that allocate certain types of services to them.

In essence, all one has to do is to merely ask for the information. No explanation is required as to why you want that information or what you may want such information for. Scottish public authorities are under a legal obligation and duty in now responding to all information requests they receive. The information and/or replies must be received within 20 working days.

It is important to highlight that certain types of information can still be kept back. However, if this is the case you should be given those reasons in writing. If you are unhappy or dissatisfied with the reasons given, an individual has the right of appeal to the Independent Scottish Information Commissioner. In the event of the Commissioner finding that the public authority should provide you with that information, he can use his enforcement powers to make sure that information is received.

Freedom of Information laws are a common feature within many areas of the world including the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland.

Fundamentally, Freedom of Information is essential if the authorities are to be held to be openly accountable to the public they serve.

Guidance notes and information provided under Freedom of Information, and posted to this site, will be in accordance with the Law of Scotland.

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Part 1:

On the 1 January 2005, individuals acquired new legal rights that entitles an individual to see information from Scottish public authorities.

An individual may want to exercise his or her rights in a number of ways such as why decisions affecting local services were made (such as in cutting back some services at your local hospital, or by enjoining primary schools) or, as to how public authorities decide who gets priority on waiting lists for services such as health and housing. The rights under the Act are wide and far reaching. Freedom of Information (FOI) also allows an individual to find out more definitively about the nature of contracts, under which a private company is 'providing a service' for a public authority, such as services provided under PFI/PPP. This might mean establishing, for example, charges involved or the conditions being applied for that private company to provide the services they are under contract to provide. Freedom of Information holds public authorities to openly account for their decisions.

It will not always be the case in having to make special requests under the Act. Public authorities in Scotland readily make available information through their advertising and publication schemes. Such schemes are designed in making it easier for an individual to find information that has been published by a local authority without having to make a request under FOI. Anomalies can, and do arise - such as why the standards across public authorities in Scotland vary so much? Again, where you are dissatisfied with any reasons given as to why certain types of information is being withheld in certain circumstances, the point of redress is through the Independent Commissioner in Scotland. No legal person or any other body with judicial powers has the right in preventing you from receiving the information you are reasonably seeking. If you do find this to be the case I would recommend you take up matters either with the Law Society in Scotland or by writing to your local court. If you do take this route, make sure you keep together all previous communications lodged. Remember too, that the law states that public authorities are legally obliged to provide information requests within 20-days. This is a prescriptive time period under the law and must be observed. It is advisable, in the first instance, to use proper protocol of address and contact. Due processes are an active part when, for example, an individual has been denied certain types of information, legally. Freedom of Information is a legislative Act of law and thus opens-up issues of interpretation. Being laughed at, denounced or manipulated will not work either. If you find this to be the case keep a full written record of such occurrences and report it through the appropriate channels, immediately.

An individual can request to see any kind of recorded information from a Scottish public authority, however antiquated that information is. This includes information recorded on paper, computer files including e-mails, video and archived records held on microfiche. During the course of this article I will appropriately detail to which organisations and institutions are deemed 'Scottish public authorities'.

Ladies and gentlemen, the remit underpinning Freedom of Information is certainly very wide. My approach here is in detailing, quite specifically, practical examples of the types of information that individuals have a legal right to see. In addition, the writer would advise readers and viewers to this site, that individuals have the right to see and inspect information held about oneself under the Data Protection Act 1998. It will be the intention of the blog author by detailing, within an appendix to this article, certain authoritative sources on where and how individuals can access such personal information.

As with all Acts of Parliament certain exemptions will, invariably, be found within the Freedom of Information legislation. Access, for instance, to some information will undoubtedly be limited. However, as described, the process of legal redress should always be considered as a counter-measure if an individual deems such reasons given as being unreasonable or unjustifiably withheld. The Commissioner in Scotland has a wide range of powers to enforce individual rights under the Act. An individual is perfectly within his or her rights by pursuing to a satisfactory conclusion any impending referral applications.

Ladies and gentlemen, I do not like errors, convoluted or ambiguous replies or, for that matter, broken and poorly written use of the English language. Neither do I accept inexcusable ignorance and incompetence from some people who by definition are deemed professionally competent and fit for purpose.

A request under FOI for details in showing whether public authority policies are working well has become one of the most commonest requests since the Act came into force. Community policing, for instance, can be examined in how effective police forces are, throughout Scotland, in combating crime. For example, if any complaints had been made previously - what actions were taken as a result of those complaints? Similarly, information can also reveal whether a 'contract-for-service' is providing value for money. For instance, what standards were agreed upon with agencies contracted to supply hospital catering or hygiene services? Is the taxpayer receiving value for money?

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Part 2:

Environmental information:

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act does not directly apply to environmental information and concerns. Any request made under FOI, for environmental information, will therefore be rejected. However, the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 does give similar rights. It is important in applying relevant legislature when wishing to pursue an application for environmental information. As readers might suspect, the author of this site has made repeated claims for certain types of information held by certain local authorities throughout Scotland.

Typically, examples of requests under the provisions include trials that have or are being conducted on genetically modified crops, the location and reasons as to why so many mobile masts are erected throughout Scotland and the plans for either downgrading or upgrading landfill sites. This is not an exhaustive list but merely examples of information that can become available on request.

The main benefit of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 is that the stipulations under the guidelines apply to a wider range of organisations than FOI permits. Administrative procedures for acquiring information for environmental purposes is a different process to that of requests made under FOI. The regulations are extremely broad in context, but the law does stipulate, similarly, that information is provided ... "as soon as possible". In many cases, this has been provided within the 20-day rule. If an individual or organisation has made a complex request involving large amounts of material, the organisation holding such information is allowed up to a period of 40-days in providing that information. If this is to be the case, the organisation should provide written details within 20-days to let you know of the longer time period needed in collating that information.

In due course, the author of this site will be making a request for information from a well known housing association, within the area of my own domicile. I expect full cooperation as in accordance with the conditions laid down under the 2004 Regulations.

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Part 3:

People living in Scotland also have a general right to information held by UK public authorities under separate UK laws. These 'public authorities' include government departments and related agencies for matters NOT devolved under the Devolution (Scotland) settlement. Areas include having access to information concerning UK foreign policy, UK defence and national security and a right exists for access to information relating to the economic and monetary system in the United Kingdom.

Ladies and gentlemen, never be put off asking for information just because you may be unsure whether your rights of access are from a Scottish public authority or from within a UK public authority context. The fundamental principle underpinning Freedom of Information laws is that you have a general right to receive the information you ask for. When making such requests the public authority concerned - whether it is based in Scotland or elsewhere throughout the UK - has a legal duty in assisting that individual to receive the level of information they are seeking. If you are advised to the contrary it is an offence at law and matters then, if arising, should be promptly reported. Freedom of Information is an Act of Parliament, not an embellishment for secrecy or improper disclosure. Moreover, the type of information an individual is seeking must be answered.

In most cases, the rights to information throughout other parts of the UK are quite similar to those afforded by the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act. There are some differences such as the way that fees and charges are levied in providing information under FOI requests. Most requests however, should be dealt with free of charge. Where a levy is applied it will likely be a small charge. Where agricultural infringements have occurred, for instance, information becoming available under FOI is important in preventing any such practices from continuing and, by giving adequate public exposure in connection with such activities. Any charges incurred will, in the long run, have a far more beneficial outcome than the small and marginal costs incurred. Consider, for example, the interests of public health.

When pursuing information under FOI you may wish also to submit your own evidence - perhaps in the form of exhibits and photographic displays - that will, as a matter of process, help an individual receive the additional information they are seeking. The law requires, as previously stated, that a request for information under FOI must be received within 20-days, for more complex cases within a 40-day time period. Where information received is deemed unsatisfactory an individual has a right of redress to the Independent Commissioner in Scotland.

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Part 4:

Making a Request for information:

Whether you are resident within Scotland, or anywhere else in the world, an individual may request information held by a Scottish public authority.

The request must be in writing or ... "any other form that can be kept for future use, such as electronic mail, fax, audio or video tape".

You do not have to say you are exercising your rights under FOI or give any reasons for asking. If you are challanged to do so the circumstances surrounding such probing should be reported.

If you do not provide enough detail to allow the authority to identify the information you are seeking, or if your request is unclear or ambigious in some way, the public authority is perfectly entitled to ask you to either be more specific or by asking you to supply more details in terms of your request. The wording of such requests should, as far as is possible, be made with the correct use of written English language. Likewise, the replies you receive should, similarly, be reciprocated on similar terms. If it isn't, and the public authority concerned is unwilling to clarify details to your satisfaction then an individual should seek assistance from the Independent Commissioner in Scotland. Public authorities do not make the law, they administer many parts of it.

If you are not sure exactly what information you want the public authority concerned should help you describe the information you are looking for more clearly and in more detail. In general terms, and from my own experiences, public authority staffs do help by describing some of the different kinds of information available, which, invariably, can help. If the authority does not have the information you have asked for, you should request, in writing, that such details are outwith the scope of that particular authority. In some circumstances, staff may be able to direct you to another authority which could provide the information. However, improper and incomplete disclosures should not be accepted. If you suspect this to be the case, with good cause, matters should be referred to the Commissioner.

When requesting information under FOI it will certainly help if the applicant has done some thorough research before an application or referral is made. Some of the requests will, unquestionably, require a thorough understanding of what the implications of certain actions entail. This is particularly true within the field of environmental science in relation to the many changing laws and stricter codes of practice. Freedom of information allows for the improvement of practices locally, as well as nationally. What you say, or provide, particularly under the referral process, will likely be used by the Commissioner in the future. Because of this an individual should approach requests in a methodical and fastidious manner. It is important to bear in mind that any encroachments made could, very well, be referenced by the internal authorities. Do not remain ignorant on this point.

The authorities do have a duty to help you if you have difficulty making your request such as when an individual may find it hard to write an accurate description of the information they are seeking. If an individual has a disability, for example, staff can help by taking a note of your request over the telephone and then sending the note to you for confirmation, with a stamped addressed return envelope. Moreover, and more usefully, public authority staffs could also offer to tape-record your request over the telephone or over the counter, or suggest that you tape your request and send it in. In the writers opinion, this is an excellent approach to matters. Such recordings are held to be similarly binding as is with written lodgements.

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Part 5:

Exempted information under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act:

Ladies and gentlemen, as previously written, an individual has a general right to see and inspect all recorded information held by Scottish public authorities. In certain circumstances, however, information may be held from the applicant seeking such information because it is simply deemed 'exempt' from inclusion within the FOI (Scotland) Act.

If the authority you apply to decides to withhold information from an individual, it must justify why it thinks the information is exempt from your general right to receive it. An individual should never be put off applying just because you might perceive that information being exempt. Even if the information falls within one of the exemptions in the Act, the public authority concerned may still be willing to let you have all or a segment of it.

As would be expected, some categories of information are completely excluded from your rights of access, such as documents prepared for court cases. In most instances however, Scottish courts are open to the public including High Court trials that may appear within an individuals Sheriffdom, from time to time. Attending a High Court trial, even when listening to proceedings from within the public gallery, can be an enlightening experience. Understanding the legal infrastructures and how justice is dispensed is as much your right as it is mine. It is also important, I believe, in seeing how courts and officials - such as the defence and prosecution - and how the Judge will instruct in certain circumstances. It is not uncommon, in my experience, to share conversation with some very senior counsel outside the remit of the court chamber and within the corridors of the main court house. This is particularly true when one has shown a close interest within a long running trial. I have known trials when the defence and prosecution have been submitting their closing statements and the Judge has ordered the doors of the court to be shut. Again, even in these situations, the right to listen and be present in those circumstances was apparently my democratic right.

Information held by public authorities in Scotland is certainly categorised. Information may be exempt where the authority can prove there would be a real and significant chance of either damaging that public authority or harm could come to other people if that information were made public. Where the public authority deems this to be the case it will call this "substantial prejudice" in its corrospondance with you. This may include information which is deemed by the public authority to be commercially valuable or information that is confidential. However, your rights of redress to the Independent Commissioner in Scotland - for reasons which you might deem as being unreasonably withheld - should always be remembered. The Commissioner in Scotland will act for an individual where those rights have been unreasonably violated and where information has been withheld without just cause.

Ladies and gentlemen, exemptions under the Act are not simply cut and dry. For example, when deciding to provide information that may be covered by one of these exemptions, the authority must consider whether it would be in the "public interest" for that particular information to be made public. This means, quite simply, that if the benefit to the public is going to be greater than the harm to the authority or other people affected, the authority *must* release the information.

Freedom of Information is an Act of Parliament that previously received Royal Assent. Where you may have a point of 'interpretation' on any legal matter arising throughout that Act or within the 2004 Environmental Regulations, and you deem any information being unreasonably withheld, again, your right exists to challange such a decision directly with the Commissioner. Where you are advised otherwise, should be promptly reported.

In deciding whether it is in the 'public interest' to provide information, authorities should NOT take into account various considerations. These include the possibility of embarrassment to officials, any possible loss in the confidence of the authority, the seniority of the people involved or any risk that an individual may misinterpret the information if it came to hand. The purpose of Freedom of Information is, in no way, related to such safeguards.

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Part 6:

Fees Notice:

This is a notice that shows and indicates the estimated fee and how it has been calculated. A fees notice should also highlight how you can complain about the fee and how to appeal against it.

In deducing the fee, the authority is entitled to charge for various components of work they have undertaken in compiling the reports and information. This can include the level of staff time to find, research and gather the information and public authorities are authorised to charge up to £15 per hour for such time. In addition, charges can also be levied for photocopying or by making available the information in a differing format.

Charges must be reasonable. If an authority normally charges say, 10 pence a page for photocopying, charging any more than that would not be reasonable. If it provides the information on a compact disc, a flash drive or any other medium of your choosing, it can only charge the individual the cost of buying that device.

Specifically, an authority is not permitted to charge an individual for staff time or any other associated costs when deciding if it has the information or if the authority wishes to claim the information is restricted in terms of being exempted. Public authorities are not makers of the law but administer it according to their interpretation. Where an individual may differ on grounds of interpretation you should take your concerns to the Commissioner in Scotland.

A public authority cannot increase the fee if the actual cost turns out to be in excess of the estimation given in the fees notice. If the cost turns out to be less than was originally estimated, the authority should consider refunding any overpayment you have made.

The public authority will require payment, if a fee is set, before it will provide the information an individual is seeking. The public authority is under no obligation in sending you the information - if a fee has been set - and you decide not to pay it. Fees, where applicable, should be paid within 3-months of the date on the fees notice otherwise the authority is not legally obliged in dealing with the request previously made.

Freedom of Information is a powerful piece of legislation that allows applicants wide ranging access to information that was not previously available. For instance, are people who they say they are? Are people and organisations really doing what they publicly state as being fundamental to their core objectives? Anecdotal evidence is highlighting, that this is not necessarily the case.

Utilise Freedom of Information in the spirit by which it was devised.

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Part 7:




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© Copyright MarkDowe, 2007: all rights protected

The Force of Environmental Science:

Environmental science embraces now virtually all disciplines which are concerned with the physical, chemical, and biological surroundings in which organisms live.

Earth and Life sciences are also concerned with process and change, but environmental science is especially concerned with changes wrought by human activities, and their immediate and long-term implications for the welfare of living organisms, including humans.

In many areas of environmental science issues acquire political overtures that can, and often does, lead to controversies. For instance, we may as a body suggest that a particular activity is harmful, then modification of that activity may require national legislation or an international treaty and, almost certainly, there will be an economic price that not everyone will have to pay or pay equally. Environmental policies set, by the British Government for example, will be aimed, rightly, towards the long-term. In the short-term, there will be financial losers and, not surprisingly, such groups of people or organisations will often complain.

Ladies and gentlemen, over the last 30-years or so we have grown anxious about the condition of the natural environment and increasingly determined to minimise avoidable damage to it. In most countries – including the United States and European Union – there is now a legal requirement for those who propose any major development project to calculate its environmental consequences, and the resulting environmental impact assessment is taken into account when deciding whether to permit work to proceed. Certain activities are forbidden on environmental grounds, by granting protection to particular areas, although it has to be said that such protection is rarely absolute. It follows that people engaged in the construction, extractive, manufacturing, power-generating or power-distributing, agricultural, forestry, or distributive industries are increasingly expected to predict and take responsibility for the environmental effects of their activities. Consequently, they should have a general understanding of environmental science and its application. For this reason, many skilled professions across the board now include an element of environmental science within their core remits. Many accountants, for example, are now required to report environmental audits and the impacts and attributed costs associated with company practice.

In the near future the Blog Author, Mark Dowe, is to be involved with certain ‘mapping’ functions in regards to the implementation of a Geographical Information System (GIS). This work will be closely monitored by Government agencies in Scotland to which the Executive in Scotland has pledged major financial resources. For example, I will be involved within a comprehensive study to be undertaken in Scotland of an important estuary. The work involved will require mapping the solid geology of the underlying rock, identifying the overlying sediment, measuring the flow and movement of water and the sediment it carries, tracing coastal currents and tidal flows, analysing the chemical composition of the water and monitoring changes in its distribution and temperature at differing times and in different parts of the estuary, sampling and recording the species living in and adjacent to the estuary and measuring their productivity. Such tasks will, undoubtedly, engage scientists from a wide range of disciplines: environmental science exists most obviously as a body of knowledge in its own right when a team of specialists assembles in addressing issues like this. Consider the studies of global climate change. Such studies engage the attention of climatologists, palaeoclimatologists, glaciologists, atmospheric chemists, oceanographers, botanists, marine biologist, computer scientists, and many others, working in institutions all over the world.




© Copyright MarkDowe, 2007: all rights protected

The Environment & Techno-Fixes?

I have been asked to write publicly concerning whether "techno-fixes" holds the solution in answering a climate in crisis? The question posed is an interesting one because, at its heart, lies real-core issues of science and how climatic problems can be tackled.

Ladies and gentlemen, it doesn't matter where one looks - right, left, sideways, up or down - it is common now to hear and feel the gathering momentum of environmental concerns. For me personally, it is apt. For too long the earth and its resources have been badly treated, mostly through the intent of capitalist gain and trade. The effects of this greed and manipulation has led, largely, to many of the problems we are now witnessing. Floods, droughts, distorted climate changes, a shifting chemical imbalance within the composition of the atmosphere and the need for responsible governments to start acting by shifting the onus towards personal and corporate responsibility.

Earlier this year, Al Gore teamed up with Sir Richard Branson in launching the world's largest-ever science and technology prize. The 'Virgin Earth Challenge' is reputed to be worth around $25-million for people who may be able to come up with ways in how carbon dioxide could be 'scrubbed' from the atmosphere.

Sir Richard's challenge is more than just holistic. Sir Richard himself has pledged to plough the next 10-years' profits from his trains and planes into developing bio-fuels and methods that will replace the current dependency on oil and fossil fuels.

Cynics and those critical of Sir Richard might well point to the obvious attraction of techno-fixes for someone like Richard Branson in the airline business. For instance, if it does become possible in cleaning up atmospheric CO2, what curbs would be needed in curtailing the growth in aviation travel? Moreover, if large polluting aircraft stopped depending on the use of fossil fuels would they still be in the dock as the whipping boys for climate change? The dichotomy of social morality combined with business and commercial interest is an interesting one because it might just be the chain-reaction that ignites interminable diplomatic deals and agreements.

Many methods and tests are currently ongoing within the field of science but the techno-fix that’s nearing maturity is CCS or ‘Carbon Capture Sequestration’. It is already being applied on an experimental basis within power stations, for example, by utilising ‘CO2 scrubbers’ in their chimneys. Once captured, the gas can be liquefied and pumped into storage – old oil and gas fields are a favoured option for disposal. However, the writer has made submission to the British government in terms of prohibited costs per tonne of sequestered carbon and, concerns over integrity of storage sites.

‘In-principle’ I am supportive of methods applying to CCS. The issue of waste and storage will always be a factor in any residue generated from energy combustion but, CCS does go an extra hurdle by focusing specifically on utilising further, waste ground. Whilst their will always be counter arguments in almost every topic associated with environmental science, the onus on CCS is to remove as far as can be practicable any by-products that might otherwise have passed back through the carbon-cycle.

Scrubbing CO2 from the atmosphere, however, is a completely different ball game. Readers can probably appreciate that once CO2 is up there it becomes incredibly difficult to do anything about it. However, difficult or not, the job of scientists and environmentalists is in using the advances of biological processes.

Plants, of course, are continually fixing carbon by photosynthesis. You will no-doubt recall that photosynthesis is the complete reverse of the energy process respiration. Photosynthesis combines 6-molecules of water vapour with 6-molecules of carbon dioxide in releasing oxygen and glucose molecules under sunlight. So, from this, can we dramatically increase the capacity of the planet’s own biological carbon sinks? It is this question, that in essence, lies at the heart of the environmental problem.

One idea that has generated a lot of excitement among scientists and environmentalists is the notion of seeding the oceans with iron filings, in stimulating the growth of marine plankton. Plankton, the tiny microscopic organisms remains the bedrock of continued life survival. The foundations of the food-chain, as we know it, depends wholly on the protection and regeneration of such micro-organisms. Destroy plankton completely – which may be done in a number of ways including environmental disasters such as mass oil spillage’s – and the earth is most certainly doomed for destruction. By seeding the oceans with iron filings would stimulate algae, almost at once, in taking up the CO2 from the atmosphere. The ‘bloom’, as it were, could then be harvested and stored – or even left to form corals which would, in due time, sink to the ocean floor. In theory that is the science. Pragmatically however, experiments to date have proved rather disappointing. A ‘bloom’ is certainly created, but it dies back or is eaten very quickly, which merely defeats the purpose – releasing the carbon back into the system.

The writer, Mark Dowe, has advocated through various circles in adapting further the idea of the ‘chimney scrubber’, mentioned earlier in this journal. For instance, for the process to be used and adapted in capturing the CO2 from within biomass-fired power stations. The net-outcome would, almost certainly, produce a fuel-cycle that would be better than carbon-neutral. It would actually be carbon negative because such power stations wouldn’t be releasing the CO2 that was sequestered by growing the plants in the first place. If carbon credits are valued highly by the government, and we hear almost daily now concerning carbon-footprints and the need to reduce our polluting capacity, then this process would be very profitable, if adapted further. I certainly feel confident of that and wish government scientists to consider the findings I have put before them in the last few weeks.

Biomass, however, is constrained by the availability of land required to be put over for the growing of woodlands specifically for that purpose. In global terms, the impact is compounded further. The world’s population is around 6.8 billion now which suggests by implication that the priority should be in utilising land to grow more food. Expounding land usage in growing exponential levels of fuel at the same time cannot be done if population growth continues in a similar vain over the next 10-20 years. The conflicts of interest are just too wide.

Preventing the rise in atmospheric CO2 is not the only problem being faced by techno-fixers. Some of the most ambitious schemes involve devising ways of living under denser greenhouse gas conditions - but, by putting up an artificial sunshade in keeping the greenhouse cool. Suggestions presently range from mirrors in space, to the launching of hordes of tiny sunlight-reflecting aluminium balloons into the upper atmosphere, filled with hydrogen or helium. Or, creating a similar shield with sulphate particles, sprayed up there deliberately to mimic the effect of the dust thrown up by massive volcanic eruptions. In essence, 'Living in a greenhouse - with an artificial sunshade to keep it cool'.

The point of 'sulphate particles' is one, I believe, in which the British Government will look closer because it could, arguably, place the onus onto the individual. You will be aware of the government's desire to place firmly, environmental responsibility, into the hands of households. The use of sulphate actually promotes such an initiative because every citizen or household could be compelled by injecting enough sulphate particles into the atmosphere that may well protect the environment for anything up to three years. It may create an individual cost of something in the region of £30 but, given its effect, such an idea could be wholly effective.

The use of sulphate particles could, however, block out too much sunlight. It would only require a small miscalculation that could easily tip the planet into a new ice age. Hi-tech mistakes can happen as was demonstrated when the 1999 Mars Observer probe crashed into the red planet because NASA mistook imperial units for metric ones. 'Geo-engineering' requires methodical analysis, a system of testing and impact that is more objective than not and, the likelihood of any residual effects affecting other parts of the Eco-system not currently considered.

Certainly, having an understanding of how the feedback systems work is an imperative. Although people may be concerned and sceptical of changing the Earth's atmosphere, the current unbalanced equilibrium of the environment was caused by mismanagement and manhandling by man in the first place. Scientists are now attempting to reverse the destruction that man has already caused. You cannot have it both ways. The shear wanton destruction of western foreign policies when many people have just stood and watched. The mass annihilation of global sinks and the very poor planning of how the threat of rising sea levels should have been countered. You sat back and simply allowed that to happen. Do not dare throw back into the face of scientists your unease about how things should NOT now be done in reversing past self-interests.

How perverse it is anyway, to regard the energy from the sun as the source of the problem? Is there not 'profit' in using it to generate emissions-free electricity? Photovoltaic cells (whether the 'conventional' or 'nanotech' type) aren't the only way to do this. An innovative new form of power station - the 'solar concentrator' - even uses these mirrors. In this particular innovation, technology is used in focusing the sun's rays to boil water - generating the steam to drive a turbine. Seville, for example, is now home to Europe's first commercial version, using around 625 giant movable mirrors. Research indicates that it's one of a planned series of such plants designed to produce 300MW in the area in the next 5-years. Scientists believe and estimate that covering only 1% of the Sahara - or 5,000 square km - with these mirrors could generate all the world's electricity.

Using 'solar power' from the Sahara could have a tremendous impact. Let's consider for a moment the central planks of the UK government's most recent energy white paper. It was to do, of course, with improving the security of energy supplies. It might not be the most cunning plan, ladies and gentlemen, in exchanging the dependency on oil from politically unstable countries in the Middle East, to a more dependence on solar power from North Africa.

Protagonists argue that huge transmission losses would result from bringing in such supplies from the Sahara to the National Grid. Reductionists argue that the UK receives at least half the solar radiation per unit area that falls on the Sahara desert and, as a result, why not simply install more PV tiles on the roofs of buildings? This, it is argued, would generate the power where it is going to be used without any loss in transmission and transit. However, the blog author, Mark Dowe, argues that this creates an entrenchment of 'micro-generation'. A future full of PV, wind turbines and combined heat and power - which could, in economic terms, create variations and conflicts between communities.

On ending this article I would like to make reference to the Thames Barrier in London. I could, and probably should, ask you to consider where London would be without its barrier? Since it was completed in 1984, the city's very own anti-flooding techno-fix has actually worked very well - on far more occasions than its creators ever expected. Faced with rising sea levels and storm surge threats, the Environment Agency (DEFRA) now plans to increase the height of the barrier - and the downstream flood defences. This should keep London free from flooding for the rest of the century. After that, however, the sea is likely to win.

DEFRA, however, requires to concentrate and focus heavily on many other UK cities that simply do not bear-up in terms of physical defences needed on the scale we are now faced with. East Anglia, for instance, is totally under-resourced. It's sea defences are totally inadequate in dealing with anything which the world itself has witnessed in recent times. Signalling systems, for instance, in providing an early warning system, for another surprise tsunami. The UK is not immune by way of geographical latitude in avoiding such tidal catastrophes.

The British Government falls far short within the area of techno-fix thinking. It also suffers, as historical trends show, on issues of being short-termist in outlook. It prefers, by some obscure explanation, in tackling the symptoms rather than their causes. Such a patent remedy may prove effective, for a while, but the underlying problems are certainly not being addressed. When underlying problems are not solved correctly, things do not correct themselves as a matter of course, they manifest themselves into other areas. All the government here seems to be doing is buying time. In the long-run it is ineffective and a complete waste of valuable resources being used now.

© Copyright MarkDowe, 2007: all rights protected

International markets and the global economy (1):

One of the most extraordinary aspects of economic life in the last few decades has been the way in which all nations, including the UK, have increasingly found themselves part of a 'global economy'.

To an ever increasing extent, the goods which we see on shelves and in shops are either produced abroad, or domestically in firms owned by foreign nationals. This profound change in everyday life underpins much of the political disputation we observe between nations, both within the European Union and world-wide.

Economic life between nations has become so intimately intertwined in the contemporary world that it is difficult to recall that many of the developments leading to this level of intimacy are fairly recent. The writer intends, as part of this work, to look and explore some of the major institutional and historical changes which lie behind how globalisation is being directed. A key explanation of this huge transformation in the international competitive environment is to be found in the changes that have taken place within the unitary organisation and the behaviour of business. Production, in a wide sense, has been turned into a global activity, and has, undoubtedly, driven the increasing integration of international markets.

The main objective of this article will be an attempt in developing a perspective on competition which is dynamic, focusing on change and innovation. In order to understand the dynamics of competition, we need, I believe, to start from the behaviour of firms themselves. It is institutional changes and managerial decisions at the firm level which force changes in the competitive environment. Company strategy and organisation is therefore central in developing structures within the market.

Globalisation is an enormous area that encompasses many variables from different areas. How it intends to shift and develop further is an interesting topic for discussion. Before concentrating efforts on how things might develop in the future, we must look at the transformation of the economic environment in the twentieth century, that generated changes, not only in the competitive environment between firms, but also in the nature of economic rivalry between nations.

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Economic globalisation:

What precedent is there for the interconnectedness of the present-day world economy (Dowe, June 2007)? In terms of quantitative and qualitative measures, I believe no such precedent on these terms exist.

However, the growing interdependence of global trade must look at the expanding importance of international trade, the increasing importance of overseas direct investment that is being associated with the rise of the transnational firm and, the emergence, among these transnationals, in how they think globally about their own commercial strategies.

Ladies and gentlemen, this website has a direct link to the 'Reith Lectures'. These lectures are incredibly intensive but dedicated pieces of work that go to the heart of many societal issues. I would strongly urge and recommend any readers and visitors to Legal & Financial Guardian (Scotland) to consider and hear-out the lectures in the spirit by which they are given. They are orientated towards substance of great concern and deal with intricate economic, scientific and social concerns of the current era. A brilliant lecture was delivered - in various parts - concerning the issues, threats and risks posed by globalisation. Please use those lectures in understanding further the many great complexities that exist.

The author, wrote:

"However, the growing interdependence of global trade must look at the expanding importance of international trade, the increasing importance of overseas direct investment that is being associated with the rise of the transnational firm and, the emergence, among these transnationals, in how they think globally about their own commercial strategies". (Dowe, 01 June 2007: http://www.legalfinancial.blogspot.com/).

Taken together I believe, these trends form a process of internationalisation of trade and production in the world economy. It is particularly the last of these - the 'global firm' - together with the increased speed of international communications, which sometimes leads some economists and analysts to apply the label of 'globalisation' to these trends.

In focusing on international trade, it is important in understanding how a country's trade flows as registered in its 'Balance of Payments', which forms part of a country's national accounts.

The UK balance of payments includes a current account which incorporates visible and invisible trade. Visible trade is merely the Export and Import of goods. Invisibles include the Export and Import of Services, any net balance of interest, profits and dividends that might be due and any transfer balances requiring adjustment. The UK, for example, may have financial and monetary assets deployed overseas. On these investments, the UK will receive distribution income in the form of dividends or interest. Other Invisibles include income that is received from services such as tourism and insurance services. Transfers will include such things like UK government payments to the European Union and the United Nations.

The balance of payments also includes a capital account that details transactions in UK external assets (capital exports) and transactions in UK external liabilities (capital imports).

Once these figures are generated, governments are able to produce and publish GDP and GNP data which indicates, in essence, the net worth of a country's trade. The higher GDP is, the more prosperous a nation is.

Ladies and gentlemen, exports are an important element of the UK economy. Such a view could be re-written by stating that the UK is a very 'open economy'. This, certainly, has long been true. In the second half of the nineteenth century the British economy was about as open on this measure as it is now, reflecting the country's early lead in the industrial revolution and its long trading history patterns. The trade to GDP ratio dropped sharply with the general decline in international trade as a result of the 1930s depression and the two world wars.

Since 1945 however, there has certainly been a new worldwide trend to more open economics and trade. The growth of output since the Second World War is, most probably, unprecedented in the history of capitalism, but the growth within international trade has certainly been even more impressive. Providing a quantitative measure of 'internationalisation' is fairly simple to deduce by examining any record of world trade and comparing it with industrial output. Clearly, post-war improvements in transportation, such as the development of giant oil-tankers and of 'containerisation', which has reduced the costs of on-and-off loading goods at the docks, have certainly been significant in promoting international trading patterns. So to has the remarkable developments within transnational communications with which we are all familiar. Much of this trade boom has been in trade among developed industrial economies, which, as a group have a much higher trade to output ratio than they had say 50 0r 100 years ago.

Determining trade ratios and patterns, particularly in terms of quantitative changes, is a major element within the increasing interconnectedness of the world economy. In qualitative terms, international involvement in nations’ economies is also at an unprecedented level. Unquestionably, this qualitative change is largely associated with ‘foreign direct investments’ (FDIs), or, in simpler terms, the creation and mass growth of transnational firms.

In technical accounting and economic terms any outward FDI is registered as an acquisition of an overseas asset in the capital account of the balance of payments; inward FDI as a rise in liabilities to overseas owners.

Investments abroad are particularly important to national governments because, not only are investments likely to produce investment and dividend returns for the country concerned but, by their very nature, will afford wider opportunities such as employment and other marketing facilities. The potential of increased growth on capital plays a significant part in a country’s national income account. Investments may be just in cash, directed towards world markets that will, on the balance of things, produce a return. When such markets start falling, governments will quickly act by pulling their reserves into an ‘equalisation account’. For example, Britain provides huge sums of cash-inflows into the US $ account primarily based on the Dow-Jones being a market leader in how global markets are determined. Britain converts its pound sterling into dollars and will ride high on the market until the dollar starts to depreciate. In this way the pound can become stronger which, as an investment tool, may actually attract inward investment in capital and cash towards London. In essence, what this creates is a chain of events that increases the interconnectivity of global and world trade. Other world markets, which, when combined, does create the kind of 'globalisation' effect the world is currently witnessing.

Ladies and gentlemen, in concluding this part of my written work on the global economy it is apt in pointing out that a clear difference exists between foreign direct investments (FDIs) and so called 'portfolio investments'. In many articles produced by commentators it is quite common to read that no clear boundary line exists between the two. The writer, Mark Dowe, strongly disagrees with such views because FDI carries with it the possibility of direct involvement in the economic affairs of a nation by foreign nationals; the passive activities of portfolio-investments clearly doesn't. There has to be clearer guidance, perhaps from the World Bank, in terms of what is it that determines the holding of the debt of a company as opposed to a more active investor role?

© Copyright MarkDowe, 2007: all rights protected

Cybernetic control models:

Ladies and gentlemen, the concept of ‘cybernetic control’ is simple in essence but highly complex in execution.

Cybernetics is the study of evolution, adaptation and control of systems. In principle, the cybernetic control model is a model that can provide a framework for the study of the control of any system. This encompasses the design and implementation of systems such as Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Management Information Systems (MIS) that are used within business as a controlling mechanism within such areas like budgets, forecasts and predicting future outcomes.

Cybernetics is a not a familiar term within the public domain despite it having a long association in the development of control models. For instance, is an accounting system to be of no avail when confronted with a dynamic and changing environment?

A business may identify its principal objective as increasing shareholder wealth by a quantitative measure such as earnings per share (eps) or annual profits declared. Directing the efforts of the people in the organisation to that achievement is complex, difficult and uncertain for a number of reasons.

Generally speaking business environments are inherently unstable and many events are outside the control of the people who run the business. The common held view by those able to share expertise in the field of cybernetics is that it operates in a fairly closed environment and therefore unusual trends are likely to be ignored. However, from a scientific point of view such spurious results are of real concern to the scientist, despite protestations that may arise from those who wish to simply ignore as to what and why such results were created.

Information systems, ladies and gentlemen, are as much a scientific issue as it is a social science facet. Combining the two, as in understanding ‘global warming’ for instance, is an imperative operative. The thrust of science will be felt harder throughout business in the coming years, and decades ahead. Cybernetic control is about perfection and rids itself of waste, inefficiencies and unproductive ethics. Delivery is an important professional gauge: those responsible and entrusted must ensure that such systems are robust, transparent, fully accountable and able to accommodate changes within the business and global environment.

Well defined cybernetic models tend to exhibit controlled reactions to any changes within the operation of the system. This, not only serving as an indicator, can be extremely useful in adapting to the system to environmental changes. Without it, the system is susceptible to becoming obsolete, ineffective and out-of-date. The application of science, even in its pure form, will become an important basis by which such systems evolve. Quantitative methods, for example, are having large scale impetus towards design and how changes to the system should be effected in the future. For instance, the effectiveness of ‘linear regression’, ‘linear programming’ and the ability to extract quick optimum results are rendering basic systems virtually useless. Organisations require systems that are much more than just merely claiming to be proactive. The combination of mathematical sciences with management accounting, for instance, should elicit systems that take no prisoners. Cybernetic models aim to bridge the expertise from various professional boundaries, not something that is entrenched from the past that was originally devised from within a narrow set of criteria.

Control in an organisation is rarely mechanistic and can take place at various levels in the hierarchy. ‘Multiple feedbacks’ should be a facility that reflects the complexity of an organisation or firm coping with many hostile influences in real world situations. Managers need to look ahead more frequently, as well as backwards. ‘Feed forward’, ladies and gentlemen, is an essential part of the intelligent approach required more and more by organisations.

In any dynamic organisation several sub-systems interact; this interdependence is a feature of the difficulty of running a business in an orderly and efficient manner. This interrelationship of subsystems is difficult to model and the broad outlook of any cybernetic control system is to view it in holistic terms. On the face of it, however, this in itself is an over-simplification.

Typically, a firm should be viewed as a whole, as a single system – that is made up of the several subsystems. Inevitably, all of the systems within a business need some form of control, the management accounting system (MIS) is one of the ways in which such control is applied. The cybernetic control model can be used in the appraisal and study of the Management Information System as a subsystem in its own right and, could also be used in analysing the organisation as a whole.

Objectives, initially set, are crucial underpinnings in the development of a cybernetic control system. Cybernetic development provides facilities that measures, compares and identifies what corrective action might be necessary as well as being able to actually implement them. Such a system is based on constant repetition of this measuring and implementation that allows for ‘feedback control’ and ‘feed forward control’.

Comparisons between actual outcomes and objectives = feedback control. Corrective action takes place after the system has gone out of control. Self-regulatory parameters allow the system to be robust enough in adapting.

If deviations are anticipated by using the model in a predictive manner and by taking corrective action so as to prevent the system from going out of control the process is described as ‘feed forward control’.

Either type of control can be applied in open or closed systems. Closed systems are systems whose operation is independent and isolated from its environment. Open systems are ones which are exposed directly to environmental change which brings in an element of unpredictability and uncertainty. A business, the framework for a management information system, is an open system. MIS’s are affected by environmental factors outside its control such as customers, suppliers, interest and exchange rates, competitors and so on.

Four essential conditions exist for the model (cybernetic control model) to be of use. Without them, such a model cannot be effective:

1. The outputs can be measured;

2. The objectives can be defined;

3. It is possible to identify the true reasons for any deviation from plan;

4. It is possible in determining corrective action which, when implemented, will have the appropriate and desired effect.

Unless such conditions apply any attempt at implementing such a model will be rendered useless. For example, unless outputs can be measured they cannot be compared to the system’s objectives. Whether a business is sufficiently predictable for the model to be useful depends on its nature. In any business, however, there are likely to be some aspects that are relatively stable where cybernetic control can and should provide useful insights.

Cybernetics is certainly becoming the preferred method of control as against other indigenous systems that may exist. The issue is certainly very complicated because of how firms operate in a complex and uncertain world and because of environmental uncertainties. Unless managers are effective themselves, the system will quickly reflect such deficiencies. However, such weaknesses require to be rooted out anyway. The great advantage of cybernetic models is its ability to reflect standards in firms as they are. Or, in other words, rise and fall by your own making.

Acid Rain:

Acid rain, first described in 1872 by an English Chemist, remains one of the industrialised worlds most intractable problems. What has taken humankind centuries to build, and nature millennia to evolve, is being degraded and destroyed in a matter of a few years.

Acid deposition is caused mainly be sulphur and nitrogen emissions from the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil in power plants, industrial boilers and car engines. When these pollutants combine with water vapour, sunlight and oxygen in the atmosphere, they create a diluted ‘soup’ of sulphuric and nitric acids. In some heavy industrialised regions, hydrogen chloride gases in the atmosphere produces hydrochloric acid, which can also be an ingredient of acid rain. It has been estimated that in the North East of the United States 65% of the acid rain is due to sulphuric acid, 30% to nitric acid content and 5% attributed to hydrochloric acid.

When this mixture is washed out of the atmosphere by rain, snow crystals, or in the form of dry particles, it increases the acidity of freshwater lakes and streams, and in some cases soils too. This consequently decreases their pH values. This pH scale measures acidity and alkalinity. A solution with a pH of 7 is neutral, anything above this is alkaline, and anything beneath is acidic. It is a logarithmic scale, so every full point is equivalent to factor of 10. Thus a pH of 6 is 10-times more acidic than neutral, and a pH of 5 is 100-times more acidic than neutral.

• Acid Rain and the ‘Environmental Toll’

Acidic smogs are destroying the magnificent historic buildings of Krakow, Poland, a world heritage site; ornate facades are disintegrating, walls and roofs are weakening. Acid rain and other airborne pollutants are biting into the marble of Athens’ monuments; experts say that more damage has been done to the Parthenon in the last 25-years than in the previous 2,400. The masonry of Cologne cathedral in Germany is being eaten away, many of Europe’s stained glass windows are fading, and many libraries in the United States have had to be fitted with special anti-pollution equipment to preserve many precious books.

Nearly, a quarter of Sweden’s 90,000 lakes are acidified to some extent; 4,000 of them so severely that no fish are thought to survive in them. Some 100,000 Kilometres of its rivers and streams are also affected. In the southern half of Norway, four-fifths of the lakes and streams are either technically dead or on the critical list; authorities say that fish have been destroyed in lakes covering a total of 13,000 square kilometres.

Thousands of lakes in the eastern United States – including at least 10% of all those in the Adirondack Mountains – are too acid to support fish. More than 300 lakes in Canada’s Ontario province are estimated to have pH values lower than 5 – the level at which most fish die – and another 48,000 are recorded as being threatened. Trout and Salmon no longer reproduce in nine acidic rivers in Nova Scotia.

Researchers in Germany believe that acid rain is one of the causes of Waldsterben (tree death), which afflicts more than half of the country’s forests. Acid deposition is also thought to be one of the main agents of the decline of Switzerland forests; 43% of the conifers in its central alpine region are dead or dying.

More than 900,000 square kilometres of European Russia is also thought to be affected by acid rain. The former East Germany has the highest per capita sulphur dioxide emissions in the world, and Poland, Czechoslovakia and Romania are among the most polluted countries on the earth. China, the world’s third largest emitter of sulphur dioxide, has growing problems in its southern provinces, and acid rain damage is spreading in other Third World countries like India, Nigeria, Columbia, Venezuela and Brazil.

• A man-made problem -

Although natural processes such as volcanic eruptions can cause acid rain, natures own doses of sulphur and nitrogen oxides are dwarfed by industrial pollution. Ever year, around 100-million metric tonnes of sulphur dioxides are released across the globe, with Europe and North America accounting for 38-million metric tonnes. More than 90% of the deposited sulphur is manmade. The countries belonging to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) generate around 37 million metric tonnes of nitrogen oxides every year.

Rainfall is naturally acidic, with a pH of around 5.6. But man’s pollution routinely increases acidity up to 100-times the natural level in industrialised countries. Data gathered by the European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme shows that the average pH values in central Europe are 4.3 or below. According to the OECD, polluted areas in Scandinavia, Japan, central Europe and eastern North America have annual pH values that can fall as low as 3.5.

Ever year, Norway experiences some rainfall that is as acidic as lemon juice. In the US, precipitation as acid as vinegar has fallen on Kane, Pennsylvania, and ‘rain’ with a pH value almost equivalent to battery acid once fell on Wheeling, West Virginia.

The effects of acid rain would be much more widespread if nature had not provided many areas with their own protection. Alkaline soils, like those covering most of Midway US and much of Southeast England, can resist acid fallout because the calcium in the soil neutralises – or ‘buffers’ – the acids; so can lakes which have beds of limestone or sandstone. On the other hand, where lakes and earth sit on thin glacial soils or thick slabs of granite – as in most of Scandinavia, Scotland and Central Europe – this buffering capacity is greatly reduced. It is these sensitive areas that are hardest hit by acid deposition.

• Hidden Killers -

Acid Rain, in itself, kills few fish. Sensitive species like salmon, trout, minnows and arctic char succumb to the lethal water chemistry which acid rain fosters. Acid waters contain increased concentrations of toxic heavy metals such as mercury, aluminium, manganese, lead and zinc. It is aluminium – the most common metal found in soils – leached into lakes and streams that really deliver the final blow. Aluminium toxicity peaks at around pH value 5. It clogs fish’s gills, causing them to suffocate.

Research shows that acidity of forest soils has increased five- to 10-fold over the past 20 to 50 years across vast areas of Europe and eastern North America. Acid rain leaches crucial nutrients such as potassium, calcium and magnesium from soils, depriving trees and other vegetation of these life-supporting elements. If sufficient stocks of soil nutrients are not available, trees become more susceptible to climatic stresses like frost and winter damage, as well as damage from other pollutants.

Acid rain has been linked to the alarming decline of sugar maples in northeast US and eastern Canada. Surveys carried out in Quebec province showed that nearly 50% of all sugar maple stands were affected by Waldsterben-like systems of dieback. Certainly if not reversed, Canada’s maple syrup industry – worth in the region of $80 million a year – could collapse.

• Conservation efforts: the acid test -

The costs of acid rain damage are difficult to assess. But it has been estimated that damage to metals, buildings and paint in the OECD member countries costs around $20 Billion annually. This does include costs of dead forests, acidified lakes or damaged crops.

By 1990, Sweden had added lime to some 6,000 lakes, covering more than 75% of the total acidified lake area in the country, in an effort to neutralise the acid and bring them back to life – at a cost of nearly $15 million a year. This, however, is at best a stopgap measure, mitigating the effects of acid rain but failing really to tackle the causes.

The Convention on Long Range Transboundary Air Pollution, promulgated by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, calls for reductions in sulphur dioxide emissions at source. It covers both West and East Europe and was ratified and brought into effect in 1983. At a meeting in Helsinki in 1985, a protocol mandating sulphur dioxide reductions of 30% by 1993 (using 1980 as the base year) was opened for signature and was quickly endorsed by 21-countries. A second protocol freezes nitrogen oxide emissions.

The European Community (EC) had gone further. Large fossil fuel power plants have had to cut emissions of sulphur dioxide by around 40% since 1998 and extending to 60% reductions by 2003. Austria, Germany and Switzerland had committed themselves to a two-thirds reduction by 1995 and empirical data available via the OECD shows that nitrogen oxides have been cut by the targets set of 30% by the end of 1998 in 12 Western European Countries.

European directives set new conditions that by the end of 1993; all new cars sold in EU countries will have to be fitted with catalytic converters that reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides and other pollutants.

Certainly, the conclusion of the author is that many industrialised countries are finally beginning to get to grips with the pollution that causes acid rain; even the US and the UK, which for a long time resisted controls, are taking action to reduce emissions. I do say however and warn that greater cuts are needed; sulphur dioxide emissions, for example, need to be cut by 90%. This is not unreasonable because until this happens, the scourge of acid rain will continue to spread and manifest itself.

© Copyright MarkDowe, 2007

Deforestation:

The issue of deforestation is a complex geographical and scientific issue. However, in recent years it has become equally, an important economic and political issue as the effects of deforestation compound the efforts being made in combating global warming. The concern of the author is with the environmental costs associated with land and forest disruption, and with poor stewardship of global resources.

Ladies and gentlemen, 'deforestation' may be defined simply as: "the permanent clearing of forest land and its conversion to non-forest uses” (Dowe, May 2007). Deforestation has been claimed by the WORLDS RESOURCES INSTITUTE to be the world's most pressing land use problem.

The precise and accurate extent of deforestation cannot be finitely assessed due to the remoteness of many areas from which forests are removed and, the lack of written records that exist for deforestation and the counteracting effects of 'Afforestation'.

I make no apologies for what is to be delivered on this subject which, given the facts, will undoubtedly deliver a ferocious attack on countries, nations and individuals most culpable of land degradation. I will stand by what I deliver. This is not intended to be an article written on passive terms but, one I believe, that should hit hard and against those individuals most responsible. It is the intention of the writer in seeking the most effective dissemination from those who can propel my work to where it matters.

According to statistics available to the writer, forest removal and destruction has continued, unabated, from the earliest days of human settlement. What has also continued is the brutal assault against land preservation which has added to the destruction of natural biological diversity and the increasing toxic and acidic intensity of the atmosphere. This, in itself, is an extremely important point which is often overlooked.

At this stage of writing, I feel it more appropriate in journalling the science and the technicalities of the subject at hand. In the context of writing and, given the seriousness by which climatic conditions are being threatened by governmental policies and man-made destruction, the issue of intensifying attacks against certain individuals and governments will need firstly, therefore, to consider what the problems actually are.

In the Scottish Parliament today (Wednesday, 23 May 2007) the First Minister, Alex Salmond, has delivered a resounding commitment that Scotland will be at the forefront in combating the effects of global warming and related issues. Mr. Salmond spoke of technological advances and how industries such as fishing and farming in Scotland can play pivotal roles by being party to environmental concerns. Mr. Salmond is eager to develop strategies that will embrace other political views and ideologies and, from an environmental scientific point of view, develop laws that will compel recalcitrant groups from any intended departures.

Many farmers in Scotland who use methods totally unacceptable in terms of the environment will be one group that will forced in complying. At this stage, I am unwilling to substantiate in clear written terms what violations currently exist but, after having received advice from Counsel today, libellous claims are only valid if statements made are untrue. Statements concerning fact and precise detail are not by definition either libellous or defamatory. The author is currently considering the best approach in which to detail such claims. You will appreciate, that this being a public domain, requires purported statements to be fully accurate without any likelihood of pursing a legal claim against the writer.

Evidential material such as photographic displays of chemical abuse. Superficial growth rates without regards to the environment or its laws as detailed within today's lectern brief. Motivated by and orientated by financial gain and, more importantly, why such practices have been covert for so long. Today's lectern brief stated:

....................

Environmental Policy:

"In the law of the EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, a policy of the communities added by the SEA or SINGLE EUROPEAN ACT. The Communities are now legally enjoined to preserve, protect and improve the quality of the environment, to contribute towards health and prudently and rationally utilise natural resources.

Detailed provisions exist for preventative action and a rule that environmental damage should be dealt with – a useful rule when the consequences of ONE MEMBER STATE’S pollution may run down a river and harm the environment of another. The person polluting should pay in principle, not the community taxpayers. The Community itself is empowered to act where it can do so more effectively than the member states.

It is important to appreciate that even before the inclusion of the policy in the Treaties; the Community had done much in the field under other powers.

The 1990 Environmental Directive permits free access to environmental information of public authorities. An environmental agency does exist which acts as a monitoring body."

.................

It is incumbent upon the writer to point out that many developed countries recognise that forests are valuable renewable sources. It is also apt in pointing out that, in many countries, tree removal is commonly followed by immediate AFFORESTATION. Afforestation is merely the planting of trees on land which was formerly used for land utilisation other than forestry; this particularly contrasts with ‘re-afforestation’ which is, in essence, the restocking of existing woodlands which have been depleted.

Within the developing world, sale of tropical hardwoods has become a major source of foreign currency and capital inflows; in Africa and South America replanting schemes are, at best, only practiced in a minority of instances. Anecdotal evidence suggests that during the early 80s, the average annual rate of deforestation in tropical countries was estimated at 3.8 million ha. The author can confirm, with a reasonable degree of certainty, that over 170 million ha. has now been deforested, or a staggering 15% of remaining closed tropical rain forests. Utter and contemptible destruction in the name of corporate profit and western trade. Do you not, as a residing tenant on the earth to which you have been entrusted, feel a sense of responsibility, in what has been happening? In how, for instance, the scarce and life supporting resources of the world are being immortalised for political dominance? You and I, created in God's image - in both mind and body - standing by, and watching such relentless and unmitigating destruction. True morality has neither juxtaposition or acts which are convoluted, so why do we standby and simply watch and tolerate the brutal assault against the earth?

Scotland, as purported by Alex Salmond - First Minister - will ensure that the small nation she is will contribute in a positive and economically viable way towards the environment. In Scotland, we will be the counting the cost in what it will take, sooner rather than later. Mr. Salmond rightly commends advances in technology and scientific approaches to many issues associated with the environment. Increasing the diversity and range of technology can only create economies of scale. In the long-run, such diversification can only lead to reduced average costs. The practices of illegal farming must stop. Adding cocktails of chemicals together in creating superficial food stuffs has far wide ranging consequences such as the impact on human health and the manifestation of weeds in variant forms that are certainly affecting the ordered structures of the food chain. This message needs forced home.

In addition, the impact of GM crops, which is an American influence, has many questions unanswered with a whole array of ethical issues unwilling to be discussed or answered by the British government. The British government has aligned itself with corporate governance of those institutions most likely to make heavy profits against the backdrop of public health concerns. Most, if not all European countries are opposed to the cultivation of GM crops because of the uncertainties associated with such food stuffs.

When we speak in terms of deforestation, the issue is by far not just restricted to a single continent or nation. Major losses have occurred in the Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Liberia and Ghana where the rate of forest felling is actually seven times the world average. It is important when delivering an article of this nature that the geographical facts are delivered in true context; not just merely attacking one nation who may have a perception of world economic destruction.

Deforestation has been driven by population growth, from pressure to clear land for farming, for land speculation, for commercial ranching and by ruthless economic exploitation for profitable gain. This much we know. In its wake, deforestation has brought about a number of very serious physical geographical disturbances. In my next chapter on this subject, I aim to write upon these serious issues of fact.

As readers may be aware, my personalised music channel hosted via Yahoo Music is advertising this website and for fair environmetal policy. I am pleased that an additional outlet, like Yahoo Music, exists for purposes of propelling the message further afield. The Music industry in general can have a powerful reticence on political and economic issues.

A Celtic Christian prayer, from Scotland

The tempest howl, the storms dismay,
But manly strength can win the day.
Heave, and let the echoes ring.


For clouds and squalls will soon pass on,
And victory lie with work well done,
Heave, and let the echoes ring.


The king of virtues vowed a prize
For him who wins, for him who tries.
Think, of Christ, and echo him.


A-men.

(From Columbanus In His Own Words)

Green Economics (2):

Continuing the theme from my last article on ‘Green Economics’ (click labels for full display of subject matter written previously) I would like to conclude this topic by addressing what can be said about the causes of the environmental problems I mentioned in the previous journal.

Environmental Science, Accounting, Law and Management Sciences will, in the future, converge more closely in how a more common unified approach be applied in understanding the implications associated with Green Economics. As mentioned, strict audit requirements now exist on companies in terms of effluence, water and atmospheric pollution and how companies should be observing the rules of the international community. It is likely that the European court in conjunction with national governments will, as a result of international pressures, make rulings in the future as to how the environment is to be protected.

Environmental science is a subject I have a close interest in. You will notice, I am sure, that as this website develops in meeting with the vision and objectives of the author that, many other areas of environmental science be incorporated within future writings. It is such an important issue now, overlapping into other areas of professional competence, that any website of potential judicious standing must address the concerns and matters that are appearing all too readily.

Ladies and gentlemen, Accounting is a "calling". It therefore remains a duty on us in providing political and economic inertia in seeking a better understanding, and promoting it publicly, before the root causes can be addressed with effective resolution. Accountancy and other related professions must raise the spectre to such a standard that it will make a difference in how future standards and policies are set. Nevertheless, the responsibility is as much yours as it is mine.

On the face of it there appears to be three common underlying features in regards to taking account of environmental costs:

• Ignorance

It is often not for many years that the nature and causes of environmental damage are realised. Take the case of aerosols and the damaging effects of CFCs many aerosols previously contained. It was not until the late 1980s that scientists connected their use to ozone depletion.

The environment, many argue, has been irrevocably damaged by such pressurised use of aerosols. The 'GAIA' Theory as advocated by Professor James Lovelock during the 60s, for instance, was too easily overlooked and rebuked.

• The polluters do not pay

Historically, the costs of pollution are rarely paid by the polluters in terms of those polluting the most. Economists call such costs ‘external costs’.

Traditionally, polluters paid scant and negligible lip-service to the damage that industrial pollution has caused, despite the introduction of protocols and voluntary governmental codes. 'Carbon-trading-emissions' policies have certainly been a step in the right direction, which places an onus on charging those most culpable of environmental damage.

However, the writer suggests that standardised agreements, enforced if necessary, is the only consistent approach that will work. Those countries that have rejected out of hand Kyoto, for instance, is totally unacceptable when small nations like the UK are making strident efforts in combating the problem. Small gains made here, in global terms, are easily lost when other larger countries and nations have no inclination of reducing their carbon emissions. Without a global consensual approach, the environment is certainly doomed for economic and environmental catastrophe.

Scotland, the small nation she is, will certainly contribute in a viable and constructive manner. The writer is pleased that Scotland’s First Minister (Alex Salmond) has entered into agreement with the Green’s in Scotland which signals a real desire in addressing the significance and pertinence of environmental issues. But, this is only a starting point and never should be read as an end unto itself. A government in Scotland that will consider: “Issue by Issue” before laws in Scotland are enacted. Environmental policy will certainly be an area in which a whole stream of issues will arise.

• Present gains for future costs

The environmental costs of industrialisation often build up slowly and do not become critical for many years. The benefits of industrialisation, however, are more immediate. Thus governments, consumers and industry are frequently prepared to continue with various practices and leave future generations to worry about their environmental consequences.

The problem has therefore become a reflection of the importance that people attach to the present moment, relative to the future. Such attitudes require radically changing.


Environmentalists recognise this issue as being extremely problematic. Activists have attempted through the political process in reducing people’s ignorance. Pressure groups such as ‘Friends of the Earth’ and ‘Greenpeace’ engage some of the best scientists this country has to offer and yet, despite historical assurances from the government, it is only really of late that the Labour Party in Britain has decided to act in the face of mounting scientific evidence. Blair’s campaign of harmonising European opinion on global warming, for instance, should be applauded as the need to conserve energy supplies and by reducing carbon emissions is starting to hit the fast-lane of government thinking. However, the process requires continued momentum into the future. Environmental degradation of the Earth is a very serious issue with many issues of morality and economic dependence attached. The issue is for you, as it is for me.

A Celtic Christian prayer, from Scotland:

BE THOU MY VISION

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart:
Naught is all else to me, save that Thou art,
Thou my best thought, by day and by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my wisdom, Thou my true Word,
I ever with Thee, Thou with me Lord.
Thou my great Father, I Thy dear son
Thou in me dwelling, I with Thee one.

A-men.

Ancient Irish

Green Economics (1):

Taking account of environmental costs:

Industry and business are required to take account more readily of the impacts that pollution is having on the environment. A number of accounting protocols and strict audit tests now exist for company compliance.

This is an interesting area for writing, one which will combine the knowledge of Science and Accounting. The blog author holds an M.Sc in Geography, as a second degree.

People have become concerned by a number of environmental problems in recent years. These include:

• Acid rain

This is caused by sulphur and nitrogen emissions from power stations, industry and cars. Acid rain has been blamed for 'Waldsterben' (forest death) in central Europe and the contamination of many lakes and streams, with the death of fish and plant life.

• The greenhouse effect

This is caused by carbon dioxide and other gases emitted again by power stations, various industries and motor vehicles. The fear is that these gases will cause a heating of the earth's atmosphere. This will lead to climatic changes which will, ultimately, affect food production. It will also lead to a raising of sea levels and flooding as parts of the polar ice caps melt.

• Depletion of the ozone layer

This has been caused by the use of CFC gases (Chlorofluorocarbons) that were previously used in many aerosols, refrigerators and the manufacture of polystyrene foam. The ozone layer protects us from harmful ultra-violet radiation from the sun. Increased erosion and depletion of this layer could lead to increased skin cancer and related diseases.

• Nuclear radiation

The fears remain that accidents or sabotage at nuclear power stations could cause dangerous releases of radiation. The disposal of nuclear waste is another environmental problem.

• Land and river pollution

The tipping of toxic waste into the ground or into rivers can cause long-term environmental damage. Soils can be poisoned; rivers and seas can easily become polluted. It is not just industry that is to blame here. Sewage pollutes rivers and seas. Nitrogen run-off and slurry from farming are also major pollutants.

Commentary:

It wasn't really until the late 1960s and early 1970s that the 'environment' became more firmly part of the political agenda in most European countries. It was largely a response not only to the spectacular growth of the Western economies, but also to the continued and extensive industrialisation of the Eastern bloc countries such as Poland and the USSR.

'Green groups' sprang up around Europe. These groups realised that, if economic growth was to be sustained, then environmental damage could grow at an alarming rate.

The problems such groups have encountered in attempting to change attitudes and economic strategies have been immense. For example, certain governments have been reluctant to enter international environmental agreements, perceiving them to be against their national interest. The agreement, ladies and gentlemen, to cut sulphur dioxide emissions from power stations is one high profile instance.

Readers will be aware, that in Scotland, the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) under our leader Alex Salmond, has recently entered into partnership/agreement with the Green Party in forming an administrative government. The writer shares the vision set out by the nationalists in terms of an independent self-governed nation, and is particularly pleased Mr. Salmond has entered into a coalition agreement with the Green Party. Scotland requires more green and eco-friendly policies of which the SNP have been committed for some considerable time now.

The costs of pollution abatement are high, especially in the short-run. As long as these short-run costs are greater than the perceived costs of continuing pollution, then industry and government will continue to incur them. The consequences of this, however, could be devastating and far more costly in the long term, in both a financial and in an environmental sense.

In the next phase, part 2, of this written work, the blog author will address what can be said about the causes of these environmental problems. I believe a number of common features exist in extrapolating further, written journals for consideration.

Celtic Christian prayer, from Scotland:

Christ with us

My dearest Lord,
Be Thou a bright flame before me,
Be Thou a guiding star above me,
Be Thou a smooth path beneath me,
Be Thou a kindly shepherd behind me,
Today and evermore.
Amen.

St Columba

Police powers and individual liberty (1)

Given the state of public concern over civil liberties the writer is concerned with the law’s futile attempt at reconciling two contradictory aims – firstly, the need to catch criminals and, secondly, the desire to allow citizens to go about their business without interference by the police.

The law, ladies and gentlemen, has never satisfactorily come to terms with the problem. The law is often very confused and obscure on some of these ‘civil liberty’ issues but, frequently, it seems that the courts are prepared to ignore what certain rights the individual has if it will help the police in catching wrongdoers. So the citizen who proclaims, as he often does: “I know my rights” is probably unaware of just how limited those rights are.

Assisting the police:

The general rule is that no one is obliged to help the police with their inquiries. It may be one's social or even moral duty to do so but there is no law which says that one must; all the law requires is that one should not give false information to the police or waste police time. Anyone who does contravene this fundamental tenet is liable to a fine and/or imprisonment.

But of course most people do help the police; if everyone stood on their constitutional rights and refused to cooperate, the police's task would be impossible.

When the police stop someone in the street and ask him to 'come down to the station and help us with our inquiries', that request can be refused. The only way the police can make someone accompany them to the police station is to arrest him, and that can only be done in certain circumstances. As Lord Devlin eloquently quoted:

... "You may sometimes read in novels and detective stories ... that persons are sometimes taken into custody for questioning. There is no such power in this country. A man cannot be detained unless he is arrested".

Of course, Lord Devlin's remarks may be superseded by certain clauses within the Anti-Terrorist Bill where an individual may be held without charge. Nevertheless, this aside, few people know that this is the basis of the law and of course the police do not tell suspects of their right to refuse to go to 'the station'.

What then of a suspect's rights?

1. Police questioning -

If a person agrees to help the police, there are rules of conduct governing the manner in which he is to be questioned. These are laid down in the Judges' Rules and Home Office administrative directions which, in essence, gives guidelines to the police, but are not strictly binding on them. So, if a policeman conducts an interview that does not follow the terms of the Rules, it does not necessarily follow that the evidence obtained will be inadmissible - that is for the trial judge to decide. The judge will only probably rule it out if it would be oppressive or unfair to include it.

The law:

The police can question anyone but their questions need not be answered. As soon as there are grounds for suspecting that someone has committed an offence he must be cautioned that he not need say anything. Further, once he has been charged he must be given a second caution. Normally, the questions should then stop, but if for exceptional reasons he is asked more questions he should be told again that he not need answer.

Ladies and gentlemen, the writer has been involved within local advocacy and, through that work, is able to impart an accurate understanding of police and local authority powers. For example, many lawyers with large criminal practices say that the police often ignore the Judges' Rules. Certainly, there is some evidence that the Rules are not always followed. If the police should conduct their questioning in an improper manner, it is usually almost impossible for the suspect to prove afterwards that the Rules were broken. And, of course, even if he can prove that the Rules were not followed, the judge who hears his case may still allow the evidence against him to be heard.

The classic statement on the status of the Judges' Rules was made in 1918 but remains equally valid today:

The statement reads ...

... "These rules have not the force of law. They are administrative directions, the observance of which the police authorities should enforce on their subordinates as tending to the fair administration of justice. It is important that they do so, for statements obtained from prisoners contrary to the spirit of these Rules may be rejected as evidence by the judge presiding at the trial" (sic).

In general, of course, the police do follow the Rules, but it is difficult to see what justification there can be for having a set of Rules if they are not to be legally binding on the police.

The Rules set out under Home Office directions and, when a suspect may be interrogated, are namely:

1. The police can question a person about an offence whether or not he is in custody, unless he has been charged or told that he may be prosecuted for the offence. But, as stated above, the person can refuse to answer the questions;

2. As soon as there is evidence that gives reasonable grounds for suspecting that the person has committed an offence, he must be cautioned … “You are not obliged to say anything unless you wish to but what you say may be put into writing and given in evidence” and, thereafter, a record must be kept of the questioning and any statements made.

3. The questioning can continue until the suspect is charged, or told that he may be prosecuted. But then, he must be cautioned again: “Do you wish to say anything? You are not obliged to say anything unless you wish to do so, but whatever you say will be taken down in writing and may be given in evidence” and, normally, he should not be asked any more questions.

Exceptionally, additional questions are allowed: for instance, to clear up ambiguities or to prevent harm to the public. In the words of the Home Office circular, “Where they are necessary for the purpose of preventing or minimising harm or loss to some other person or to the public or for clearing up an ambiguity in a previous statement or answer”. If so, the accused should be cautioned for a third time – “I wish to put some questions to you about the offence … You are not obliged to answer any of these questions, but if you do the question and answer will be taken down in writing and may be given in evidence”.


... what of the problem of being verballed? Most lawyers and policemen would agree that the verbals problem has got out of hand. Is there a way through this mire?

The vexed question of verbals can arise after statements have been given to the police. This is the word used to describe admissions, or incriminating statements, that the police falsely allege to have been made by the accused.

When the police question, arrest, or charge a person, they keep a written record of the events and conversations. For example, the notebook might read: 'When charged, the accused said, "Fair enough, I did it"', but the accused may later deny ever having said those words. Either he is lying, or he has been 'verballed' by the police.

It is now normal for a considerable amount of time at criminal trials to be taken up with arguments as to what the accused did or did not say; in effect, there is a mini-trial within the trial, with the police officer being accused of giving false evidence.

Certainly, it does appear over recent years that this problem has got out of hand. Not only is it unfair on the police (and the accused) but it wastes a considerable amount of valuable court time, and often confuses the minds of the jurors.

The simplest solution would probably be to issue the police with pocket tape recorders so that there would be a full record of what was said, although even this would not be a complete safeguard against the mischievous suspect who shouts out, 'Stop hitting me!' The only complete answer would be to insist that all police questioning takes place in front of a sheriff or other court official.

Until better reforms are introduced, the best a suspect can do is to make his own written record of what is said, so he at least has some evidence to contradict the policeman's notebooks should he be verballed.

The existing environment –

One of the least thought-about factors in the systems development process is often the existing production environment. In other words, some relatively easy questions are commonly left aside, such as:

• What computers do we have?

• What software do we have?

• What PRODUCTION MIX do we have?

In this article, continuing on the theme of systems development, the author will address the first two questions in brief terms. The third is usually forgotten, that causes an array of problems within organisations.

Like it or not, our system will be required to function in an already existing environment, with all the attendant problems, handicaps and pitfalls. Not to recognise this point amounts to dismissing the constant plethora of issues associated with the technical environment. No doubt, anyone of us would like our system to be born in the best possible environment. For example, we would expect full telecommunications availability.

Human factors are, again, particularly relevant since problems may arise between two computer groups. In fact, we may be tempted to tell other people what they should have done. However, we must accept that we do not:

1. know everything about the current environment;

2. know what constraints may have existed before;

3. have the power to make things change immediately.

Consequently, when complaints are aired we are likely to be directed elsewhere. People may just listen, or we may be told that when our system reaches implementation, the whole environment will have changed. In fact, we should assume that the environment will not change - in any way that will facilitate system implementation.

We should always remember, ladies and gentlemen, that the existing environment includes people and systems. Whatever design we have reached, we must take account of the existing resources, because they will become crucial to the successful operation of the system in the future. If people are only accustomed to, for example, reading totals at the day-end, we had better provide a facility that will similarly organise the system to this end or else be prepared to retrain the people concerned adequately enough, or the system simply will not work.

Maintenance -

The topic of maintenance is often less than appealing to systems developers. We usually look at maintenance as something you have to do, not as something you would like to do. However, once the system is implemented, a maintenance team invariably will be required to update it. Not that I particularly support the idea of having a maintenance representative in the project. In fact, I have never personally used that approach and probably never will. Nevertheless, the company's maintenance needs will have to be considered in the design, coding and documentation of the system. Thorough knowledge on the part of the maintenance team will be necessary, so that the consequences of poor documentation can be understood.

It is important to appreciate the fact that the more we ignore maintenance, the more likely we are to become the maintainers of our own system. Nobody else will really be in a position to undertake major or minor systems surgery.

This problem has in the past been tackled through techniques such as structured programming and systems documentation. However, the best approach is to ensure that the coding and documentation can be understood by people outside the development team, so that they may be able to modify the system where necessary, at some future stage. Empirically, many of us have looked hard at our own programs to work out what we originally intended. So how can we expect someone to understand what we have done if we ourselves have problems and issues deciphering our own work?

This issue has been addressed in many different ways, but I personally feel the worst of all is what is called structured programming. The aim has been to state a series of rules such that anybody reading a program will understand what the code says. However, let us think about this. Programs, historically, were written in assembler. Then somebody invented something that would accept plain, English words, and convert them into machine language. Subsequent developments yielded high-level languages such as FORTRAN and COBOL. Typically, when we look back and read programming lessons of those days, we find that such languages were expected to be easy to code and read. Does such a consideration bear directly on the maintenance problem, whether then or in the future?

No matter how extensive our documentation, no matter how structured our programs, we will still have maintenance problems. We must also ask ourselves if we are building a system that can actually be maintained. The question then becomes: what is a maintainable system?

In my most recent project - and currently ongoing - a decision was reached in automating a system from excel spreadsheets that will, in due course, be fully automated. The cost implications of this decision, given the position of the company, is, in my opinion, a correct one. It avoids the difficulties of being concerned with bottlenecks that commonly arise with off-the-shelf packages and, most people competent with excel, will at least be able to systematically flow-chart the links. In this instance, documenting the procedural processes of maintenance will be minimal because excel works from a standard set of Microsoft procedures whatever the standard or capability of future users. A terms of reference will always exist either from reference material or from help-topics within the computer itself. In addition, running a company' accounting system under such a format can produce management accounts that are as good as any produced by advanced accounting packages. The principles of how accounts are formulated and produced is, of course, the overarching objective and not how complicated or costly a bought-in system will cost. To many small type organisations have been entrapped to the flavours of sales rhetoric when considering how they should proceed. As a senior management accountant once told me: "The best systems are derived from knowing the business and environment one is in and knowing how to build around those parameters". I endorse those sentiments, to this day.

In the next phase of my writing on 'systems development' the author intends to look specifically at the user and, in trying to understand him. This work will begin with a new post and, during the course of such deliberations, the writer intends to introduce further case studies drawn from personal experiences.

The User, Which one?

During recent posts on systems implementation and delivery over the last few days, I have mentioned frequently the various users that inevitably access and use an organisation systems for various purposes.

On today's journal I would like to consider who those users are and what there requirements are:

. The political User -

Because of the various elements that a system comprises, and the ever changing environment to which most organisations are party, we should remember that a system interrelates with several users at the same time.

At the highest level, we find a user in search of a 'political' target. For example, sales increase, improved positioning, client loyalty, etc that are normally related to company-wide goals and objectives. This is not necessarily the person who actually requests the system, but in practice he can destroy the whole project by simply changing his mind. For didactic purposes, I shall call him the political user.

. The Asking User –

Somebody must take the political user thoughts and produce a concept that can somehow be measured; in other words, the wish must be shaped so that constraints, basic features and other aspects can be established. I usually identify this individual as the concept user. He is permanently close to the project and my experience is that if this user disappears for any reason, projects proceed anarchically, and then die, because of the inadequate conceptual guidance. The asking user should see that the project maintains proper coordination with the high level company policies that brought it to life.

. The Managing User -

A more common user appears now, frequently referred to as a user representative and sometimes confused with the business analyst. From my point of view, what we actually have is a technical user, somebody to whom we can talk in a meaningful way, such that he will understand our technical limitations and eventually even agree on necessary trade-offs. This user is extremely important. The nature of his job implies that you should never accept a system with two technical users, since some decisions will imply that one function loses and another wins; we try to avoid being left in the middle, operationally. However, many final users or functions the system will have, the concept of having one centralised voice to negotiate features or final operational models cannot be emphasised enough.

. The Operating User -

Another kind of user exists as staff that will actually fill in forms, key in data on the screens, read listings and so on. They are all operational users and they bring their thoughts to the technical user. They will even press for certain features to be in place, but it will only be the technical user who can actually decide what to do, because operational users will normally recognise his authority and knowledge. If we realise that something wrong is happening, we should ask our technical user to handle the problem with the rest of the users. No matter how right we are, they recognise his authority, not ours.

The operating user exists at different levels throughout the firm, from clerk to manager. I am often amused to hear computer people declaring that their system will be an incredible success, since the user has been actively involved. I ask myself: all users?

. The Real User -

When faced with the alternative of multiple end-users, we actually feel tempted to request one single end-user representative to deal with. However, there is rarely a single person that can handle the many problems likely to be encountered during the systems development process. We can have a single representative, but we still need to interrelate to more than one user, and to collate information from several places to obtain meaningful results.

Once we are convinced, after extensive discussion with all the individual users, about the nature and structure of the solution to be implemented, we can attempt to convince our technical user of what should be done. He will then be left with the full responsibility of undertaking other people's motivation and manipulation. This may not sound polite, but it works.

Case Study:

Several years ago, a project manager to whom I was assigned decided to build the company's Information Systems Plan, all on his own: in a short time something very like a plan was announced. Each and every administrative step was specified and the necessary resources allocated, yet we failed to identify users. The main problem lay in the fact that all the top management had 'approved' the plan, but their political requirements were not included, so they were not prepared to 'support' it: it was not their plan, but ours. Needless to say, there were considerable delays and difficulties when we attempted implementation, and of course the final result was far different from that expected. Actual costs incurred was way, way over budget which again, asked questions concerning strategy and effectiveness. Effective teamworking is certainly part of the solution.

Systems Development (3)

"Perhaps the reason for most of our problems lies within the nature of systems development itself, since we find ourselves today building a system that was defined yesterday but will be implemented tomorrow" ...

[Legal & Financial Guardian, 19 March 2007] Systems Development (2).


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Someone might argue that every building effort in the world exhibits the same kind of pattern, but I would reply that we are talking about the only information-processing building effort. The fastest element to change in our world is information, so our problem bears no resemblance to any other building process. On the other hand, why don't engineering works have the same type of standards? For example, why are there not common procedures in, say, designing a new car or bringing any other new gadget to life? The effort in building any kind of management and financial information system is made much more complex than traditional structures because of the human factor.

As a simple example, consider house building standards. There are many books that describe the process of building a house, so that we can predict the actual cost and time it takes to build one square foot of wall. But, there is no standard to predict the cost of satisfying someone's personal choice of co-ordinated curtains, furniture, floor-plan, garden layout, etc.

At systems level we have exactly the same problem. We can predict the cost of writing 100 lines of code and compare performance to any standard we wish, but actual systems building and implementation is much more than that. In fact, coding is accepted to be no more than 20% of the actual time and cost (and probably also no more than 20% of problems arising from systems design and implementation), so we see that fairly good estimating standards exist for only about 20% of our project. So, how do we budget for the other 80%? How do we estimate the time the user will take to reach a fairly good user specification? How, for example, do we handle the ever-present change requests?

At this stage it is probably worth addressing some of these problems in more detail:


User Evolution in Time –

The user who defined the system some time ago is normally not the one that derives the benefits. Also, and more importantly, today we work with a third user and when we reach implementation stage yet more people will be handling our system. In other words, we build according to instructions from somebody that has gone and we expect the next customer to accept the finished goods.


Technology –

Technology, for example, that was available when the system was requested may now be obsolete. It is likely that a different technology, or variations/adaptations to the existing package will be available either when the system is implemented or at a later stage.


Change -

As time passes, new technology and fresh users will generate changes. The organisation as a whole will also request changes, as it is forced to adapt and adjust to a changing environment.

As a quick guide there are generally three elements under permanent potential change during the development of any system: the client, the problem and the available tools. This particular issue explains, in basic terms, the requirement and need for a Project Manager - who himself must be prepared to face continual changes within the systems process. A colleague once suggested to me that a Project Manager should be prepared to face anything.

A quick way out of this difficulty is to freeze requirements. However, this is not only impractical but may even be suicidal: changes are inevitable, and all of us must accept that some of them might well be outside of our control. In fact, we ourselves should expect to operate in any organisation as 'change agents'.

On ending this topic today, I would like to draw readers to the feature that is becoming so important within any systems development programme: it is a SERVICE. This means that when a client comes to us, he has a problem that probably requires a dedicated approach to problem solving. It doesn't necessarily mean a quick-fix approach as this philosophy generally renders weaknesses in itself. As a service, whether it be within systems development or within certain areas of finance, we are somehow doomed to varying degrees of criticism.

I will now offer a definition:

... In my opinion systems development is a service intended to implement a technological change in a highly dynamic environment, a change that is necessary in maintaining a competitive edge. This should not necessarily imply a cost-base that is increasing because, by definition, systems should be designed in creating economies and greater effectiveness.

The value of information –

Accountants should aim to provide the right information to the right people in the right quantity at the right time, and at minimum cost. This raises the question as to what is optimal quantity, content, accuracy and speed of transmitting information. These alternatives have different costs and values, and it is clear that accountants should bear this in mind when collecting and presenting accounting information. Any design and implementation of a management or financial information system must bear these factors in mind. The system must be robust enough in meeting a variety of different requests. At the core of such requests and analysis will be the information itself. The quality of data should be aimed at reducing long-run costs for business in areas such as search costs, bureaucracy and labour. Also, better quality decisions might be made by postponing a decision until more information or information of greater accuracy is available. An effective and efficiently designed MIS will aid the process of making informed quality decisions, quickly.

In general terms there is normally a trade-off between speed on the one-hand and accuracy and quantity on the other. We should therefore compare the costs of improving information systems with the potential benefits that will likely accrue in the future. The relationship between costs incurred and the value of information provided is an important one.

How do we ascertain the value of the benefits of providing information? In theory, we should evaluate the consequences of taking each decision with a given amount of information; we then evaluate the consequences of taking each decision when extra information is available, and we use the difference between these two figures as a measure of the value of the extra information. If this value is in excess of its cost then the information should be produced.

…

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What is Systems Development (2)

If we were to somehow define our typical attitudes, requirements, etc while developing systems, we would probably mention some of the following:

. answers for every query or doubt that may arise;

. quick answers and solutions;

. if we do not have a particular query, "we have already considered it";

. if we have not even considered a particular problem, "it is scheduled for the next plan";

. impressive statements to smash the audience, such as: "hardware costs will decrease by 30% during the next 12-months" and, "end-users are bound to improve their technological perception";

. complex concepts in closing a conversation, such as: "channel saturation" or, "natural system overhead".

During a major systems implementation programme I was involved in during 1996 the project manager began a serious investigation within this field when he was told that the staff were not exactly happy, since they thought the project team in general expected more than they could deliver.

Then there was the case when the manager of a user department queried the probable implementation date for his system and was advised: "two or three weeks". After a few seconds, I distinctly recall how he increased the unit of time from weeks to months and then doubled the given number, concluding that a reasonable time 'for him' for actual system availability would be 4 to 6 months.

Organisations and people that lead them have probably encountered these sorts of situations before. Perhaps they can be summarised as two or three simple points:

• Team members are permanently concerned about the future;

• The ability to produce and project a self-confident image frequently fails;

• Promises are generally made that cannot always be kept.

What then is the origin of this paradox? What is it that causes highly qualified professionals to use cheap communications and selling techniques? Why, in some instances have we become the worst estimators? Why the need for always being concerned about the future?

Perhaps the reason for most of our problems lies within the nature of systems development itself, since we find ourselves today building a system that was defined yesterday but will be implemented tomorrow.

Human factors in systems development (1)

The Company and its People -

There are various things we should consider before any attempt is made in developing systems. One of the most important tasks is to understand the components of a company (in other words, its people). Strange as it may seem, the typical systems analyst is unaware of what his business counterparts looks like. 99% of analysts underestimate the capabilities of user’s and furthermore probably do not even listen properly to the user’s real problems. This is exactly how problems start and continue, in an unsolved state, as companies and organisations attempt to move forward.

When you look at a company, there are several aspects that should strike you: For example, the building, the revenue, social impact, number of workers, market penetration, output quality, etc. However, just for a minute imagine you have a microscope in your hands and intend using it to inspect one of the company’s basic components: the man who is right there in a corner, performing his daily work and filing a computer data-entry form. He has a 78.5% chance of doing it right (you know it because your system says so); the other 21.5% is covered by your validation programmes. Let’s now have a look at the output of the same company. Let’s ask a customer. Now we are due for a surprise: the goods are always right, not just 78.5% but maybe 99%. Ever thought what makes the difference? The employees, who can deliver an astoundingly good output at their practical work, somehow become substandard when it comes to filling out forms.

People may argue that the functional workstation to which I refer has been there for time immemorial, while the information system is only two years old. This maybe true, but then again, has the ability to be more technically proficient in recent years given us all an opportunity to be more effective through the use of IT and related systems? Maybe the difference lies somewhere else; maybe the workers and their predecessors have been refining the workstation for the last 100 years, but the modern information system has not yet had that same refining treatment. In other words, the environment has humanised the working procedures, but has yet to shape efficiently the information procedures. Some companies and organisations do have advanced information systems that are highly effective in providing reports and information for fast decisions to be made. IBM for example, is highly geared in meeting with the cut-throat world of globalisation. However, many smaller organisations, particularly those with a smaller client base are still far from the dynamic and efficient ways that is afforded through digitised systems. Information systems and their automation are as much relevant to the smaller scale company as it is to the multinational conglomerate.

We may represent the basic problem as understanding first what a company is and how it works - always remembering that a company is composed of people.

When scrutinising a company it will be found that the components are distinctly unique from each other. Each man or woman worker has individual targets and an individual reality, not necessarily in line with those of the company as a whole. It is these same people that later on re-organise as interest groups within the same company.

A simple example of how personal interests may differ from company interests can be found in the case of the executive who undertakes extensive and needless cost-cutting measures solely to exhibit his achievements at a later stage for justification for his next salary increase. Another simple case is when a company decides to reduce costs and therefore fire/reduce manning levels. It is obvious that in this case the company interest and those of the affected employees are not the same. However, a closer look at this last example shows that it is not really a faceless monster ("the company") that is dismissing people. In fact, the company compromises people: what is happening is that some people are getting rid of other people. (With a sinking ship, some people decide they will save themselves and let others drown, almost literally). Look around - where is the top executive who decided to fire himself as a means of reducing costs?

From a consultancy point of view the point to remember is that a company comprises groups of people: clerical, management, technical, production, etc. It is these groups that we should be interested in: they are the ones who will ultimately utilise our systems. Therefore, as a fundamental tenet of systems-design it is important that these groups be happy and comfortable with what is being done. This is not merely an extension of the user-friendly concept, it is in essence a completely new approach in the field of systems implementation and development.

Under ‘normal’ conditions, everybody will perform within expected standards. Nevertheless, when conflicts arise (and implementing a system is often a conflict in itself), a technician may suddenly become an ‘old’ technician, while his boss may suddenly be labelled as a ‘newcomer’ and therefore inexperienced. In this fact alone we see the elements that will make the difference between success and failure, no matter how well tested our system or how much effort we put into the development.

Though it may sound strange, it is important to view the firm as a living being that reacts according to external or internal stimuli. Hence, we must be prepared to overcome a natural hostility and rejection when we attempt the degree of intervention involved in systems development and implementation.

When problems are imminent, various symptoms become apparent: we should be ready to recognise them as such. Some executives may admit inadequate knowledge of technology and computing, thereby ducking the obligation of having to make decisions. Other staff may doubt the real benefits of the system, at the same time wondering if the new working demands will decrease or increase as a consequence of fresh procedures. After system implementation, the red lights may appear as complaints such as: “we didn’t have so many mistakes in the past” and, “our young computer and IT people don’t really understand the Company’s business”.

IT watchdogs often react with such weapons as user manuals and training, supported by executive briefs in which the user-friendliness of the system is widely demonstrated. The practical responses from staff are akin to saying things like “this is not what we need”, “this is not what we were promised” and, “this is unreliable”. With such sentiments the project manager soon realises the importance of understanding staff and employee concerns at an early stage during any systems implementation programme.

Anyone who has been engaged at management computer level will understand how systems start to mysteriously exhibit bugs, output becomes unreliable, and procedures become difficult to apply – as trained staffs are re-allocated to other departments. The final result is comprehensive discouragement to all the project team.

These are classical signs in any systems development implementation programme. It happens with amazing frequency, despite overwhelming efforts to avoid it.

As consultants, we must ask: “Why does this happen?” How is it that well-trained experts repeat the same mistakes? How can we rebuild from chaos and transform these fiasco's into future success?

In answering this question we must look at the approach we have previously used – it is likely that project managers have been fighting the SYMPTOM instead of the CAUSE. In other words, we must direct the systems development process in such a manner that it will become part of the organic firm, instead of an artificial adjunct, an alien prosthesis. On the other hand, we must remember that IT power continues to grow at an exhilarating pace, while our management techniques change, if at all, much less rapidly.

One final point to consider: it has become an accepted truth that for somebody to perform at a certain post, he must exhibit a psychological profile that matches the job requirements. In other words, what anybody could do in the past now requires special people to perform. This already says something about the poor quality of our work, and also explains somehow why we are not always welcome in transforming business.


Case studies in action:

(1)

Some time ago, a company in which I held a senior position started running into financial problems and decided to cut costs.

As it usually happens, everybody soon noticed it was easier to reduce costs on things like stationary and telephone bills rather than making people more productive. Interesting controls were established to identify over-expenditure on pencils and envelopes. Impressive quality circles were assigned the most important task of identifying what computer and IT listings would be discontinued. However, all these individual measures did not prove effective, since probably 90% of the administrative cost came from labour. So, what had to happen actually happened, but the company did not like to say it in the open: a new team was brought-into the equation – Organisation Development. Seminars and meetings were arranged, first for top executives and then for middle management, with names such as team-building and productive-unit management.

As I recall, the most amusing part of it all was, however, the amount of time spent in those seminars with psychological games being played: games such as putting everybody into a dry boat and playing the sinking game. In case readers don’t know it, it basically consists of putting several pupils into a ‘boat’, with a target to achieve: row to the safety of an island. The purpose is to persistently modify slightly some of the conditions, such as the distance to shore and the weather; also water can be thrown into the boat to introduce chaos and panic among the rowers. This all happens in a carefully planned manner that eventually shows the need to get rid some of the weight (i.e. some rowers must drown). As childish as the game may seem, I saw a number of colleagues really concentrate on the game and even lose their temper while deciding who would drown first, but I simply couldn’t accept the idea that we were so easy to manipulate for the next cost-cutting step: head-cutting.

The analogy is a dark one because the discussion topic compared the exercise to one of war, in which you know you have to kill or die, but that does not make killing something acceptable, as they were trying to make drowning acceptable because it would save the company (the boat) and its employees (the rowers).

I think what actually happened was that my program felt a strong deviation from course, because I knew that staff dismissals were the only effective way of cost-cutting. Computerisation could be extended, enabling others to be more productive.

Understanding the concept of information as a resource is not really as easy as it sounds. What we must be aware of is that information rarely exists in isolation. It is significant when one human being attempts to communicate with another. It flows from one person to another, and this is the type of relation that our systems must handle. We should even consider during the design phase that during this communication process, one of the two persons may not just be in the right mood, and any slight design mishap - such as something wrongly positioned on the screen - will be highlighted and thoroughly criticised, with bad effects on productivity. The line can sometimes be that fine. Like it or not, that's the way things can sometimes be. Overlooking such matters could, arguably, result in operational inefficiency or a rejection of the system that is being offered.

Design must have human factors, not just ergonomics, in mind. In a way, any consultant or advisor engaging within the role of supporting a new IT implementation programme must adopt a similar approach to that of a salesman (i.e. somebody eager to satisfy); the service concept must be there and must become apparent to the users, such that - however good our design is - we get the user to adopt the system as his own. Something that he feels comfortable with. Ownership, in a personal sense, can make the user want to learn more than the fundamentals which has to be good for any business who are often heavily reliant on what there technology and IT systems can do.

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The British constitution and the law

It is easier to say what the British constitution is not, than to say what it is.

In countries favoured with a written constitution it is easy to define the constitution. It may be the basic law, a legal document or a set of documents to which all enquiries may refer – which is interpreted and upheld by the courts, and with which other laws must comply. Britain has no codified text and we are often faced with problems of definition, description and interpretation. But, this problem might also be seen as an opportunity – to escape from the confines of a single document and include in the notion of the constitution a fuller and more realistic account of the fundamental structure of government.

In Britain there is a danger that breaking away from the confines of a written constitution leaves it exposed in embracing the whole of political activity in what is known as the ‘political system’.

The British constitution is not:

. A codified set of rules in a single document: possibly revered and certainly accepted as authoritative;

. A collection of rules handed down by a higher authority having recognised constituent power;

. Whatever the government says, does and ‘gets away with’.

However, there is a British constitution in the extensive sense in the form of rules, customs and understanding empowering and limiting government. Such a constitution is derived from political history and may perhaps best be described as a political and historical constitution.

Vernon Bogdanor characterised as follows:

"The essence of the British constitution is … better expressed in the statement that it is a historic constitution whose dominating characteristic is the sovereignty of parliament, than in the statement that Britain has an unwritten constitution".

The historical nature of the British constitution makes it to some extent a mystery to be understood only by the initiated and eliciting a loyalty based on myth rather than substance. Thus, Magna Carta, parliamentary sovereignty or the rule of law can become slogans in a sentimental argument, rather than statements or concepts of serious constitutional significance. The lack of having a full written and established constitution makes these sentiments and emotions very real. If the constitution is viewed from an historical perspective, components may well likely be discovered in laws and authoritative works and other documents.

The 'British constitution' relies very much on the courts accepting and upholding the principle of parliamentary sovereignty, although whether they accept it as a political fact or a legal rule is subject to debate and conjecture.

The sources of the British constitution include the following:

• Statute law, made by Parliament;

• Common law, made by judges working by precedent previously set or by setting precedents where necessary in order to accommodate political reality and legal principle;

• The treaties and laws of the European Community and the judgements passed by the European Court of Justice;

• Ministerial statements: the conclusions of commissions of inquiry and other official statements carrying or purporting to carry authority;

• Authoritative works by academics. Bagehot (1867/1963) and Dicey (1885/1959) having set a high standard of public influence.

The British constitution has a number of several fundamental defects and has been referred as resembling a camel - a horse designed by a committee - but without the camels fitness for purpose and its visual appeal. Areas of weakness and defect include:-

• The absence of a higher authority , except the government of the day, and in consequence some doubt, to say the least, about the enforceability of constitutional rules. The occasional intervention of the courts can remedy certain defects but broadly the courts will never be involved in every defect that surfaces from government legislation;

• Inadequate procedures for amendment, no procedure for formal amendment, and no bar to informal modification by practice;

• No basis for and no encouragement to the development of a vigorous element in the public philosophy or political culture - apart from a now diminishing respect for ancient institutions, Parliament and the monarchy;

• Inadequacy of the basic institutional provision for the limitation and accountability of power.

Against this catalogue of constitutional defects there can be set two substantial arguments.

1. Under the fundamental principle and political fact of parliamentary sovereignty, power resides effectively in the House of Commons; and, since the House is subject to periodic election by universal suffrage, power rests ultimately with the people. No doubt the government of the day has many means at its disposal to enlarge and extend its power, but in the end that power may be diminished or ended by popular vote.

2. The British historical constitution, for all its faults, is free of the litigiousness and domination by lawyers which is a normal consequence of a proper, written constitution, backed by a constitutional court. But a price has to be paid for this advantage.

Conventions

In a constitution lacking a basic foundation document, custom and practice play a larger role than is the case in a well-founded constitution. Dicey (1959, p.417) referred to these non-legal rules as the ... "conventions of the constitution or, constitutional morality" and actually inferred that some conventions were more important in constitutional terms than the law itself.

As a general take on conventions my own thoughts are that they could be open to dispute as to meaning and practical consequences because they do not carry the full-weight of the legislature. Although some conventions are very credible they do however remain static. For example, how does any Convention reflect changed perceptions of what is proper in the constitution of a modern parliamentary democracy? Statute, of course, is often amended through parliamentary bills and motions put forward such as Private Members Bills or a general acceptance by ministers to change Acts of Parliament for the better of the Act itself and/or society.

Conventions are not 'lesser laws' or laws in the making; they become law only if they are enacted as such. This is however where the great difficulty is encountered. Conventions normally relate to customary practices for which there is by definition some kind of precedent. So, if this is the case then a convention may be recognised as forming a rule which imposes an obligation on those acting within the constitution. Does it not therefore also serve the purpose on the regulation of discretion? How many Acts of Parliament are open to discretion and varying levels of interpretation? Furthermore, a convention serves a political purpose; otherwise it will not be sustained.

Attorney-General -v- Jonathan Cape Ltd [1976] QB 752

The recognition of Conventions by the courts and the way in which they are used to aid interpretation and understanding was demonstrated in the above case. However, ironically, the case also served to emphasise the non-enforceability, in the legal sense, of conventions. Although a legal paradox is generally inferred from such a case authoritative writings by Stair (Scots Law), for example, have proved highly influential in the determination of many civil cases in Scotland. Authoritative writings and Conventions are clearly one thing (written documents), a British Constitution based on an unwritten document is clearly another.

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