"Whipping girl of the welfare apologists"

That's the curious description of A4e's owner Emma Harrison in the headline to an interview in the Sunday Times last Sunday.  It's a neat way of insulting all of us.  And another curiosity is that this is described as Harrison's "first interview since the scandal", completely ignoring the interview she gave to the Daily Mail on 11 August.  There's nothing new in this one, except that the self-justification is stronger than ever.  "I was busy helping families get back to work," she says.  The history of Emma and her company follows, complete with tuck-shop incident, and then the account of how she thought of the "family champions".  Her initiative was the inspiration for the whole government programme.  But then, "Suddenly I'm put forward as the face of all evil".  The article goes on: "Harrison does not deny that there was wrongdoing at A4e, but she believes it was blown out of proportion by political point-scoring.  Those who wanted to attack the government's controversial welfare policies had a handy whipping girl."  On the money, that £8.6m, she's still "unrepentant", giving the same explanation of her entrepreneurship as she gave to the Mail.  She now spends her time working with her Foundation for Social Improvement, helping small charities.
Perhaps this is another attempt at rehabilitating Harrison's reputation.

Cuts

Earlier this week there was one of those business congratulating itself occasions, with the publication of the Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 250 league table, 2101. A4e is 234th. But see the table showing that in 2002 they were 23rd in the "fast track", and 95th in 2003. In 2010 they are 83rd in the "profit track" as well as 234th in the "top track". Emma Harrison, of course, is delighted, according to The Star and there was a dinner to mark the occasion.

But what's important today is the effect of the spending cuts, and for A4e it must be mixed news. There will be a lot more unemployment, so no shortage of clients, but it may be harder to get job outcomes, so harder to make a profit. While the reforms of the benefits system will not be evident for a long time, the various blows to the out-of-work will be felt very quickly. However, the slashing of the money given to local authorities will bring opportunities to A4e and other outsourcing companies, which can employ people more cheaply than can the public sector. If we see the government's actions today as ideologically driven (and I do) then the privatisation of the remnants of our public services is part of the project.