Radical changes to the way some government service are run - including the operation of the Post Office and subsequently the airport - are going to be brought in from October onwards, the Chief Minister confirmed.
It is likely that the government will hold back from full privatisation in both cases - but possible privatisation of the Royal Mail in UK may have an impact on proposals here.
Instead a halfway house of ‘corporatisation’, where an organisation remains in public hands but run on a commercial basis, could be considered.
Chief Minister Allan Bell said: ‘It has been suggested that a substantial amount of money could be saved by operating the airport in a more efficient and effective manner. Whether outright privatisation is the answer remains to be seen - a lot of work still needs to be done before we get that far.
‘Privatisation doesn’t necessarily work. Cardiff Airport for example has been taken back into public ownership. The halfway house of corporatisation could be a happy medium. The airport is just one of many examples where government is reviewing its services. I would certainly expect to see some radical changes brought in from October onwards. I would certainly expect to see some announcement on the Post Office and its future by the end of the year.’
Mr Bell said changing the way services are operated had to take place if the public finances were to be rebalanced in the wake of the VAT bombshell.
And hitting out a critics at the proposed £1 minimum airport parking fee, he said: ‘This is typical. Every single change announced by government has been met to a lesser of greater degree by cries of outrage.
‘People forget government has lost a third of its income. There are very difficult challenges that have got to be met. We have to find savings wherever we possible can. The £40,000 saved by introducing the parking fee might not sound much, but similar savings across government start to add up.
‘This might be the only item to come out in the public but it should not be treated in isolation. A great deal of work is going on behind the scenes.’
All government departments and statutory boards have been asked to review the way they operate services as part of the Scope of Government exercise. They have been give until the end of the year to report back but Mr Bell said some had already done so.