Great
Britain has traditionally been a country not as bureaucratic as most
other countries. There isn't an national document of any kind, no
identity card, not even necessary for anyone to carry a driving license.
If you break a traffic law while at the wheel - even a grave
infraction, you only need to present yourself at the police station a
few days later, almost at your convenience.
In the era of Internet, formalities are made even simpler. Most procedures (permit for parking, municipal taxes, renewing passport, etc.) can all be done electronically, without the necessity of queuing in front of any office window. But the British are a nation of querers; they would automatically queue as soon as there is a second person at the same place, at the bus stop, any ticket window, banks, shops, with such stoicism and quiet patience that is remote in most Latinos. However, 12 years of Labour Government has bureaucratised the country somewhat, evident in Post Offices, renovation of driving permits, buying foreign currency, collecting unemployment pay or any state subsidies, car insurance, etc. To save money, the Labour Government of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown have been eliminating small sub-post offices, diplomatic post-bags, couriers; leaving just one branch in each district. The result is that queues are often seen extended into the street, and people have to wait half an hour to carry out the simplest procedure. With the threat of terrorism, the authorities have also increased controls, although most of these are done with electronics (vigilance cameras, scanning of email ...) that doesn't implicate paper. It increases bureaucracy just the same. Especially for foreigners not of the European Economic Community. The Government, despite considerable public resistance, is set on making it progressively obligatory, to impose on a DNA with the iris of the eye, and the latest technology of personal identification. Seems like Big Brother is spreading his talons. |
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