Many of my hon. Friends and I thought at the time that it was a gimmick designed to take people's eyes off the Crisis in Hand.

I believe that the agency's problems boil down to four main issues: the first is the sheer size of the agency, which means that it has conflicting cultures and all too often focuses on the Crisis in Hand at the expense of other important work; the second is its lack of transparency and accountability; the third is its inadequate IT systems; and the fourth is the policy and legal framework within which it has to operate.