Graham Steele: Why politicians don't like admitting mistakes

Why is it so hard for a politician to say, "Sorry, I was wrong"?

After all, it would be a miracle if our elected leaders got everything right. They're regular folks who get placed in positions of significant responsibility and complexity.

The provincial budget is over $10 billion and covers a breathtaking variety of topics health, education, community services, roads and justice to name only the largest. Who would expect that every single decision is going to be perfect?

Of course, politicians make mistakes.

The real test of their character is not whether they make mistakes, but what they do about it when it happens.

Unfortunately, the political culture reinforces an attitude of "never apologize, never explain." It's not what we teach our kids. It's not how we act towards those we love.

Yet in politics it's normal.

"Never apologize, never explain" has been the mantra of successful leaders like Jean Chrtien and Stephen Harper. New politicians watch and copy.

The glare of the spotlight

Until you've stood in the political spotlight, you can't understand the glare. When you're on stage it feels humiliating to admit a mistake. It also feels like an admission of weakness.

It doesn't help that the opposition, the media and the public jump all over any admission of error. The politician is accused of flip-flopping, incompetence, or spinelessness. The reality is that someone can change their mind, or correct an error, without being guilty of any of these things. But the accusations still fly.

So maybe some of the unhealthy culture is our responsibility, too. What if we ratcheted down the reaction?

The backlash whenever someone admits error explains, in part, why the art of the personal apology has been lost in the Nova Scotia legislature. I noticed a change even in my time there, which started in 2001.

Almost all apologies these days are so hedged with qualifications and justifications that they're meaningless.

Premiers and prime ministers also don't like to admit their ministers have made mistakes. Not only is the premier held accountable for the error, the premier is held accountable for having appointed an error-prone minister in the first place.

Ministerial responsibility

The unwillingness of our politicians to take personal responsibility also leads to the weakening of a fundamental tenet of parliamentary government: ministerial responsibility.

At the heart of ministerial responsibility is a deal. Civil servants are selected on merit and they agree to serve faithfully whoever is elected. In return, cabinet ministers agree to be answerable for what happens inside their department.

In short, the minister takes the hit if something goes wrong. If the error is serious enough, the minister resigns. It's nothing personal, just good government.

Unfortunately, the fabric of ministerial responsibility is weakening. It's all linked to the unwillingness of our political masters to show the slightest weakness. If a mistake occurs these days and it hits the news, ministers scramble to point the finger.

Saving face

When politicians won't admit a mistake, the fix can get distorted in order to let them save face.

Instead of doing the right thing, the government does whatever makes the politician look best. Image rules.

This tendency is especially true when it comes to the premier or prime minister. In modern politics, the leader's image is critically important. They cannot admit doubt, or uncertainty, or error.

Needless to say, this creates an impossible bubble around our political leaders, and a willingness by party insiders to do anything to protect them.

The film tax credit controversy has highlighted, again, how difficult it is for a politician to admit they made a mistake and it was a mistake.

It could all be fixed, so quickly and easily, if the premier or finance minister were to say: "We think our plan and our budget are pretty good, but we got this detail wrong. We're going to leave the film tax credit alone until we have a better handle on it."

That would be a real breakthrough in our politics.