OR in Government

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you very much for inviting me here today. Like many of you no doubt, I sought some inspiration for my visit to Canterbury from Geoffrey Chaucer. I found out that Reeve's Tale takes place in Trumpington! Was this a hint of sort of talk you were expecting? At least, as Reeve says, It's God's truth that I am going to tell! However, I think that a more appropriate model, if that's right expression, might be Canon and his Yeoman. They are both late arrivals, who don't overtake company until most have already told their tales! When I asked my staff for some information about OR, they appalled me with such terms as 'scientific methods' and 'rigorous quantitative analysis'. But I brightened up again when they spoke of the management of large systems of men, machines, materials and money, in Government and elsewhere. These are words that are more familiar to me.