That is why we are supposed to put good people in place to judge the correct moment to break the rules.
As an outsider with a real personal interest in this topic I think that this comment is one of the most significant in the whole debate. From tuc's many revealing posts here and elsewhere, it is obvious that, at MoD level at least, that system has been denuded of good "technical" people and the judgement of that "correct moment" has been left to managers who do not have the necessary skills to make that judgement, nor to engage in negotiation higher up the chain.
In a healthy system, the "correct moment" will be determined by a good negotiation at all levels in the chain between Government, budget holders, engineers and operators. Sometimes that correct moment is achieved by forcing the Government to cut costs elsewhere.
Like all chains it is only as strong as the weakest link and this is exactly why, over the last twenty years or so, the system has often failed and the demand for an independent authority has become irresistible. The depressing thought is that, if the MAA has the same weaknesses as the system it regulates, the situation will be as bad as tourist fears.
I fear that the FAA will rapidly suffer from the truth of this as the MAA replaces the relatively independent but not perfect Safety regulators with something far worse.
When I was a Quality Manager, one of the popular adages was, "You can't inspect quality into a job, you have to build it in". I fear that the MAA, in the present form, is an attempt to inspect safety into the system. It won't work unless, like some excellent Quality Systems, it ensures that key people at all levels are suitably qualified.