Civil Service

Following its successful passage through the House of Commons in July, the Hillsborough Law (formally known as the Public Office (Accountability) Bill) is due to commence its legislative journey through the House of Lords in the coming weeks. As … [Read more...] about The Hillsborough Law: Where Are We Now?

ACOBA is dead. The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, born in 1975, died aged 50, quietly in October 2025. Few mourned, or probably even noticed, its passing. It was rarely news-worthy, except in failure, especially in its later years due … [Read more...] about Farewell to the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments

The Civil Service has a new head: Cabinet Secretary, Antonia Romeo. The first woman to be appointed. Most of the commentary on her appointment, though, has focussed on personalities, and speculation about why her predecessor Chris Wormald left … [Read more...] about Is it time for a new Cabinet Secretary?

As a humanities graduate with an interest in politics, the ‘generalist’ page on the Civil Service Fast Stream website featured heavily in my rotation of browser windows during the final year of my undergraduate degree (alongside YouTube, and the page … [Read more...] about The Demise and Rebirth of the Civil Service Generalist

Having thus taken each citizen in turn in its powerful grasp and shaped men to its will, government […] covers the whole of social life with a network of petty, complicated rules that are both minute and uniform. – Alexis de Tocqueville, The New … [Read more...] about The State of our Failings: Failed State – why nothing works and how we fix it, by Sam Freedman (Macmillan, 2024)

What honeymoon? Since the election three months ago, the new government’s faced endless Sue Gray stories, losing a conference vote about the winter fuel payment cut, the small matter of riots across the UK… And now, Taylor Swift. Specifically, … [Read more...] about Non-Executive Directors in the Civil Service: NEDs Explained

In the past few weeks, the tone of the Prime Minister’s messaging regarding the fiscal situation he and his government have inherited has been bleak. The message — which Sir Keir and his front bench have been reiterating at every opportunity — is … [Read more...] about The Autumn Statement: More Cost-Cutting in the Civil Service?

How far can, and should, a change of government extend? This question has reared its head in the early days of the new Labour Government over various appointments to the civil service and some other jobs. The most prominent had been the … [Read more...] about How much do we need to “change government”?

Introduction:  During the recent state opening of parliament, the new Labour Government confirmed their intention to enact primary legislation imposing a statutory duty of candour on all public servants and authorities. Although public authorities … [Read more...] about A Duty of Candour? The Government’s new Proposals Examined

What happens to the Civil Service when we have a change of government? What will change, and what will stay the same? A few years back I developed a model for thinking about the different, and sometimes conflicting, roles played by senior civil … [Read more...] about The Civil Service: All Change Under Labour

Last week, the new Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and the Leader of the Opposition Rishi Sunak (it still feels strange to write that) met face-to-face for the first time since the general election. In that meeting in Parliament last Tuesday, both … [Read more...] about Opposition Costings: In Need of Reform?

Last week Sir Patrick Vallance was appointed as the new Minister for Science. The appointment came as part of a popular move by the new government to bring outside expertise into departments. In Sir Patrick’s case, though, he has plenty of inside … [Read more...] about How does government make use of Chief Scientific Advisers?