Her Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as just the
Home Civil Service, is the permanent
bureaucracyBureaucracy is the collective organizational structure, procedures, protocols, and set of regulations in place to manage activity, usually in large organizations and government...
of Crown employees that supports
Her Majesty's GovernmentHer Majesty's Government is the government of the United Kingdom. Under the Constitution of the United Kingdom, executive authority notionally lies with the monarch but is exercised in practice by her ministers...
- the government of the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, comprised of a
CabinetIn the politics of the United Kingdom, the Cabinet is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of government ministers.H.M...
of
ministersA minister is a politician who holds significant public office in a national or regional government. Senior ministers are members of the cabinet.-Origin:...
chosen by the
prime ministerThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom and the Head of Her Majesty's Government...
, as well as the
devolved administrationsDevolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a Sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level...
in
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
(the
Welsh Assembly GovernmentThe Welsh Assembly Government was firstly an executive body of the National Assembly for Wales, consisting of the First Minister and his Cabinet from 1999 to 2007....
) and
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
(the Scottish Government).
Under the principle of
responsible governmentResponsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability which is the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy...
, ministers are accountable to the
SovereignSovereign may refer to:*Sovereignty, a philosophical concept or state*Sovereign *Sovereign Hill, Victoria, Australia*Sovereign Bank, banking institution in the United States*Sovereign wealth fund, type of investment funds...
(
The CrownThe Crown is a corporation sole that in certain countries of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as in any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof, represents the legal embodiment of executive government...
- the monarch of the United Kingdom) and the
Parliament of the United KingdomThe Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. It alone has parliamentary sovereignty, conferring upon it ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories...
(and, in the devolved administration in Scotland, the
Scottish ParliamentThe Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood" , is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
) in administering the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
. However, their
executive}}In the study of political science the executive branch of government has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the democratic idea of the separation of powers .In many...
decisions are implemented by Her Majesty's Civil Service, the British
civil serviceThe term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
. Civil servants are employees of the Crown and not Parliament. Civil servants also have some traditional and
statutoryA statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs a country, state, city, or county. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. The word is often used to distinguish law made by legislative bodies from case law and the regulations issued by...
responsibilities which to some extent protect them from being used for the political advantage of the party in power. Senior civil servants may be called to account to Parliament.
In general use, the term civil servant in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
does not include all
public sectorThe public sector is a part of the state that deals with the delivery of goods and services by and for the government, whether national, regional or local/municipal....
employees; although there is no fixed legal definition, the term is usually defined as "a servant of the Crown working in a civil capacity who is not the holder of a political (or judicial) office; the holder of certain other offices in respect of whose tenure of office special provision has been made; [or] a servant of the Crown in a personal capacity paid from the
Civil List-United Kingdom:In the United Kingdom the Civil List is the sum that covers most expenses associated with the Sovereign performing of his or her state duties, including those for staffing, state visits, public engagements, official entertainment, and upkeep of the Royal...
". As such, the Civil Service does not include government ministers (who are politically appointed), members of the
British Armed ForcesThe armed forces of the United Kingdom, known as His/Her Majesty's Armed Forces or sometimes the British Armed Forces, and sometimes legally the Armed Forces of the Crown, encompasses a navy, an army, and an air force...
,
police officerA police officer is a warranted employee of a police force. Police officers are generally responsible for apprehending criminals, maintaining public order, and preventing and detecting crimes...
s,
local governmentThe pattern of local government in England is complex, with the distribution of functions varying according to the local arrangements. Legislation concerning local government in England is decided by the Parliament and Government of the United Kingdom, because England does not have a devolved...
officials, members of the
National Health ServiceThe National Health Service is the name commonly used to refer to the publicly-funded health care services in Great Britain. In England the name National Health Service is used without further qualification whereas the services in Scotland and Wales are known as NHS Scotland and NHS Wales...
, or staff of the
Royal HouseholdThe Royal Household in all the early medieval monarchies of Western Europe formed the basis for the general government of the country. In the modern period in Europe, royal households have become increasingly separate from government, where they still exist....
. As of 2007, there are approximately 532,000 (499,000
full-time equivalentFull-time equivalent is a way to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or a student's enrollment at an educational institution. An FTE of 1.0 means that the person is equivalent to a full-time worker, while an FTE of 0.5 signals that the worker is only half-time...
) civil servants in the Home Civil Service.
There are two other administratively separate civil services in the United Kingdom. One is for
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
(the Northern Ireland Civil Service); the other is the
foreign serviceDiplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel enjoy diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to other countries...
(
Her Majesty's Diplomatic ServiceHer Majesty's Diplomatic Service is the diplomatic service of the United Kingdom, dealing with foreign affairs, as opposed to the Home Civil Service, which deals with domestic affairs...
). The heads of these services are members of the Permanent Secretaries Management Group.
Establishment
Offices of state grew in
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and later the United Kingdom, piecemeal. Initially, as in other countries, they were little more than secretariats for their leaders, who held positions at
courtThe court of a monarch, or at some periods an important nobleman, is a term for the extended household and all those who regularly attended on the ruler or central figure...
. In the 18th century, in response to the growth of the
British EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height it was...
and economic changes, institutions such as the
Office of WorksThe Office of Works was established in the English Royal household in 1378 to oversee the building of the royal castles and residences. In 1832 it became the Works Department within the Office of Woods, Forests, Land Revenues, Works and Buildings...
and the
Navy BoardThe Navy Board is today the body responsible for the day-to-day running of the British Royal Navy. Its composition is identical to that of the Admiralty Board of the Defence Council of the United Kingdom, except that it does not include any of Her Majesty's Ministers.From 1546 to 1831, the Navy...
grew large. Each had its own system and staff were appointed by purchase or patronage. By the 19th century, it became increasingly clear that these arrangements were not working.
In 1806, the Honourable East India Company established a college, the
East India Company CollegeThe East India Company College was from February 1806 to January 31st 1858 the college of the British East India Company .The College provided general and vocational education for youths of sixteen to eighteen nominated by EIC Directors to writerships in the EIC overseas civil service...
, near
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. The purpose of this college was to train administrators; it was established on recommendation of officials in
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
who had seen the
imperial examinationThe Imperial examinations in Imperial China determined who among the population would be permitted to enter the state's bureaucracy. The Imperial Examination System in China lasted for 1300 years, from its founding during the Sui Dynasty in 605 to its abolition near the end of the Qing Dynasty in...
system. The civil service, based on examination similar to the Chinese system, was advocated by a number of Englishmen over the next several decades .
A permanent, unified and politically neutral civil service, in which appointments were made on merit, was introduced on the recommendations of the Northcote-Trevelyan report of 1854, which also recommended a clear division between staff responsible for routine ("mechanical") work, and those engaged in policy formulation and implementation in an "administrative" class. The report was well-timed, because bureaucratic chaos in the
Crimean WarThe Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire on one side and an alliance of the British Empire, France, the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia on the other. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
promptly caused a clamour for the change. A
Civil Service Commission-Chairmen:*John Houghton MHK, 2004-date*George Waft MLC, 1996-2004*Clare Christian MLC, 1981-1982*Noel Cringle MLC, 1992-1996* Walter Gilbey, years unknown...
was accordingly set up in 1855 to oversee open recruitment and end patronage, and most of the other Northcote-Trevelyan recommendations were implemented over some years. This system was broadly endorsed by Commissions chaired by Playfair (1874), Ridley (1886), MacDonnell (1914), Tomlin (1931) and Priestley (1955).
The Northcote-Trevelyan model remained essentially stable for a hundred years. This was a tribute to its success in removing corruption, delivering public services (even under the stress of two world wars), and responding effectively to political change.
Lord Fulton's committee report
Following the Second World War, however, demands for change again grew. There was a concern (illustrated in
C. P. SnowCharles Percy Snow, Baron Snow CBE was an English physicist and novelist, who also served several important positions in the UK government...
’s
Strangers and BrothersStrangers and Brothers is a series of novels by C. P. Snow, published between 1940 and 1974. They deal - amongst other things - with questions of political and personal integrity, and the mechanics of exercising power....
series of novels) that technical and scientific expertise was mushrooming, to a point at which the "good all-rounder" culture of the administrative civil servant with a classics or other arts degree could no longer properly engage with it: as late as 1963, for example, the Treasury had just 19 trained economists. The times were, moreover, ones of keen respect for technocracy, with the mass mobilisation of war having worked effectively, and the French National Plan apparently delivering economic success. And there was also a feeling which would not go away, following the war and the radical social reforms of the 1945 Labour government, that the so-called "
mandarinsA Mandarin was a bureaucrat in imperial China, and also in the monarchist days of Vietnam where the system of Imperial examinations and scholar-bureaucrats was adopted under Chinese influence....
" of the higher civil service were too remote from the people. Indeed, between 1948 and 1963 only 3% of the recruits to the administrative class came from the working classes, and in 1966 more than half of the administrators at under-secretary level and above had been privately educated.
Lord FultonJohn Scott Fulton, Baron Fulton was a British university administrator and public servant. In education, he served as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Wales and of the University of Sussex, and was chair of the Universities Central Council on Admissions between 1961 and 1964...
’s committee reported in 1968. He found that administrators were not professional enough, and in particular lacked management skills; that the position of technical and scientific experts needed to be rationalised and enhanced; and that the service was indeed too remote. His 158 recommendations included the introduction of a unified grading system for all categories of staff, a Civil Service College and a central policy planning unit. He also said that control of the service should be taken from the Treasury, and given to a new Department, and that the “fast stream” recruitment process for accessing the upper echelons should be made more flexible, to encourage candidates from less privileged backgrounds.
Into
HeathSir Edward Richard George Heath, KG, MBE , often known as Ted Heath, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1974 and leader of the Conservative Party from 1965 to 1975...
's
Downing StreetDowning Street is the street in London, England, which for over two hundred years has contained the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office held by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the...
came the
Central Policy Review StaffThe Central Policy Review Staff , nicknamed the "Think-Tank", was an independent unit within the Cabinet Office of the United Kingdom tasked with developing long term strategy and co-ordinating policy across government departments...
(CPRS), and they were in particular given charge of a series of Programme Analysis and Review (PAR) studies of policy efficiency and effectiveness.
But, whether through lack of political will, or through passive resistance by a mandarinate which the report had suggested were “amateurs”, Fulton failed. The Civil Service College equipped generalists with additional skills, but did not turn them into qualified professionals as
ENAThe École Nationale d'Administration , one of the most prestigious French schools , was created in 1945 by Charles de Gaulle to democratise access to the senior civil service. It is now entrusted with the selection and initial training of senior French officials...
did in France. Recruits to the fast stream self-selected, with the universities of
OxfordThe University of Oxford , located in the UK city of Oxford, is the oldest surviving university in the English-speaking world and is regarded as one of the world's leading academic institutions. Although the exact date of foundation remains unclear, there is evidence of teaching there as far back...
and
CambridgeThe University of Cambridge , located in the City of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom, is the second oldest university in the English-speaking world and the fourth oldest in Europe...
still producing a large majority of successful candidates, since the system continued to favour the tutorial system at
OxbridgeOxbridge is a composite, or portmanteau, of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge in England, and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior intellectual or social status...
. The younger mandarins found excuses to avoid managerial jobs in favour of the more prestigious policy postings. The generalists remained on top, and the specialists on tap.
Margaret Thatcher's government
Margaret ThatcherMargaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher LG, OM, PC, FRS served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She is the only woman to have held either post....
came to office in 1979 believing in
free marketA free market describes a market without economic intervention and regulation by government except to regulate against force or fraud. The terminology is used by economists and in popular culture. A free market requires protection of property rights, but no regulation, no subsidization, no single...
s as a better social system in many areas than the state: government should be small but active. Many of her ministers were suspicious of the civil service, in light of public choice research that suggested public servants tend to increase their own power and budgets.
She immediately set about reducing the size of the civil service, cutting numbers from 732,000 to 594,000 over her first seven years in office. Derek Rayner, the former chief executive of Marks and Spencer, was appointed as an
efficiency expertEfficiency expert may refer to:*Ergonomics expert*Business efficiency expert; see also, Layoffs*The Efficiency Expert, a 1921 novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs-See also:...
with the Prime Minister's personal backing; he identified numerous problems with the Civil Service, arguing that only three billion of the eight billion
poundThe pound sterling , often simply called the pound, is the currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands and British Antarctic Territory...
s a year spent at that time by the Civil Service consisted of essential services, and that the "mandarins" (senior civil servants) needed to focus on efficiency and management rather than on policy advice. In late 1981 the Prime Minister announced the abolition of the Civil Service Department, transferring power over the Civil Service to the Prime Minister's Office and
Cabinet OfficeThe Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The department was formed in December 1916 from the secretariat of the Committee of Imperial Defence under Sir Maurice Hankey, the first...
.
Meanwhile
Michael HeseltineMichael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, CH, PC is a British businessman, Conservative politician and patron of the Tory Reform Group....
had introduced a comprehensive system of corporate and business planning (known as MINIS) first in the
Department of the EnvironmentThe Secretary of State for the Environment was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Department of the Environment . This was created by Edward Heath as a combination of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Public Building and Works on 15...
and then in the
Ministry of DefenceThe Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
.
A
Financial Management Initiative was launched in September 1982 (
Efficiency and Effectiveness in the Civil Service (Cmnd 8616)) as an umbrella for the efficiency scrutiny programme and with a wider focus on corporate planning, efficiency and objective-setting. But by the mid 1980s, although cuts had been made, transformation had not happened. In February 1988
Robin IbbsSir John Robin Ibbs KBE , known as Sir Robin Ibbs, is an English banker. He was Chairman of Lloyds Bank from 1993 to 1997 and of Lloyds TSB Group PLC from 1995 to 1997.-Life:...
, recruited from
ICIImperial Chemical Industries is a British chemical subsidiary of a Dutch conglomerate and one of the largest chemical producers in the world. It is based in Slough, UK. It produces paints and speciality products...
in July 1983 to run the Efficiency Unit (now in No. 10), published his report
Improving Management in Government: The Next Steps. This envisaged a new approach to delivery featuring clear targets and personal responsibility. Without any statutory change, the managerial functions of Ministries would be hived off into
Executive AgenciesAn executive agency, also known as a next-step agency, is a part of a government department that is treated as managerially and budgetarily separate in order to carry out some part of the executive functions of the United Kingdom government, Scottish Government, Welsh Assembly or Northern Ireland...
, with clear Framework Documents setting out their objectives, and whose chief executives would be made accountable directly (in some cases to Parliament) for performance. Agencies were to, as far as possible, take a commercial approach to their tasks. However, the Government conceded that agency staff would remain civil servants, which diluted the radicalism of the reform. The approach seems somewhat similar to the Swedish model, though no influence from Sweden has ever been acknowledged.
The Next Steps Initiative took some years to get off the ground, and progress was patchy. Significant change was achieved, although agencies never really achieved the level of autonomy envisaged at the start. Meanwhile, the accountability of the remaining civil servants began to be improved. MINIS-style business planning became standard, and delegated budgets were introduced, so that individual managers were for the first time held fully accountable for meeting objectives, and for the resources they used to do so. The Priestley Commission principle of pay comparability with the private sector had been abandoned in February 1982.
Performance-related payPerformance-related pay is money paid to someone relating to how well he or she works at the workplace. Car salesmen, production line workers, for example, may be paid in this way, or through commission....
began in December 1984, was built on thereafter, and continues to this day.
Next Steps may always have had the ultimate goal of privatisation. Certainly, the focus on smaller, more accountable, units revived the keenness of Ministerial interest in the perceived efficiencies of the private sector. Already in the late 1980s, some common services once set up in the expectation of economies of scale, such as the
Property Services AgencyThe Property Services Agency was an agency of the United Kingdom government, in existence from 1972 to 1993. Its role was to “provide, manage, maintain, and furnish the property used by the government, including defence establishments, offices, courts, research laboratories, training centres and...
or the Crown Suppliers, were being dismantled or sold off. Next, shortly after Thatcher left office, in July 1991, a new programme of market-testing of central government services began, with the White Paper
Competing for Quality (Cm 1730). Five-yearly or three-yearly policy and finance reviews of all agencies and other public bodies were instituted, where the first question to be answered (the “prior options exercise") was why the function should not be abolished or privatised. Strategic contracting-out also took place, where the Government did not wait to examine whether a private sector solution would be more efficient, but went ahead with it on the principle that the private sector was always more efficient and more responsive. For example, the Government's internal
Central Computer and Telecommunications AgencyThe Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency was a UK government agency providing computer and telecoms support to Government departments.-History:...
(CCTA), a civil-service staffed consultancy which monitored and directed internal government IT projects was closed down as it was leading the fight to retain internal expertise. This has led to most IT services within the UK Government being managed by private companies; the US firm
EDSHP Enterprise Services, is a global business and technology services company, previously known as Electronic Data Systems , headquartered in Plano, Texas that defined the outsourcing business when it was established in 1962 by Ross Perot...
now has a large proportion of the total, which some have suggested gives it the capacity to manipulate pricing, or even be a strategic threat to UK interests. In November 1991 the
Private Finance InitiativeThe Private Finance Initiative , developed initially by the Australian and United Kingdom governments, is a method to provide financial support for "public-private partnerships" between the public and private sectors...
was launched, and by November 1994 the
Chancellor of the ExchequerThe Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called The Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
had referred to it as ‘the funding mechanism of choice for most public sector projects’. In 1995 the decision was taken to privatise the Chessington Computer Centre, HMSO, the Occupational Health & Safety Agency and Recruitment & Assessment Services.
The Citizen’s Charter
It was believed with the Thatcher reforms that efficiency was improving. But there was still a perception of carelessness and lack of responsiveness in the quality of public services. The government of
John MajorSir John Major, KG, CH, ACIB , is a former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and former Leader of the Conservative Party. He held these posts from 1990 to 1997....
sought to tackle this with a Citizen’s Charter programme. This sought to empower the service user, by setting out rights to standards in each service area, and arrangements for compensation when these were not met. An Office of Public Service and Science was set up in 1992, to see that the Charter policy was implemented across government.
By 1998, 42 Charters had been published, and they included services provided by public service industries such as the health service and the railways, as well as by the civil service. The programme was also expanded to apply to other organisations such as local government or housing associations, through a scheme of “Chartermark” awards. The programme was greeted with some derision, and it is true that the compensation sometimes hardly seemed worth the effort of claiming, and that the service standards were rarely set with much consumer input. But the initiative did have a significant effect in changing cultures, and paradoxically the spin-off Chartermark initiative may have had more impact on local organisations uncertain about what standards to aim for, than the parent Citizen’s Charter programme itself.
Minister for the Civil Service
The position of 'Minister for the Civil Service' is not part of the Civil Service as it is a political position which has always been held by the
Prime Minister of the United KingdomThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom and the Head of Her Majesty's Government...
, currently
Gordon BrownJames Gordon Brown is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party. Brown became Prime Minister in June 2007, after the resignation of Tony Blair and three days after becoming leader of the governing Labour Party...
.
Head of the Home Civil Service
The highest ranking civil servant is the Head of the Home Civil Service who is also the
Cabinet SecretaryA Cabinet Secretary is almost always a senior official who provides services and advice to a Cabinet of Ministers. In many countries, the position can have considerably wider functions and powers, including general responsibility for the entire civil service...
and Permanent Secretary of the Cabinet Office. The position holder is accountable for ensuring that the Civil Service is equipped with the skills and capability to meet the everyday challenges it faces and that civil servants work in a fair and decent environment. He also chairs the
Permanent Secretary Management Group and the
Civil Service Steering Board which are the main governing bodies of the Civil Service.
| Name |
Dates |
Notes |
| Sir Warren Fisher Sir Warren Fisher was a British civil servant.Fisher was born in Croydon, London on 22 September 1879. He was educated at the Dragon School , Winchester College and Hertford College, Oxford University...
|
1919-1939 |
|
| Sir Horace Wilson |
1939-1942 |
|
| Sir Edward Bridges |
1945-1956 |
|
| Sir William Armstrong William Armstrong, Baron Armstrong of Sanderstead GCB, MVO, PC was a British civil servant and banker.The son of William Armstrong and Priscilla Hopkins, he was born in Clapton in London. Armstrong was educated at Bec School in Tootingat and Exeter College, Oxford...
|
1968-1974 |
|
| Sir Douglas Allen Douglas Albert Vivian Allen, Baron Croham GCB, is a British politician and civil servant.The son of Albert John Allen, Douglas Allen was only one when his father was killed in action during the First World War...
|
1974-1977 |
|
| Sir Robert Armstrong Robert Temple Armstrong, Baron Armstrong of Ilminster GCB, CVO , son of the musician Sir Thomas Armstrong, is a British life peer and former civil servant....
|
1979-1988 |
The position of Head of the Home Civil Service was combined with that of Cabinet Secretary A Cabinet Secretary is almost always a senior official who provides services and advice to a Cabinet of Ministers. In many countries, the position can have considerably wider functions and powers, including general responsibility for the entire civil service...
in 1981 |
| Sir Robin Butler |
1988-1998 |
|
| Sir Richard Wilson Richard Thomas James Wilson, Baron Wilson of Dinton GCB is a cross bench member of the British House of Lords.Richard Wilson was born in Glamorgan. He was educated at Radley College and Clare College, Cambridge , where he awarded the degree of Master of Law...
|
1998-2002 |
|
| Sir Andrew Turnbull Andrew Turnbull, Baron Turnbull, KCB, CVO was the head of Her Majesty's Civil Service and Cabinet Secretary between 2002 and 2005 when he was succeeded by Sir Gus O'Donnell....
|
2002-2005 |
|
Sir Gus O'DonnellSir Augustine Thomas O'Donnell, KCB, born 1 October 1952, known as Sir Gus O'Donnell , is the Cabinet Secretary, the highest ranking civil servant in the British Civil Service...
|
2005-Present |
|
Permanent Secretaries Management Group (PSMG)
The PSMG consider issues of strategic importance to the Civil Service as a whole, as well as providing corporate leadership where a single position is required across all government departments. It is chaired by Head of the Home Civil Service and consists of all
first permanent secretariesThe Permanent Secretary, in most departments officially titled the Permanent Under-Secretary of State , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
and other selected permanent secretaries and directors general. This includes
Nigel HamiltonSir Nigel Hamilton, KCB is the Head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service.He became a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 2008 New Year's Honours List....
, the current Head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, and
Peter RickettsSir Peter Ricketts, KCMG , is the Permanent Under Secretary of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, a senior civil servant in the United Kingdom....
, the current Head of the Diplomatic Service.
Civil Service Steering Board (CSSB)
The CSSB was established in 2007 and meets monthly, Its role is to enhance the performance and reputation of the Civil Service by focusing on specific areas delegated to it by PSMG. The CSSB is chaired by Head of the Home Civil Service.
Civil Service Commissioners
The Civil Service Commissioners are not civil servants and are independent of Ministers, they are appointed directly by the Crown under Royal Prerogative and they report annually to The Queen.
Their main role is regarding the recruitment of civil servants. They have the responsibility to ensure that all civil servants are recruited on the “principle of selection on merit on the basis of fair and open competition.” They maintain a recruitment code on the interpretation and application of that principle, and approve any exceptions to it. They audit recruitment policies and practices within the Civil Service and approve all appointments to the most senior levels of the Civil Service.
The Commissioners also hear and determine appeals in cases of concern about propriety and conscience raised by civil servants under the Civil Service Code which cannot be resolved through internal procedures.
Northern Ireland has a separate Commission called the
Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland which does the same role.
Political neutrality
The Home Civil Service is a politically neutral body, with the function of impartially implementing the policy programme of the elected government.
Like all servants of the
CrownThe Crown is a corporation sole that in certain countries of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as in any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof, represents the legal embodiment of executive government...
, civil servants are legally barred from standing for election as Members of Parliament or any other political office. Also, under regulations first adopted in 1954 and revised in 1984, members of the Senior Civil Service (the top management grades) are barred from holding office in a
political partyA political party is a political organization that seeks to attain and maintain political power within government, usually by participating in electoral campaigns...
or publicly expressing controversial political viewpoints, while less senior civil servants at an intermediate (managerial) level must generally seek permission to participate in political activities. The most junior civil servants are permitted to participate in political activities, but must be politically neutral in the exercise of their duties.
All civil servants are subject to the Official Secrets Act, meaning that they may not disclose sensitive government information. Since 1998, there have also been restrictions on contact between civil servants and lobbyists; this followed an incident known as "Lobbygate", where an undercover reporter for
The ObserverThe Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In about the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a left-liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-History:The...
, posing as a
businessA business is a legally recognized organization designed to provide goods and/or services to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, most being privately owned and formed to earn profit that will increase the wealth of its owners and grow the business itself...
leader, was introduced by a lobbyist to a senior
Downing StreetDowning Street is the street in London, England, which for over two hundred years has contained the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office held by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the...
official who promised privileged access to government ministers. The
Committee on Standards in Public LifeThe Committee on Standards in Public Life is an advisory non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom Government.The committee was established in 1994 by Prime Minister John Major in response to concerns that conduct by some politicians was unethical - for example, allegations of taking cash...
, also created in 1998, is responsible for regulation of contacts between public officials and lobbyists.
One criticism of Civil Service neutrality in recent years has centred around the increasing influence of politically-appointed "special advisers" in government departments, which is alleged to have reduced the political neutrality of public administration. In 2000, then-Prime Minister
Tony BlairAnthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
was criticised for appointing 20 special advisers (compared to eight under his predecessor
John MajorSir John Major, KG, CH, ACIB , is a former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and former Leader of the Conservative Party. He held these posts from 1990 to 1997....
) and for the fact that the total
salaryA salary is a form of periodic payment from an employer to an employee, which may be specified in an employment contract. It is contrasted with piece wages, where each job, hour or other unit is paid separately, rather than on a periodic basis....
cost of special advisers across all government departments had reached £4 million. In 2001,
Stephen ByersStephen John Byers is a British Labour politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Tyneside North since 1992 and has served in the Cabinet as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the...
, then
Secretary of State for TransportThe Secretary of State for Transport is the member of the cabinet responsible for the British Department for Transport. The role has had a high turnover as new appointments are blamed for the failures of decades of their predecessors...
, was forced to resign because of the actions of his special adviser
Jo MooreJo Moore served as a British special adviser and press officer . She was embroiled in scandal while working as advisor to Stephen Byers, the Transport, Local Government and Regions Secretary....
, who instructed a departmental civil servant, Martin Sixsmith, that September 11th 2001 would be "a good day to bury bad news"; this was seen as inappropriate political manipulation of the Civil Service. In particular, under the administration of
Tony BlairAnthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
, the influence of two
Downing StreetDowning Street is the street in London, England, which for over two hundred years has contained the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office held by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the...
special advisers,
Jonathan PowellJonathan Powell served as chief of staff to British Prime Minister Tony Blair from his election in 1997 until his resignation in 2007. The official Downing Street website described his job as having "direct responsibility for leading and co-ordinating operations across Number 10". Despite his low...
and
Alastair CampbellAlastair John Campbell served as Director of Communications and Strategy for the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2003...
, both of whom were given formal power over Downing Street civil servants, provoked widespread criticism.
Civil Service Code
A current civil service code was introduced on 6 June 2006 to outline the core values and standards expected of civil servants. The core values are defined as
integrity,
honesty,
objectivity, and
impartiality. A key change from previous values is the removal of
anonymity within the core values. The Code includes an independent line of appeal to the Civil Service Commissioners on alleged breaches of the Code.
Civil Service Management Code
The Civil Service Management Code (CSMC) sets out the regulations and instructions to departments and agencies regarding the terms and conditions of service of civil servants. It is the guiding document which gives delegation to civil service organisations, from the Minister for the Civil Service, in order for them to make internal personnel policies.
Civil Service Commissioners' Recruitment Code
The Civil Service Commissioners' Recruitment Code is maintained by the Civil Service Commissioners and is based on the
principle of selection on merit on the basis of fair and open competition.
Osmotherly Rules
The
Osmotherly RulesThe Osmotherly Rules, named for their author, a civil servant in the Machinery of Government Division of the British Cabinet Office named E.B.C. Osmotherly, are a set of internal guidelines specifying how government departments should provide evidence to Parliamentary select committees...
set out guidance on how civil servants should respond to Parliamentary select committees.
Structure
The structure of the home civil service is divided into organisations and grades. Each
Secretary of StateIn the United Kingdom, a Secretary of State is a Cabinet Minister in charge of a Government Department ....
has a
DepartmentHer Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom contains a number of Ministers and Secretaries of State. These members of the Cabinet are supported by civil servants in Ministerial Departments.- Types of Government Department:...
which has
executive agenciesAn executive agency, also known as a next-step agency, is a part of a government department that is treated as managerially and budgetarily separate in order to carry out some part of the executive functions of the United Kingdom government, Scottish Government, Welsh Assembly or Northern Ireland...
and non-departmental public bodies subordinate to it.
Grading schemes
The grading system used in the civil service has changed many times, and the current structure is made up of two schemes. All senior grades (Deputy Director / Grade 5 level and above) are part of the "Senior Civil Service", which is overseen by the
Cabinet OfficeThe Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The department was formed in December 1916 from the secretariat of the Committee of Imperial Defence under Sir Maurice Hankey, the first...
on behalf of the civil service as a whole. Below the Senior Civil Service, each individual department/executive agency can put in place its own grading and pay arrangements, provided they still comply with the central civil service pay and review guidance.
Miscellaneous
WhitehallWhitehall is a road in Westminster in London, England. It is the main artery running north from Parliament Square, towards traditional Charing Cross, now at the southern end of Trafalgar Square and marked by the statue of Charles I, which is often regarded as the heart of London...
is the central
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
street on which many ministries sit. Whitehall is therefore often used as a metonym to refer to the executive branch of Government, and particularly the civil service (somewhat as in earlier days European foreign ministries were referred to by their addresses as "the
Quai d'OrsayThe Quai d'Orsay is a quai in the VIIe arrondissement of Paris, part of the left bank of the Seine, and the name of the street along it. The Quai becomes the Quai Anatole France east of the Palais Bourbon, and the Quai de Branly west of the Pont de l'Alma.The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs is...
", "
WilhelmstraßeThe Wilhelmstrasse is a street in the center of Berlin, the capital of Germany. Between the mid 19th century and 1945, it was the administrative centre, first of the Kingdom of Prussia and then of the unified German state, housing in particular the Reich Chancellery and the Foreign Office...
" or "the Sublime Porte"). This contrasts with
WestminsterWestminster is an area of Central London, within the City of Westminster. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
, which is used similarly to refer to the Houses of Parliament, and "
Downing StreetDowning Street is the street in London, England, which for over two hundred years has contained the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office held by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the...
" or simply "No. 10" which is used for the Prime Minister's office.
The
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
television series
Yes MinisterYes Minister is a satirical British sitcom written by Sir Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn that was first transmitted by BBC television and radio between 1980 and 1984, split over three seven-episode series. The sequel, Yes, Prime Minister, ran from 1986 to 1988...
and
Yes Prime Minister are a parody of the Civil Service and its relationship with government ministers. The portrayal is a caricature, but many insiders recognise a considerable element of truth in it, and though the Civil Service reforms since the 1980s have made the portrayal of powerful civil servants like
Nigel HawthorneSir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne CBE was an English actor, perhaps best remembered for his role as Sir Humphrey Appleby, the Permanent Secretary in the sitcom Yes Minister and the Cabinet Secretary in its sequel, Yes, Prime Minister.-Early life:Hawthorne was born in Coventry, England, the son of Agnes...
's
Sir Humphrey ApplebySir Humphrey Appleby, GCB, KBE, MVO, MA . He was played by Sir Nigel Hawthorne. In Yes Minister, he is the Permanent Secretary for the Department of Administrative Affairs . In the last episode, "Party Games" of Yes, Minister, he becomes Cabinet Secretary, the position he retains during Yes, Prime...
increasingly out-of date, the programme continues to have many legions of loyal fans, including ex-Prime Minister
Margaret ThatcherMargaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher LG, OM, PC, FRS served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She is the only woman to have held either post....
.
See also
- Departments of the United Kingdom Government
Her Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom contains a number of Ministers and Secretaries of State. These members of the Cabinet are supported by civil servants in Ministerial Departments.- Types of Government Department:...
- Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service
Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service is the diplomatic service of the United Kingdom, dealing with foreign affairs, as opposed to the Home Civil Service, which deals with domestic affairs...
- Northern Ireland Civil Service
- Public administration
Public administration can be broadly described as the development, implementation and study of branches of government policy. The pursuit of the public good by enhancing civil society, ensuring a well-run, fair, and effective public service are some of the goals of the field.Public administration...
- Permanent Secretary
The Permanent Secretary, in most departments officially titled the Permanent Under-Secretary of State , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
- Private Secretary
In the United Kingdom government, a Private Secretary is a civil servant in a Department or Ministry, responsible to the Secretary of State or Minister...
- Cabinet Office
The Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The department was formed in December 1916 from the secretariat of the Committee of Imperial Defence under Sir Maurice Hankey, the first...
- Public and Commercial Services Union
The Public and Commercial Services Union is the sixth largest trade union in the United Kingdom. Most of its members work in government departments and other public bodies although some work for private companies.- Membership and organisation :...
(PCS)
- FDA
External links