David Wilkinson

UK CIVIL SERVICE REFORM and INTEGRITY

REPORT ON THE ORGANISATION OF THE PERMANENT CIVIL SERVICE (1854)

* entry by competitive examination (rather than patronage)

* standardised regulation of entry standards

* securing the greatest and most varied amount of talent from the labour force

* promotion by merit (rather than by seniority)

* the trustworthiness of the entire body

1

David Wilkinson

UK CIVIL SERVICE REFORM and INTEGRITY

FULTON REPORT ON THE HOME CIVIL SERVICE (1968)

* too much based on generalist all-rounder

* specialists undervalued

* too few skilled managers (policy advice rated more highly than management)

* not enough contact with the community it served

* too little attention to personnel management and career management

2

David Wilkinson

UK CIVIL SERVICE REFORM and INTEGRITY

IMPROVING WORKFORCE PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT

Shift from control over manpower numbers to more subtle instruments of management

• The Financial Management Initiative (1986)

• The Next Steps Executive Agencies (1988)

• Continuity and Change (1994 and 1995)

• Public Service Agreements between Departments and the Treasury (1997)

• Modernising Government (1999)

• Departmental Efficiency Programmes (2004)

3

David Wilkinson

UK CIVIL SERVICE REFORM and INTEGRITY

Improving the employment cycle

• Recruitment on merit on the basis of fair and open competition overseen by independent Civil Service Commissioners

• Open performance appraisal - pay and promotion awarded according to appraised performance

• A Senior Civil Service – corporate glue across individual Government Departments

• Training – from Civil Service College to National School of Government

4

David Wilkinson

UK CIVIL SERVICE REFORM and INTEGRITY

Institutional continuity

1854“subordinate to Ministers….yet possessing sufficient independence, character, ability and experience to be able to advise, assist and, to some extent, influence, those who are from time to time set over them”

1995“the constitutional and practical role of the civil service is, with INTEGRITY, HONESTY, IMPARTIALITY and OBJECTIVITY, to assist the duly constituted Government” (The Civil Service Code)

2001“Ministers must uphold the political impartiality of the Civil Service and not ask civil servants to act in any way which would conflict with the Civil Service Code” (The Ministerial Code)

5

David Wilkinson

UK CIVIL SERVICE REFORM and INTEGRITY

Improving Integrity

* No civil service law in the UK – codes and conventions

* Independent Civil Service Commissioners oversee recruitment on merit

* Scrutiny by Parliament – Public Administration Select Committee

• Scrutiny by Civic Society – The Committee on Standards in Public Life

6

David Wilkinson

UK CIVIL SERVICE REFORM and INTEGRITY

The process never ends….

CIVIL SERVICE REFORM – DELIVERY AND VALUES (2004)

High quality leadership and professional skills

Smaller more strategic central government departments that push out resources to the front line

A Centre of Government that is a cluster of centres of excellence in key functions

Efficiency - a reduction in the 533,000 strong civil service of over 84,000 posts

7