17 September 2004
Public service reform is being undermined by a civil service inherently resistant to change and lacking in specialised skills, according to the Demos think-tank.
Its report, The dead generalist, calls on the government to abandon the model of the 'gifted generalist' in the senior civil service and replace it with directly appointed chief executives who will ensure government policies are delivered effectively.
The report's author, Ed Straw, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, attacks the 'cult of independence' in the civil service and argues that the post of permanent secretary has outlived its usefulness because continuity between governments is no longer especially desirable.
He asserts that civil service appointments should be driven by the need to translate electoral promises into reality and that the relationship between minister and civil servant should mirror that between chair and chief executive in industry.
Straw said: 'Imagine becoming chief executive of a large organisation and being told that the entire management are "independent"; you have no control over recruitment, promotion and pay; and the senior staff operate as a separate organisation with a mind of its own. Modern organisations do not and cannot work like that.
'Today government's role is mostly about service delivery. Ministers are accountable to the electorate for delivery of improved services, and yet they appoint almost no one to oversee it,' he added.
The September 13 report calls for separate organisations to regulate ministerial behaviour and manage the measurement of indicators such as unemployment and crime figures and hospital waiting lists.
Whitehall should also be subject to a regime comparable to local government's Comprehensive Performance Assessment.
A Cabinet Office spokesman said the report was an interesting contribution to the debate, but that Straw had underestimated the amount of change that is already under way to create a service that will be respected as much for its ability to deliver as for its policy skills.
'[Straw] also understates the risks of his proposals for public confidence in the civil service and to established and well-respected systems of accountability, including parliamentary democracy,' he added.
MPs slam MoD over Iraq equipment failures
The Ministry of Defence has been severely criticised by senior MPs for its failure to ensure that soldiers serving in Iraq had vital protective equipment.
The Commons' Public Accounts Committee has condemned as 'utterly unacceptable' the department's ineffective logistics systems. Soldiers serving on the front line did not have access to life-saving items, such as enhanced combat body armour and nuclear, biological and chemical detection and protection systems, the MPs found.
In their report on British military activities in Iraq (Operation Telic), published on September 16, they say they are especially concerned that armoured vehicles, including the Challenger 2 tank, had not been fitted with viable chemical defence filters.
Committee members express dismay that the MoD 'still lacks a credible consignment tracking facility', despite spending £550m on new computerised systems since the first Gulf war. They conclude that it is a major reason why equipment did not reach frontline troops in time.
The report is scathing on the ministry's apparent inability to address its failings. 'The repeated identification of important logistics lessons since 1991 suggests fundamental shortcomings in the department's ability to learn and act upon lessons from previous experience.'
Committee chair Edward Leigh, commenting after the report's publication, was forthright in his criticisms. 'This is utterly unacceptable. The Ministry of Defence must take the necessary steps to identify gaps in provision, and how these may be best addressed in time for any future operations,' he said.
'It is high time too… that the MoD put in place an effective consignment tracking system so commanders on the ground can quickly locate important supplies.'
Graduates flock to PwC and civil service
The civil service is now the second most popular employer, according to a survey to determine the top 100 organisations new graduates would like to work for.
Whitehall came second in popularity only to PricewaterhouseCoopers among the 15,915
final-year students questioned. It finished well ahead of the NHS, which was the second most attractive public sector institution and came fifth overall.
Careers in the civil service, and elsewhere in the public sector, are becoming increasingly attractive because of the opportunities for swift career progression, training and professional development, and a narrowing of the gap with private sector salaries.
Carl Gilleard, chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters, said: '[Public sector employers] have obviously learnt best practice from the private sector and have got better at marketing their strengths. But they are also providing excellent training and competing on better terms,' he said.
Other public sector organisations to make it into the top ten were the BBC and the army, at sixth and seventh.
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