Civil service and all things effective government @instituteforgov - ex-Cabinet Office, Defra, Dept of Health civil servant
Joined October 2010
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501 Photos and videos
May 30
Serving civil servants giving their views like this to a political party not in government makes me feel very uncomfortable
But good luck to Danny Kruger as he works out what to do to fix the centre of govt. He’s wrong and right in different ways
instituteforgovernment.org.u…
May 30
Last weekend I set out Reform UK’s plans to fix the centre of government (preparingforgovernment.com/f…). This policy was informed by hundreds of disillusioned civil servants responding to my call for insights on life in Whitehall. This is some of what they said. Thread:
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May 30
(Until tonight I have not posted on Twitter for a long time. And my life has not been materially worse. Let’s see whether it’s worth re-engaging)
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🧵Always enjoy reading @instituteforgov's Whitehall Monitor.
All change in Westminster this year, but in Whitehall? Not so much. It just goes to show there's nothing new under the sun. Some things which struck me:
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Alex Thomas retweeted
16 Jan 2025
Whitehall Monitor 2025, our annual data-driven stocktake of the civil service, is out today.
It examines the civil service that Starmer’s government inherited – and how Labour’s mission-led approach fits in with Whitehall’s ways of working instituteforgovernment.org.u…
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Alex Thomas retweeted
14 Dec 2024
PODCAST 🎙️ Appetite for disruption
@jesstud joins @DrHannahWhite @AlexGAThomas
@tompope0 to discuss Pat McFadden's public sector plans.
Plus: Rachel Reeves hunt for efficiency savings and
@cassia_rowland discusses fixing the prisons crisis
instituteforgovernment.org.u…
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12 Dec 2024
Overall looks like a good move - slimming down & refocusing the Cabinet Office. Chimes with the critique in our Centre Commission - though we’d go further!
The “odds and ends” are v important and must be done well, but separating them out is worth it for a more effective centre
12 Dec 2024
EXCL: Cabinet Office will cut 400 jobs to achieve savings & streamline dept
Perm sec Cat Little unveiled plans to officials today, incl proposals to hive off some “odds & ends” to separate arm’s length body
This may include security vetting, govt property agency, recruitment
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11 Dec 2024
I agree with @HenryNewman
11 Dec 2024
To get the civil service back to its 2016 level would require a reduction of 133,000.
Instead Labour claim to be contemplating cutting just 10,000 heads.
That would maintain 98% of current levels and still be 34% larger than in 2016.
😱
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11 Dec 2024
Whether the civil service gets smaller or not, the government needs a full workforce strategy - to which they’ve now committed 👍👍👍
And it’s good if ministers seek efficiencies without setting a perverse-incentive-creating headcount target
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11 Dec 2024
Cuts will (even should) reduce numbers but crude headcount targets have not worked
I wrote more about how to cut the civil service here
instituteforgovernment.org.u…
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10 Dec 2024
JOB ALERT
We have a fantastic researcher role coming up in the @instituteforgov civil service team
If you’re interested please consider applying. It’s a brilliant place to work and to contribute to a vital set of debates
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10 Dec 2024
Nothing less than the complete rewiring of the British state, in fact
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9 Dec 2024
Thoughts on today’s Pat McFadden speech - @nehal_davison and me
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Alex Thomas retweeted
6 Dec 2024
Britain’s civil service, which employs half a million people, is both demoralised and in need of radical reform econ.st/3VoQIA0 👇
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5 Dec 2024
Our @instituteforgov reaction to today’s Plan for Change
A positive development, but challenges ahead on targets/milestones, including about the money
And a shot across the bows for the civil service
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5 Dec 2024
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5 Dec 2024
Not that complicated by the standards of most diagrams in government! (Useful to put them down like this though)
5 Dec 2024
What does Keir Starmer’s plan for government look like?
It’s complicated.
There are three foundations, five missions and six milestones
Most of them interlink
I’ve had a shot at putting it down on paper
It’s far from definitive but gives you an idea of where we are
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5 Dec 2024
Entertaining to be quoted in this
5 Dec 2024
One of the most striking themes in Keir Starmer’s speech today — his frustration with Whitehall
For weeks I’ve been asking Labour people what they make of their time in government and one sentiment comes up again and again:
“Dominic Cummings was right”
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