Yet again an outsider from the civil service machine has been hired to stir up the sleepy mandarins of Whitehall. Will this new appointment end up like so many before, shunted into the sidings?
For the appointment of ex-Kent CC chief executive Katherine Kerswell as the new director of civil service reform already follows a year of prevarication and foot-dragging in Whitehall about whether such a post should go ahead at all. This time a year ago the Commons Public Administration Committee was highly critical of the failure to find a candidate to lead the change programme expressing concern that 'it has not proved possible to recruit a director general to drive reform from the centre of Whitehall'. And it said this 'may suggest a lack of commitment to fundamental restructuring at senior official level.'
The Cabinet Office had apparently first advertised internally to fill the role,had no luck and then decided to downgrade the post by dividing it into two less senior positions at Senior Civil Service 2 executive director level. The PASC was not happy with this. Its report last September, Change in government: the agenda for leadership, stung Whitehall into readvertising the position, this time externally, last February 2012. A shortlist was drawn up, a very suitable candidate with a local government and Treasury background was offered the job only for this candidate to change their mind and withdraw. The process began again, this time ending in success.
Katherine Kerswell is certainly experienced and her departure from Kent reflected in no way on her abilities although her substantial pay-off has garnered unwelcome attention. More challenging will be helping to drive through a huge change programme, as outlined in the Cabinet Office Civil Service Reform Plan published in June. Katherine will remember the short-lived Office of Public Sector Reform led by Dr Wendy Thomson and set up by Tony Blair. Whitehall has form in politely but firmly sidelining outside change agents. Katherine would be well advised to spend some time over the next few weekend revisiting back DVDs of Yes Minister.
Wednesday 12 September 2012
Tuesday 4 September 2012
What does the reshuffle mean so far?
As far as the public is concerned the Cabinet reshuffle is about a bunch of nonentities replaced by another bunch of nonentities. Some might make reference to deckchairs and the Titanic. Either way it doesn't suggest any dramatic shift in policy direction mainly because there isn't much of a policy from whch to shift in the first place.
Ken Clarke's role is curious. Will he have a pass to get into the Treasury? What does this mean for Osborne's role? Is Ken Clarke there to placate the Lib Dems who are getting nervous that Osborne's Plan A is simply knackering the economy? Is Clarke going to put pressure on the Treasury to resist siren calls for tougher spending cuts, especially in local government?
It makes sense to keep Gove and Duncan Smith in their jobs. Whatever one's views of Gove he has been a one-man whirl of reform, far ahead of Cameron's own wishy-washy reform agenda. There is a real sense of direction of travel at the education department. Similarly Duncan Smith has made welfare reform his particular agenda and to move him now, just as highly complex welfare changes with the Universal Credit are being launched, would be madness.
What is much more puzzling is Lansley's replacement at health, Jeremy Hunt. He has one heck of a brief and is hardly a household name to be leading such a massive change in the NHS.
But unlike other PMs, Cameron has a very difficult task. Most governments are coalitions, of right and left. Cameron has to placate the right and left of his own party as well as those of the Liberal Democrats. Furthermore the appetite by the rank and file of both parties to carry on the Coalition is considerably less than those of its leaders. With its raison de'etre, reducing the deficit, on the rocks, the Coalition is drifting badly and it is hard to see the new line-up making much difference.
Ken Clarke's role is curious. Will he have a pass to get into the Treasury? What does this mean for Osborne's role? Is Ken Clarke there to placate the Lib Dems who are getting nervous that Osborne's Plan A is simply knackering the economy? Is Clarke going to put pressure on the Treasury to resist siren calls for tougher spending cuts, especially in local government?
It makes sense to keep Gove and Duncan Smith in their jobs. Whatever one's views of Gove he has been a one-man whirl of reform, far ahead of Cameron's own wishy-washy reform agenda. There is a real sense of direction of travel at the education department. Similarly Duncan Smith has made welfare reform his particular agenda and to move him now, just as highly complex welfare changes with the Universal Credit are being launched, would be madness.
What is much more puzzling is Lansley's replacement at health, Jeremy Hunt. He has one heck of a brief and is hardly a household name to be leading such a massive change in the NHS.
But unlike other PMs, Cameron has a very difficult task. Most governments are coalitions, of right and left. Cameron has to placate the right and left of his own party as well as those of the Liberal Democrats. Furthermore the appetite by the rank and file of both parties to carry on the Coalition is considerably less than those of its leaders. With its raison de'etre, reducing the deficit, on the rocks, the Coalition is drifting badly and it is hard to see the new line-up making much difference.
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