Rishi Sunak plans to combat Civil Service ‘groupthink’ by making staff spend a year in industry
All senior civil servants will be encouraged to spend a year away from Whitehall if Rishi Sunak becomes prime minister as part of a drive to challenge government “groupthink”.
The former chancellor would also link pay more tightly in the Civil Service to performance rather than longevity, according to a new Tory leadership campaign announcement.
He would also save the fast stream, which takes in new graduates, from being cut and accelerate plans to move some government bodies out of London.
The flurry of policy announcements form part of Mr Sunak’s proposal to “shake-up” the Civil Service to improve delivery.
Mr Sunak said: “As chancellor I saw parts of the British Civil Service at its best, delivering world-class Covid support schemes in record time. But the bloated post-Covid state is in need of a shake-up so I will create a sharper, leaner Civil Service.
'Accountable to the British people'
“I’ll press ahead with cuts to back-office Civil Service headcount, recruiting and retaining the brightest and best. I’ll strengthen civil servants’ experience beyond Whitehall, allow ministers to bring in more external expertise, and bring in performance pay so we have a truly Rolls-Royce service delivering for and accountable to the British people.”
Opinion polls of Tory members continue to put Mr Sunak behind Ms Truss in the Tory leadership race, with time running out before the result announcement on Sep 5.
On Monday Alun Cairns, the former Welsh secretary, became the third Tory MP to publicly switch endorsements from Mr Sunak to Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary.
Mr Cairns argued that Ms Truss was the “best placed” candidate to keep the UK together. Hustings will be held in Scotland on Tuesday and Northern Ireland on Wednesday.
One of Mr Sunak’s announcements is an attempt to give civil servants more experience outside Whitehall before they progress to senior levels.
Time outside London
A note outlining the proposals said Mr Sunak would “create an expectation that all senior civil servants should spend at least a year of their career in secondments or external placements in industry or outside Whitehall before further promotion”.
Examples given included relaxing the requirements to write business cases for every secondment and requiring more senior civil servants to spend time outside London.
The note said that the drive would help “tackle civil service groupthink and deepen departments’ understanding of business”.
A campaign source said Mr Sunak had received a warm reception from Tory members when making calls for wider experiences in Whitehall during the campaign.
He also vowed to continue Boris Johnson’s drive to cut the headcount, but made clear he would save the fast stream – the Civil Service’s most prestigious graduate scheme.
