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Select Committee · Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee

Planning for the future of the Government’s estates

Status: Closed Opened: 17 Oct 2022 Closed: 31 Oct 2023 9 recommendations 10 conclusions 1 report

In 2018, the Government unveiled an ambitious estates strategy, aiming to make substantial savings, encourage regional growth, and diversify the culture of the Civil Service. This inquiry will examine progress, led by the Cabinet Office and Government Property Agency, in delivering against this strategy and learning from previous policies on estates rationalisation and Civil Service …

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Eighth Report - Where Civil Servants Work: Planning for the… HC 793 27 Jul 2023 19 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

4 items
1 Conclusion Eighth Report - Where Civil Servants Wo… Acknowledged

Relocation targets for civil service posts lack clear rationale and consistent reporting of progress.

The Government appears to be making progress towards its target of relocating 22,000 posts by 2030, and steady progress towards a target of reducing the proportion of Senior Civil Service posts based in London to 50% of the total. However, a number of issues with the framing and reporting of …

Government response. The government acknowledges the committee's inquiry and highlights progress made through the Places for Growth and Government Hubs programmes. They state they support enhanced transparency and have accepted recommendations where appropriate.
3 Recommendation Eighth Report - Where Civil Servants Wo… Acknowledged

Clarify ministerial commitments for working outside London, or issue revised, realistic regional ambitions.

The Government has made high-profile commitments that Ministers would spend significant working time in regional offices—though without clearly explaining what value this was meant to deliver. To date, Ministers have not been able to meet this commitment, making flying visits rather than basing themselves outside London for significant amounts of …

Government response. The government acknowledges the difficulty of balancing ministerial duties in London with the commitment to spend time in regional offices. They state that ministers have visited staff in central Government hubs and that facilities are available for ministers in key …
10 Conclusion Eighth Report - Where Civil Servants Wo… Acknowledged

Civil service relocation strategy poses risks of two-tier culture and mislocated roles

Previous governments which implemented similar programmes of civil service relocation acknowledged the risks and potential disadvantages–for example, significant upfront costs of relocation and redundancy packages, plus a loss of efficiency and coherence from moving policy roles far away from Whitehall. The Government is doing things differently this time–for example, generally …

Government response. The government states that departments determine which roles should be recruited in London, and review the roles that can be relocated, with a strong bias towards moving senior roles. They say departmental workforce planning ensures the right roles are being …
17 Recommendation Eighth Report - Where Civil Servants Wo… Acknowledged

Publish understanding of how official location influences policy advice and development

The Government’s claims for Places for Growth imply that it expects there to be an appreciable difference in mindset between policy officials employed in London and those in regional offices, and a corresponding change to policy. However, the responsible Minister was not able to pinpoint how policy advice drafted in …

Government response. The government says Places for Growth will give people from a wider range of backgrounds the opportunity to work in the Civil Service and that the composition of the Civil Service should be as representative of the people it serves …

Oral evidence sessions

4 sessions
Date Witnesses
28 Mar 2023 Alex Burghart MP · Cabinet Office, Ravi Chand CBE · Cabinet Office, Steven Boyd MBE · Government Property Agency View ↗
21 Feb 2023 Amy Leversidge · The FDA Trade Union, Garry Graham · Prospect, Geoff Lewtas · Public and Commercial Services Union, Martin Kelsey · Public and Commercial Services Union View ↗
31 Jan 2023 Alex Thomas · Institute for Government, Jordan Urban · Institute for Government, Professor Tony Travers · The LSE School of Public Policy View ↗
13 Dec 2022 Kate Caulkin · The National Audit Office, Ruth Kelly · The National Audit Office, Siân Jones · The National Audit Office View ↗

Correspondence

2 letters
DateDirectionTitle
23 May 2023 To cttee Letter from Alex Burghart MP on follow up evidence after the 28 March oral evid…
28 Mar 2023 To cttee Letter from Alex Burghart MP, Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office on the Govern…