Source · Select Committees · Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
Eighth Report - Where Civil Servants Work: Planning for the future of the Government’s estates
Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
HC 793
Published 27 July 2023
Recommendations
3
Acknowledged
Clarify ministerial commitments for working outside London, or issue revised, realistic regional ambitions.
Recommendation
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 …
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Government Response Summary
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 locations, but that the planning of Cabinet meetings outside of London must balance benefits with ministerial availability and the use of taxpayers' money. For security reasons, they do not announce when and where these meetings will take place.
17
Acknowledged
Publish understanding of how official location influences policy advice and development
Recommendation
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 …
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Government Response Summary
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 as possible. They state a wider analysis of its impact on policy making will be carried out when the Programme is more mature.
Conclusions (2)
1
Conclusion
Acknowledged
Para 26
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 Summary
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.
10
Conclusion
Acknowledged
Para 74
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 Summary
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 recruited in the right locations.