Recommendation 17

In June 2019, the Cabinet Office launched a Public Appointments Diversity Action Plan (the Plan”) to focus on broadening access and improving the diversity and quality of appointees.31 The Plan set out ambitions for 50% of all public appointees to be female and 14% of all public appointments to come from ethnic minority backgrounds by 2022.32 The Cabinet Office did not meet these targets. Its Public Appointments Data Report for 2021–22 reported that 47% of all serving public appointees were female and 12% of all appointments and re-appointments were people from an ethnic minority background. However, the NAO’s analysis found that the diversity of new appointees had improved in recent years. In 2022–23 53.7% of new appointees were female and 14.6% were from an ethnic minority background. The Cabinet Office has not set aspirations beyond 2022 and does not have any plans to do so.33