Government response to Public Services Committee, 1st report of Session 2022-23: Fit for the future: rethinking the public services workforce

This is the government's response, published 7 November 2022.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government states that it "agrees with all the Committee's recommendations", while its detailed responses record differing positions on some, including pensions, recruitment targets and the apprenticeship target.

• On pensions, the government "notes the Committee's recommendation" for a comprehensive review and says the objectives "will be adequately met under the current system" of public service pension schemes.
• On the Public Sector Apprenticeship Target, it does "not currently have plans to reinstate the target" but asks the public sector to continue to report annually on apprenticeship starts, and will publish that data.
• On recruitment timeframes, it would "exercise caution in setting a 'target' for all recruitment" and instead recommends requiring public bodies to set out plans for improving time to recruit and how this will be measured.
• On social care, it commits to investing "at least £500 million" in the adult social care workforce, with a universal Knowledge and Skills Framework and "hundreds of thousands of training places and qualifications" over the next 3 years.

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