"This is a very specific move, which has evidently been made for very specific reasons by someone who has a very specific thing they are trying to do" Nice reminder from @iandunt.bsky.social that the no.10 shake-up put a single figure in control of delivery at the centre and that is a good thing.

Explaining the day’s developments to a non-British friend:

well quite

Can I interest you in another live blog to obsessively refresh to find out the latest on the reshuffle?? *This live blog comes with expert (nerdy) analysis on how government actually works.

A new episode of Inside Briefing the @instituteforgovernment.org.uk podcast is out, with me @hannahkeenan.bsky.social @cathhaddon.bsky.social & @teodorgrama.bsky.social talking about delivery (obvs) and the Civil Service Fast Stream www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/collection/p...

The govt's graduate scheme is not working as well as it could either for the people on it or for the civil service itself. Great report by my colleague @teodorgrama.bsky.social on how to get the fast stream back on track👇

Great to see our latest @instituteforgovernment.org.uk report on the fast stream covered in The Guardian. The civil service wants the fast stream to do too much, all at once. A smaller programme that is laser-focused on developing future leaders would deliver more for the civil service.

Many organisations run graduate schemes focused on developing future leaders. That's what the fast stream has always been, at its core. It now needs to overcome the instinct to be all things to all people and rediscover that sense of purpose. Me for @civilserviceworld.bsky.social:

Lots of slightly confusing chatter around the civil service internship being restricted to people from lower socio-economic backgrounds - excellent thread from @teodorgrama.bsky.social below setting out what is actually happening!

🖥️ WEBINAR: How will Keir Starmer’s No10 reset work? Wednesday 3 September, 15:00 — 16:00 @drhannahwhite.bsky.social @alexgathomas.bsky.social @gemmatetlow.bsky.social and @hannahkeenan.bsky.social explore the PM's reshuffle of his No10 team. www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/event/online...

Moving the mission delivery unit from the Cabinet Office to No10 is I think a good thing. Looks like gov is going from potentially having lots of big figures doing delivery at the centre, to making clear Darren Jones in charge of it (with Nin Pandit reporting to him). That is useful clarity!

NEW: Keir Starmer’s No10 reshuffle must provide coherence and clarity @drhannahwhite.bsky.social & @alexgathomas.bsky.social react to the appointment of @darrenpjones.bsky.social to a big No10 job - & call for the PM to make more structural changes www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/keir...

Think 2 big risks in No.10 shake-up are (a) more big figures & no clarity on who does what means duplicative work gumming up the system, and (b) the 'change the way the state works' bit of missions gets totally cannibalised by the 'deliver the plan for change targets' bit of missions.

So some new ministerial appointments after all - including a new role created as chief sec to the PM. Darren Jones has clearly impressed at the Treasury - will he be able to get things done in No10? Or will this just be another person trying to "deliver"...

More change at No10 - another very experienced appointee. But as @hannahkeenan.bsky.social has said, bringing in good people is no substitute for fixing the structure, or having a clear vision www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/star...

I am really very certain - having also seen 4 iterations of No.10 while working in the Cabinet Office - that adding more people to the centre of government is not the solution here. If the shake-up is on, it better be a proper one.

So, that civil service speaking ban... What does the No 10 guidance actually say? I decided to use a freedom of information request to find out. Here's the response I got... gavin-freeguard.medium.com/no-10-bans-c...

NEW REPORT: how does where you live and your background affect how you do at school? - Inequalities have widened around the country and between groups of children since the pandemic - Progress depends on sharing what works to support disadvantaged pupils & cutting high absence 🧵👇

I had never worked somewhere where it was literally impossible to get promoted by being good at your job. Mind boggling really. What a recipe for unhappiness.

Civil service in a real bind atm. Incentives to move job rapidly + recruitment freezes blocking space to move = unhappy workforce. My radical Friday thought: if you don't want people (civil servants) to do stuff (move jobs at a v high rate), then don't give them incentives to do that?

I also think we're at risk of losing sight that we're talking about 200 people here. 0.04% of the civil service. An internship is as good a shout as any to improve diversity (let's see if it works), but gov needs to sort other stuff including pay and wider recruitment too. Some thoughts from IfG 👇

The numbers on socio-economic background of civil servants really don't tell a story of much change over time - v. striking compared to e.g. ethnic minority staff. (plz note different timeframes, but point holds). Alex's thread has a good breakdown of socio-economic background by grade, and more!

Happy civil service statistics release day to all who celebrate! Lots more to come from colleagues @jackworlidge.bsky.social, @hcdunlop.bsky.social, and @alexgathomas.bsky.social, but some initial thoughts on turnover, and the possibility that churn is hiding in the stats...

PODCAST 🎤 The scandal and the superinjunction @lucyfisher.ft.com joins @cathhaddon.bsky.social @gemmatetlow.bsky.social @alexgathomas.bsky.social to discuss the Afghan data leak and how the state reacts when mistakes are made. Plus: Rachel Reeves' speech and voting reforms zurl.co/Hct1f

"Appalling, shocked, but not absolutely surprised". Think Sir Nick Kay (former Ambassador to Kabul) hit the nail on the head on R4 this am talking about the Afghan data breach, the "debacle" of 2021 evac, and the "opaque, confusing, amateur" operation of relocation schemes. The context here matters.

Lots of focus right now is (very rightly) on the use - and length of - the super-injunction. But this data breach is a sobering reminder of the extent to which gov botched the 2021 evacuation from Kabul and the impacts of it having done so. www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/afgh...

We at @instituteforgovernment.org.uk have coordinated a letter in @thetimes.com today in which numerous individuals and organisations call on the government to withdraw its mistaken rules which are having a serious chilling effect on civil servants speaking in public…

The enthusiasm for a ministerial / civil service reset had to go somewhere - but unfortunately that somewhere is currently mutual frustration, all the worse for the good will and hope that both sides went into last year with. Great piece from @alexgathomas.bsky.social on the chance to turn it around

Echoed - v good piece! Not sure on MBA point, but better management (distinct from leadership) in civil service is sorely needed, and agree there are skills that can be taught. At the moment it not only isn't consistently rewarded, I think it's even sort of seen as 'uncool' in pockets of whitehall.

Guardian and Times following up our piece this morning ✅ ministers must be the primary voices for government policy ❌ civil servants should not be banned from Q&As, technical discussion or relevant events www.theguardian.com/politics/202... www.thetimes.com/article/ac4d...

It really is very hard to reconcile "teams will leave their desks behind and work on the ground with communities" (Cabinet Office / Georgia Gould announcement last week) with a diktat that bans officials from speaking at events with a Q&A.

What are we @instituteforgovernment.org.uk looking out for at next week's spending review? Our latest comment highlights six key questions 1/9 www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/spen...

As a special weekend treat @stuarthoddinott.bsky.social and I have some thoughts on public sector pay... SSRB (the independent body that advises on senior civil service pay) has got gov to commit to a proper review of SCS reward next year which is v good news - current system is dysfunctional

The excellent @teodorgrama.bsky.social bringing much-needed grounding to diversity and inclusion numbers bouncing around today. 0.07% of staff (FTE) work on EDI. 0.1% of the civil service pay bill. This is not where the big civil service savings are.

The latest speculation over the future of civil service staff numbers as a result of the spending review... There's definitely room to cut, but briefings aside, it seems that ministers are still avoiding setting a firm headcount target - which is the right approach www.ft.com/content/1311...

Outstanding translation from the LRB.

Civil service pay remits came out yesterday - headline raise of 3.25% has more behind it, and this is not the simplest of mechanics – so some decoding below, and some thoughts on what next… 10-part🧵 (sorry it's a complicated world) But first, @instituteforgovernment.org.uk primer:

4th hit on google search for "mission boards" is for the 'world's number one online retailer for darts and associated products'. Not sure if this says more about decision making at the heart of government or about outstanding SEO work from the Darts Corner team...

Can the government produce an up-to-date, reliable list of permanent secretaries? The answer published yesterday to this written question from Lord Agnew suggests not. questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-ques... Quick 🧵

Come for the excellent analysis from Sunder and colleagues on immigration, stay for civil service relocation (sorry 102 Petty France, but you're not a beautiful building) and why DOGE isn't the answer... Had lots of fun on the pod talking about decision-making models in whitehall (and outside it)

A big next step in the govt's Places for Growth strategy. With the right support, relocation can bring great benefits - see my write-up from visiting Sheffield policy campus here www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/shef...

Headline of moving 12,000 CS jobs outside of London seems to have lots of strands to it. In summary lots good, and lots to do on CS reform still! 🧵 www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Strong start to this panel with Don Moynihan describing DOGE as a disaster for US administrative capacity - looking forward to a v interesting discussion!

Great event kicking off here @instituteforgovernment.org.uk on rewiring the state. Michael Jary - former gov lead non exec director - kicks off with the case for forward-looking reform: 'populists flourish when governments fail to deliver'

Government is tweaking ministerial decision making processes (I know this sounds wonky, but bear with me) by no longer requiring 'nil returns' to write rounds - framed as "engage or get timed out". What does the change actually mean, and will it speed anything up? 🧵

A little late to this, but I thought this was an insightful convo on the politics of risk, the incentives for (or against) risk-taking that civil servants face, and on the narratives used when talking about civil service reform (all from about 20 minutes in). Would recommend a listen!

Cabinet Office cuts - big news and broadly welcome, in line with smaller, more strategic centre. Do need to watch out on “people not being replaced if they leave” – can of course be managed, but at worst can mean cuts fall in the wrong places, and/or a bureaucratic time-sink (re)justifying some jobs

Starmer asked about AI and legacy IT at liaison cttee, and repeats from last month's speech: 2,000 tech apprenticeships and doubling tech and digital roles. More interesting I think is repeating that he’s personally pushing tech transformation from the centre as the only way to get change.

Meet the IfG interns! Watch as our current interns reflect on their time at the IfG so far, what has surprised them the most and why they applied 📺 youtu.be/fqCU3xhtP0Y Applications for our 2025-26 research internships are now open - find out more www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/about-us/car...

Two (new!) pieces to make sense of the 15% civil service efficiency target, from @jackworlidge.bsky.social and @alexgathomas.bsky.social 1 - What do civil servants do? www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/wh... 2 - Analysis and what next www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/rach...