Lord Butler of Brockwell (CB)

My Lords, it will not surprise your Lordships that the subject of my noble friend’s debate caught my eye. As my noble friend Lady Falkner has recognised, the new Cabinet Secretary has initiated a review, at the centre of which are the subjects in her Motion—that is, political impartiality and the delivery of public services. Cynics may say, “We’ve seen all that before. We know that those are the ideals, but we haven’t seen much improvement”. However, I really believe that Dame Antonia Romeo means it, and I am very confident that the review that she has initiated will have an effect for good on the Civil Service. It seems to me that recent history has demonstrated how damaging to effective government are leaks to the media of disharmony at its centre. In this respect, the new Administration has made a better start. The absence of leaks in the period leading up to the formation of the Government was impressive. I think that the review initiated by Dame Antonia has also started well. However, I want to add this—and I think I am recognising what previous speakers have already said. The concept of an impartial Civil Service, which followed the Northcote-Trevelyan report 150 years ago, is in greater danger than ever before. Times have changed but the ideal should be maintained. Like any organisation, our Civil Service needs to be continuously improved, particularly as times are changing so quickly, but this is most likely to be achieved in an atmosphere of mutual respect, not one of mutual recrimination. The summary dismissal of a series of the most senior civil servants, the noble Lord, Lord Sedwill, Sir Tom Scholar, Sir Olly Robbins and the noble Lord, Lord Wormald, was unprecedented, and in my view quite wrong. None of these people was incompetent. In the period ahead, as has been said, the Civil Service faces further threats, not least from the policies of Reform UK, enunciated by its spokesman, Danny Kruger. Where these policies are aimed at improving the efficiency and accountability of the Civil Service, I support them. Where they are aimed at politicisation of the Civil Service, I cannot. I believe that a politically impartial Civil Service is a feature of our government which we would lose at our cost. I therefore hope that Dame Antonia’s review produces a successful outcome, and that the apparently harmonious relationship between political appointees and civil servants, which I see in the new Administration, continues and flourishes.