Last year the cabinet secretary’s job was split up, creating three vacancies; and now the third job – that of Cabinet Office permanent secretary – has been filled. Joshua Chambers interviews Richard Heaton

While spending budgets are slashed and taxes rise, the government is owed nearly £25bn by UK citizens and businesses. Stuart Watson reports from a Civil Service World round table on how to call in those debts

By the time of the next election, citizens will have to register to vote using an entirely new system. Joshua Chambers examines the government’s plans for individual voter registration, and the challenges they present

The Ministry of Defence’s new permanent secretary, Jon Thompson, tells Matt Ross how he intends to turn this most complex of Whitehall departments into a more professional operation – and dig it out of its financial hole

An NHS hospital employee says that reforms are creating a culture of fear about jobs, affecting morale and increasing stress-related illnesses among staff

As the Parliament’s halfway point looms, Tim Fish and Ben Willis examine the Cabinet Office’s progress against the tasks it was set in May 2010 as part of the Coalition’s Programme for Government.

As dangers facing the UK develop, so must the means of preventing attack. Joshua Chambers looks at the threats to UK cyber security, and the methods being used to defend Britain’s public and private sectors.

Two years before the budgetary squeeze gripped the civil service, a collapse in the Land Registry’s finances forced it into a painful period of restructuring. Its chief Malcolm Dawson tells Matt Ross about life in a post-cuts world

The marathon effort to put on the greatest show in the world almost hit the skids when security firm G4S failed to deliver on its promises. Joshua Chambers explores the lessons for contract management and major projects

A plea for sensible policy-making – and more cash

A paediatric epilepsy nurse reveals her worries about job cuts and the power of managers over clinicians.

The civil service has long experience of turning political ends into policy means, finding safe routes for the ship of state; but now the government wants it to use a new set of navigation tools. Joshua Chambers takes soundings.

Former crown rep chief Bill Crothers, Whitehall’s new procurement boss, is bringing together the government’s buyers and its commercial leads. Matt Ross asks him how he’ll cut spending and rejuvenate procurement reform

Twice before, the Public Administration Select Committee has called for reforms to the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments – but to little avail. Now it’s having another go: Colin Marrs reports on its latest assault.

Cafcass once helped kids by resolving parental disputes, says one staffer. But now it’s all targets and pointless protection work.

The Ministry of Defence says it’s balanced its budget, and can now afford to honour all its spending commitments. But as Joshua Chambers reports, this has come at a cost both to personnel and to equipment programmes.

The Ministry of Defence wants its staff to use social media – but there’s always a danger that unguarded use will create a security risk. Suzannah Brecknell reports on how the MoD can both have its virtual cake, and eat it.

For Foreign Office chief Simon Fraser, his relationships around Whitehall are as crucial as those with Washington. His main mission is to increase trade, he tells Matt Ross, and that means working with a host of other departments

Across government, information technology and procurement professionals are contemplating a dramatic shift in the way IT services are managed. Mark Smulian listens in at a round table on the concept of ‘tower services’

Pitched against the transport department and the train and bus companies, public transport users can get a raw deal. Stuart Watson meets the Passenger Focus chief, who stands up for travellers in departments and boardrooms

Soon after the 2010 election, the coalition beefed up departmental boards and recruited a set of powerful non-executive directors. Joshua Chambers meets Lord Browne, the ‘lead NED’ reforming Whitehall from the inside

Having toured Whitehall applying her unique brand of troubleshooting to various social issues, Louise Casey is now leading a flagship payment-by-results scheme involving all her former employers. Joshua Chambers meets her

Forged in the struggle between pragmatic reformers and small-state radicals, the Civil Service Reform Plan has now emerged. Matt Ross sets out the key goals, and gathers explanations from the plan’s three main architects

A housing officer explains how the affordable homes shortage makes her job harder, and why she’s not looking forward to the arrival of Universal Credits