News

Despite a change of approach in Whitehall, civil servants in Northern Ireland will continue to pursue ‘spend to save’, Dr Malcolm McKibbin, head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS), has told CSW.

Communities and Local Government Committee chair Clive Betts has known Bob Kerslake for years, and doesn’t doubt his commitment to localism – but some departments are less enthusiastic, he tells Joshua Chambers

As head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, Dr Malcolm McKibbin has a very challenging job. However, as he tells Joshua Chambers, the main challenge has evolved from ending the Troubles to stimulating business growth

A care manager says cuts can drive useful change – but uncertainty prevents it

The civil service has been a front runner in treating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGB & T) workers fairly. Same sex adoption and parenting leave is available, same sex partners are recognised in pensions, and there are LGB & T staff networks.

Government must remember the cost of gathering public sector data before it gives it away in its ‘open data’ initiative, Ordnance Survey (OS) chief executive Vanessa Lawrence has told CSW.

A third of civil servants who would be expected to know about the Public Services Network (PSN) have never heard of it, while a further third have heard of it but know little about it, according to CSW research conducted in conjunction with BT.

The Public Services (Social Value) Bill has been passed by Parliament. It says that civil servants commissioning services must give consideration to economic, social and environmental wellbeing.

Shadow chancellor Ed Balls said at Queen Mary University last week that granting the Bank of England independence in 1997 “increased the power of the Treasury, because it allowed the Treasury to say: ‘Well, I see you want to make that decision, prime minister, and I can see why you’d want to do that, but I’m not sure the independent Bank of England will wear it.”

HMRC has changed the role of its second permanent secretary in an attempt to eliminate the problems that dogged the tenure of departing incumbent Dave Hartnett.

Departments have spent billions on shared services schemes but have failed to reap the benefits, with projects often over-budget and over-customised, the National Audit Office says in a report today.

IT industry spokeswoman Sureyya Cansoy has warned that a combination of ‘agile’ project management and localism risks “fragmenting” IT projects, leading to problems with system compatibility.

The NHS could host commercial advertising on its website in the near future, a deputy director at the Department of Health said on Monday at a seminar held by CSW in conjunction with the Post Office.

Permanent secretaries’ objectives are likely to be expanded, with responsibility for cross-cutting government agendas – such as encouraging economic growth – included in their appraisal systems, cabinet secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood has said. Meanwhile, Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude told CSW that permanent secretaries and ministers should be accountable to Parliament for the policies they helped to implement even when they have moved departments or retired.

When things go wrong in government, a ministerial scapegoat is often sought. Joshua Chambers examines the convention of ministerial responsibility – and asks whether it still holds the power to unseat secretaries of state.

£34

www.malts.com

Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, London 

www.royalcourttheatre.com

Until 5 April

The IT industry likes the government’s direction of travel, its trade association’s public sector director Sureyya Cansoy tells Matt Ross – but businesses will be happier still when the coalition’s activity turns into real progress

The coalition has seized on the work of David Halpern and his Behavioural Insights Team with a vengeance. As Becky Slack finds out, the techniques of ‘nudge’ are set to change policymaking in every corner of government

Almeida Theatre, Islington

www.almeida.co.uk

Until 10 March

Different targets and better joint working between health and social care agencies would improve the ambulance service, says this week’s Frontliner

When I joined the CSW team in June 2010, the Efficiency and Reform Group had just been created, the civil service had 43,000 more employees, and IT contract renegotiations were but a glint in Francis Maude’s eye. Since then the civil service has – while developing a brand new set of policies – experienced wholesale reforms in fields such as pensions, redundancy pay, training and HR, and the ERG has delivered £8.75bn of savings. Even if you don’t agree with everything that’s being done, the pace of change is impressive.

Christopher Graham, the information commissioner, has criticised the “nonsense” from some civil servants who claim that the Freedom of Information Act (FoIA) threatens good government.

Vince Cable has ignored the advice of the Commons’ Business, Innovation and Skills Committee and appointed Professor Les Ebdon as director of fair access to higher education.