HL Deb 14 July 1983 vol 443 cc968-9WA
Lord Cullen of Ashbourne

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What progress has been made with the multi-departmental Review of Personnel Work in the Civil Service referred to in the White Paper Efficiency and Effectiveness in the Civil Service, Cmnd. 8616, and whether they will make a statement.

The Minister of State, Privy Council Office, and Minister for the Arts (The Earl of Gowrie)

The review has been completed and is being published today. Copies are being placed in the Libraries of both Houses as are the reports of the departmental teams who took part in the review. The Government welcomes the report, which points the way towards better and more cost-effective personnel work in government departments particularly by clarifying responsibilities for the management of staff and increasing delegation to line managers.

We are also placing in the Libraries of both Houses a summary of the conclusions of a separate internal review of Civil Service Management Development in the 1980s. These reports, as well as other related work in the personnel field, raise a number of important issues for follow-up action. In order to use available resources to the best effect, the Government have decided to concentrate on the following personnel priorities in the coming year:

  1. 1. Career Management.We will examine ways to extend existing succession planning arrangements for senior posts, and to improve career management for those likely to get to the top. This will involve more positive career planning, with less frequent job changes/postings and better integrated training policies. We will introduce a new course for those promoted to the Open Structure, to equip them for their role as top managers. Our more general training effort, especially for those concerned with financial management, will be reinforced.
  2. 2. Staff Appraisal and Reporting.We will tighten up reporting standards and make the basis of staff assessment more performance orientated through changes both in procedures and in the forms used for reporting and appraisal.
  3. 3. Performance Related Pay.We shall be considering ways of introducing performance related pay into the Civil Service in the light of the report of the Inquiry into Civil Service Pay.
  4. 4. Inefficiency and Poor Performance.We intend to improve the effectiveness of procedures to deal with inefficiency and poor performance, including a review of our early retirement procedures.
  5. 5. Unified Grading.We are pressing ahead with a scheme for unified grading for Civil Service grades down to assistant secretary and senior principal levels.
The Civil Service trade unions will be consulted on the implementation of these proposals.