§ Mr. Brothertonasked the Minister for the Civil Service how many civil servants in all categories there are at present; and how this figure compares with February 1974.
§ Mr. Charles R. MorrisAt 1 January 1979, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 733,000 civil servants. There are no figures available centrally for February 1974, but in January586W of that year there were 694,000 civil servants, and at 1 March, 697,000.
There is not a direct comparison between the 1979 figures and those for 1974. In January 1976 the 21,000 staff of the Manpower Services Commission and its agencies were included in the total and the size of the Civil Service on that basis was then 745,000, since when Civil Service numbers have decreased by 12,000 reflecting planned programmes of staff reductions, greater emphasis on general efficiency measures and shortfall in recruitment.