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Tag Archives: Special Advisers
An increasingly costly resource: are special advisers value for money?
In recent weeks questions have been raised about the involvement of the Prime Minister’s special adviser, Dominic Cummings, in decision-making in relation to the government’s response to the Coronavirus pandemic. This is not the first time that questions have been … Continue reading
“To advise, warn and deliver”: Ken Clarke on the proper role of the civil service
The Conservative MP, Ken Clarke, is one of the most experienced MPs currently sitting in the House of Commons. His Ministerial career has spanned the Thatcher, Major and Cameron years, and has seen him occupy many of the seats around the Cabinet table, … Continue reading
Sharing the blame: tensions over Civil Service reform
I mentioned in an earlier post that proposed Civil Service reforms were likely to cause tensions between the Government and senior civil servants. The reforms which are being developed by the Cabinet Office Minister, Francis Maude, include proposals to allow Ministers to … Continue reading
Do advisers advise while Ministers decide?
When questioned recently about the influence of one of his special advisers, the Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove, replied with the well worn aphorism ‘advisers advise, Ministers decide’. In an interesting article in The Guardian this week, Fiona Millar examines the … Continue reading