Top civil servants have been warned that they could be fired if they fail to save taxpayer money. This is part of a new government initiative to improve the performance of the civil service.
Senior leaders will be held personally responsible for achieving savings in their departments. Those who do well could be rewarded, while those who fail to hit targets could be dismissed.
Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden said he wants to create a more "agile and modern" state. He said the public "must be confident we are spending every pound of their money well".
Government departments have been ordered to find efficiency savings worth 5% of their budgets as part of a spending review set to finish in June. Back in December, a government source said this could see 10,000 jobs cut.
The Conservatives also attempted to improve performance in the civil service. Conservative paymaster general John Glen said high performance in Whitehall was not "recognised, rewarded or incentivised properly", and suggested linking civil service pay to performance.
5 Comments
Africa
If the government is serious about saving money, they should start by cutting back on their own wasteful spending, not targeting public servants.
Muchacho
This initiative is not an attack on public servants, but rather a way to improve the performance of the civil service as a whole.
Coccinella
This is an outrageous attack on public servants who are already struggling to do their jobs with limited resources.
ZmeeLove
This initiative is a good example of how the government can learn from the private sector.
Pupsik
Civil servants who are not meeting performance expectations should be given the opportunity to improve, but ultimately those who fail to do so should be held accountable.