The Civil Service

1. The Civil Service Britain prides itself on a politically impartial Civil Service. This, in theory, is because the Civil Service Commissioners responsible for selecting civil servants are answerable to the Queen, and not to the Prime Minister. The ethical quality of the Civil Service has been generally outstanding, higher than expected in business or industry.

2. According to Peter Hennessy, a leading commentator on Britain’s bureaucracy, there are 8 qualities of the Civil Service: 1. Probity –there is no ‘hand in the till’ 2. Care with evidence and respect for reason 3. A willingness to speak truth to those in power (i.e. ministers) but a readiness to carry out ministerial instructions to the contrary, if overruled 4. An appreciation to the wider public interest when there is danger that the policy of central government is made without due care 5. Equity and fairness in treatment of the public 6. A careful concern for the law 7. A constant concern for Parliament, its needs and procedures –i.e. no lying and no misleading 8. A constant concern for democracy

3. However valuable such qualities might be, they don’t guarantee an effective Civil Service. During the 1980s there was a growing debate concerning the ability of the Civil Service to respond to the demands of effective government. The problems of the Civil Service as the challenges approach, and as it nears the end of the century, are basically twofold: - to cope more effectively and efficiently with the same overload which is felt by ministers and parliamentarians, and - to divest itself of the ‘institutional mentality’ which can so easily determine policy

4. In 1989 an entirely new policy, entitled ‘The Next Steps’ was introduced under the direction of Margaret Thatcher herself. The only efficient answer to management problems, ‘the Next Steps’ argued, was to evolve a new structure whereby many management decisions, previously referred to the Parliament Secretaries, could be delegated to a new body of managers concentrate on policy matters

5. Breaking up large ministries into such executive agencies is extremely complex. Further delegation of financial and managerial powers is planned, freeing senior civil servants from responsibility for the smaller details of departmental spending and for developing management skills at lower levels. The present system largely excludes non-Civil Service entry into Whitehall’s higher ranks.

6. The challenge to Political Parties The changing character of the electorate obviously has long-term implications for Britain’s political parties. It was the political centre which first recognized the basic changes taking place. By the end of 1980s, an analysis of surveys carried out over more than 10 years showed class loyalties slowly giving way to a new system of values.

7. Three broad categories of voter • First there are those concerned with survival and security, who value the virtues of loyalty and solidarity; They are generally people on lower incomes who vote labour; They are about 30 percent of population and are in decline.

8. Three broad categories of voter • Second There those ambitious for success, wealth or power, for whom outward appearances are important; They are ‘self-made’, natural Conservative voters; They are about 34 percent of the population, but also in decline.

9. Three broad categories of voter • Third There are those concerned with personal development and individual freedom, with a tendency towards strong moral motivation, i.e. concerned with world ecology, nuclear power or weapons, or civil liberties; Such people constitute 36 percent of the population and are increasing.

10. With the succession of John Major as Prime Minister in 1990, the Conservative Party began quietly to retreat from Thatcherite emphasis of the 1980s in order to attract the growing third category of voters sought also by Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

11. In the early 1990s the policies of the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat Parties were coming closer again. It could be said that the differences between the right of Labour through the Liberal Democrats to the left of the Conservatives, were less than the differences within either the Labour or Conservative Parties.

12. The Constitution • In the 18th century, as a result of the 1688 political settlement, Britain was more democratic than any other European state and maintained its reputation as a democratic model well into the 20th century. • Increasing doubts have been voiced since the later 1970s and throughout the 1980s concerning the state of Britain’s democracy.

13. In part this has been the result of an apparently more authoritarian government during the 1980s fulfilling the fears of many that Britain did indeed endure an ‘elective dictatorship’. • One reason for this belief was that the Conservative government had all been voted to power by a minority of the electorate, yet had reshaped the country according to that minority view.

14. For critics of the present arrangement, the idea of the Crown in Parliament enshrined in the 1688 settlement no longer works since either the Queen nor the Lords can effectively oppose a government which commands a majority in the Commons. • By law even the courts cannot challenge the legislation of Parliament.

15. In 1988 a group of distinguished politicians, lawyers, academics, writers and journalists, including Lord Scarman, a Britain’s most able lawyer, began to campaign under the title ‘Charter 88’ (harking back to the charter of 1688) for wide-ranging reforms. • They called for a Bill of Rights, to protect individual liberties, and for a written constitution to define and limit the powers of Parliament.

16. In 1990 the European Court of Justice made an historic decision, that British court must suspend any Act of Parliament which imperils the rights of citizens guaranteed by European Community law. ‘Charter 88’ also called for the reform of the House of Lords, to make it a democratic and non hereditary chamber, and for the introduction of proportional representation to replace the current and distorting first-past-the-post electoral system.

17. A reform of the House of Lords is likely to be a major topic of debate in the 1990s, since Labour is pledged to reform it, making it an elected body. Because of the government’s majority in the Commons since 1979, the Lords have emerged as the principal forum where changes have been made to government legislation.

18. With regard to proportional representation, the call for its introduction has become increasingly insistent since the 1980s. As a result: • a government was supported by only a minority of the electorate, but enjoying an overwhelming majority in the Commons; • reflects the frustration of a large number of people who cast their vote for a negative reason, to keep one or other of the two major parties out of power; • Reflects the fear that government can be controlled by a minority of the electorate.

19. There is a strong counter-argument in favour of the present first-past-the post system, most keenly supported by members of the two main parties. The distortion of the present system is, they claim, a virtue rather than a defect, since it ensures strong government. In a sense, therefore, the debate is about the balance between, and respective virtues of, strong government and strong democracy.

20. The idea of constitutional restrictions on Parliament’s sovereignty is strongly opposed by leading members of the Labour Party. A Bill of Rights without a written constitution which limited Parliament’s sovereignty might prove worthless. It may be that only a constitutional crisis will persuade the electorate whether or not a written constitution is necessary.

21. The emergence of a strong but shortlived third force in British politics led to the natural fear of the election of a ‘hung’ Parliament, in 1983 and again in 1987. If no party had been able to form government, nor conclude a coalition agreement with another party, the Queen would have been in difficult position of deciding how to resolve a constitutional deadlock.

22. Even without a hung Parliament the monarch, through the phrase ‘the Crown in Parliament’ masks the effective sovereignty of the Prime Minister of the time. Without a written constitution, what would happen if either the monarch or the Prime Minister decided the other was acting unconstitutionally? Such possibilities raise the whole question of the function of the monarchy in Britain at the end of the twentieth century.

23. Assignments Choose one the following problems as the topic of discussion: • If Britain has managed perfectly well since 1688 without a written constitution, why should it need one now? Give your opinion. • Do you think the Royal Family is of benefit to Britain? Give your reason. • The main differences between the Conservative and Labour Parties. • In what ways can Parliament act as a check on the power of the government? Do you think Parliament’s powers should be greater? Discuss. • Who rules Britain: the Crown, the Commons, the Lords, the Prime Minister, the Cabinet, or the Civil Service? What is the role of each? Where does the greatest power lie in this country? Discuss.

24. 6. What is your understanding of the voting system: ‘first past the post’ and ‘proporsional representation’? Which offer the better model on which to base a system for electing the government? 7. Describe what is meant by ‘two-party system’, and comment upon its effectiveness. 8. Does Britain have anadequate parliamentary electoral system? Why? Discuss! 9. What made the Commons strong enough to defeat the Crown and to become more important than the Lords during the 17th cent. 10. What value does the House of Lords have, if any, in a democracy? 11. Why are parliamentary select committees valuable?