The number of senior United Kingdom Public Service departures has risen by nine per cent over the last year, new figures reveal.
This comes among growing concerns over morale following a string of high-profile resignations and sackings across Whitehall, the latest being the dismissal of the Permanent Secretary of the Department of Education, Jonathan Slater (pictured).
This follows a public backlash over thousands of school students finding their examination results had been downgraded due to an algorithm designed to moderate them.
The Government then made a U-turn and reverted to the grades originally awarded.
There were calls for Minister for Education, Gavin Williamson to resign, but instead it was Mr Slater who had to go, becoming the fifth Permanent Secretary to leave his post in the past six months.
However, the leading Public Service union accused Prime Minister, Boris Johnson of “discarding” senior Public Servants to “keep scrutiny from the Government’s door”.
Former Head of the Public Service, Lord Kerslake said the statistics showed officials were “carrying the can for the failure of Ministers”.
Earlier, Mr Johnson’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings promised a “hard rain” was going to fall on the Public Service.
According to Cabinet Office statistics, 34,070 people left the Public Service in 2019-20, up from 31,240 the previous year, while less than 30,000 left the service in 2017-2018.
Head of the FDA union which represents the UK’s most senior Public Servants, Dave Penman said the new figures might be a reflection of waning morale since Mr Johnson’s Government took over last July.
“If Ministers — and indeed the Prime Minister — continue to undermine, brief against and discard committed Public Servants for political expediency, it will come as no surprise if increasingly, those that the country relies on to deliver vital public services choose to go elsewhere,” Mr Penman said.
Lord Kerslake, who left Government in 2014 and has since advised the Opposition Labour Party, said it was a “disgrace” Mr Slater had been sacked while Mr Williamson stayed in place.
London, 30 August 2020
