The United Kingdom’s Institute for Government’s resident historian says the Government will be happy to weather the storm over the resignation of the head of the Public Service, Sir Mark Sedwill because it believes it will not be an issue with voters.
Catherine Haddon, who leads the think tank’s work on changes of Government, Ministers and the workings of the constitution, says the same will apply to the controversial choice of David Frost (pictured) to take over as National Security Adviser.
“This administration is more worried about the thoughts of the wider public rather than those of ex-Ministers, Prime Ministers, commentators and former officials,” Ms Haddon said.
“It will pay attention to focus groups and internal polling, but it has no intention of being distracted as the Westminster bubble rages on Twitter,” she said.
Ms Haddon said the ousting of Sir Mark “will hardly cut through in the same way as an announcement of extra funding for schools”.
“Most people will be more concerned about their own jobs than whether David Frost, who also keeps his existing role of chief Brexit negotiator, has too many,” she said.
“However, the way that Sir Mark Sedwill’s tenure as Cabinet Secretary has ended still matters.”
She said it mattered for those Public Servants who advised Ministers, and what they think Ministers wanted to hear.
“It matters for the officials who deliver Government policies — including on how to get extra money to schools — and when they feel they should push back,” Ms Haddon said.
“Most of all Sedwill’s exit, and the battles and briefings before it, matters because it highlights the fragility of the protections against politicisation — and how easy it is for the Government to undermine them.”
She said that if the current Government really wanted to, and it had a majority in Parliament to do so, there was little that could be done to stop it from altering the role of the Public Service in fundamental ways.
London, 3 July 2020
