Whitehall faces a "pivotal moment" and is in urgent need of a shake-up, according to a report on the heart of the civil service.
The report, Shaping up: A Whitehall for the Future, published today by the influential Institute for Government thinktank, concludes that there is a "strategic gap" at the heart of the government.
It contrasts the concentration of political power in the office of the prime minister with the fragmentation and lack of coordination at the centre of the civil service - the Treasury, No 10 and the Cabinet Office and says this has led to a relatively weak administrative centre, inhibiting the ability to set overall government priorities and translate them into action.
The report calls for a wholesale reform of Whitehall if it is to function properly after the general election.
The report is based on interviews with senior civil servants, most of whom felt the Cabinet Office should be more active in providing strategic leadership on joined-up issues. It calls for a stronger, more focused centre, with government strategy collective owned by all permanent secretaries; for departments to be led by "strategy boards"; and for a small number of ministers to be appointed outside the departmental framework, with ownership of top strategic goals and control over pooled budgets to support delivery.
From Whitehall Watch
From Bubb's Blog
From Flip Chart Fairy Tales
