Would you be surprised if your car told you which roads to take and how often? What if your TV refused to let you choose what program to see tonight? It would make you angry, dismayed and shocked. These devices exist to serve us, and we control them – or at least we are supposed to.
Although the Civil Service is composed of both men and women it serves the same purpose, to implement the legal parliamentary democracy-based decisions of the legitimate government.
This machine was created by Victorians to serve that purpose. It is as complicated as a Swiss timepiece and its personnel are carefully selected on the basis their abilities.
Naturally, they can advise or forewarn. They don’t have any power and should not. Whitehall officials who want to change or influence Ministers’ decisions could disrupt the system and undermine democracy. They cannot do that. They can run for office and seek elections if they don’t like it.
In the last few years, however, officials have started to believe that they should be able override, slow down, or modify the wishes of their former political masters. In any event, this would be bad policy. This is because the only direction it works is one.
MAIL ON SUNDAY: Priti Patel, Home Secretary, struggles to make Conservative policies regarding immigration implementable
Post-1960s radicals from social and political colleges have not only reached high-ranking Civil Service offices, but they also made it to the forefront of civil service policy. They were encouraged by many forces to contribute their efforts.
The BBC’s enormous radical influence, which is always in the Left’s favor, provides unending support for those who are trying to resist conservatism. Blair’s 1997 brutal and permanent intervention in Civil Service matters tipped the scales in favour of the Left. First time in recent history, civil servants were given orders by unelected political commissars. Although they were ultimately directed by an elected official, we can be certain that they made full use of this power.
This change has left a legacy. An immense Blob of Left-wing obsduracy lies in the heart of Civil Service and blocks any path to conservative reform. Isolated officials are those who want to remain impartial. However, Civil Service work practices are becoming alarmingly lax. Many Civil Service employees still work from home even after businesses have made a large return to work.
It is because of this that Ministers like Priti Patel, Home Secretary, struggle to implement Conservative policies regarding immigration. Whitehall can be both inefficient and biased.
Although Downing Street has its loyal team of advisers, it is up against an army of adversaries who are well-versed in every aspect of the system. Boris Johnson is the Queen’s First minister with a substantial Westminster majority and cannot appoint Paul Dacre, an ex-editor of The Daily Mail, as the head of Ofcom, the critical media regulator.
It is instructing its driver. This cannot go on. In a democratic parliamentary system, power must be held by Ministers and not officials.
The Reform of Civil Service is now the Most Important Task. Without it, nothing else can be done.