TEXT 10. From the History of the British Civil Service

When we speak of “the Government” usually think of the ministers, who are politicians. But we must not forget that each department has a large staff of professional civil servants. They do most of the work to run the department on the minister’s behalf.

The civil service is wholly non-political. The members of the civil service who have some connection with administration are forbidden to be candidates for Parliament or to give public support to any political party, though they may vote at elections. When a new government comes into office the same civil servants must work for the new ministers, who attacked the old ministers’ policies only a few weeks ago.

Until 1970 the highest positions were held by members of the administrative class. The administrative class was represented by the people who entered the service after passing a very serious examination of a university degree standard. Most of the permanent secretaries and deputy secretaries in the departments were graduates of Oxford and Cambridge and a high proportion of them had studied classics or history.

Below the administrative class were the executive and clerical classes. They were represented by the people who entered the service after leaving school. Some people who began in these classes were promoted into the administrative class, but few of them reached the highest posts.

For several years then old administrative class was criticized for being an elite. In 1968 a committee under Lord Fulton was set up to examine the system. The committee proposed some changes which have now been introduced.

Now every civil servant can be promoted to any position though university graduates are likely to go higher than the others.

Promotion is not automatic according to seniority, but selective. It is based on the recommendation of superior officers. A civil servant does not necessarily remain in the same department all through his career. When a department has a vacancy, someone from another department can be brought in to fill it. The chief official of a department is the permanent secretary, and there are under-secretaries, assistant secretaries and principles below him. The permanent secretary has very close contacts with the minister, and has the task of issuing directives which will put the minister’s policies into force.

Each civil servant must know exactly what his personal responsibilities are, and what questions he should refer to someone higher up.

Answer the questions:

1. How many classes are there in the British Civil Service?

2. What are they?

3. What was the old administrative class criticized for?

4. What was set up in 1968?

5. What is the promotion based on?

6. Who is the official chief of a department?

7. What task does the permanent secretary have?