The article discusses the Civil Service Code in uk that governs civil servants in England and highlights its core values: integrity, honesty, objectivity, and impartiality. Civil servants are required to maintain political impartiality and serve any government regardless of its political affiliation, ensuring that their actions are not influenced by party politics.
1999 Committee on Standards: Recommendations for Special Advisers
It also addresses the role of special advisers, whose presence can blur the lines between ministers and civil servants. A 1999 Committee on Standards in Public Life suggested establishing a code of conduct for special advisers and recommended limiting their numbers due to concerns about potential politicization of the civil service. Although the increase in special advisers has raised questions about their influence, the committee found no direct evidence of politicization.
Understanding Special Advisers: Roles, Responsibilities, and the Civil Service Code
Special advisers serve at the discretion of ministers without guaranteed notice periods, but they must adhere to the Civil Service Code in their advisory roles. They operate to support government objectives and facilitate communication between the government and its political party, while the Government Communication Network handles public and media relations.
Overview of the Civil Service Code in UK :
The Civil Service Code governs civil servants working in England. Civil Servants working in the Scottish Executive, the National Assembly for Wales and the use of the Civil Service have their versions of the Code. The Code states that the core values of Civil Service are:
- Integrity: putting the obligations of public service over personal interests;
- honesty: being truthful and open;
- objectivity: basing advice and decisions on rigorous analysis of the evidence and
- impartiality: acting solely according to the merits of a case and serving equally well governments of different political persuasions.
On political impartiality, the Civil Service Code provides that civil servants must serve the government — whatever its political persuasion — in a way that maintains political impartiality and that civil servants must not act in a way determined by party political considerations.
Furthermore, the Ministerial Code provides that Ministers must uphold the political impartiality of the Civil Service and not ask civil servants to ‘act in any way which would conflict with the Civil Service Code’.
Special Advisers: Key Responsibilities and Impact on Government Operations
The appointment of special advisers to ministers blurs the lines of responsibility between ministers and civil servants. The Committee on Standards in Public Life examined a whole tranche of issues in 1999, including the role of special advisers, lobbying, sponsorship and public appointments. On special advisers, the Committee recommended that there be introduced a code of conduct enshrined in a Civil Service Act and that there be a statutory limit to the number of ministerial aides appointed.
However, while accepting that there was no evidence that special advisers were politicizing the civil service, the Committee expressed the concern that the considerable increase in numbers, particularly at Number 10, where influential roles are played by special advisers, raises the question of whether their authority outweighs that of objective advisers and that any future growth in numbers would raise questions about a move towards the establishment of a cabinet system within departments.
Employment Terms of Special Advisers
Special advisers are servants of the Crown. As such there is no entitlement to a period of notice before the termination of employment. However, the Model Contract for Special Advisers 1997; Cabinet Office 2005 provides that, other than where employment is terminated by agreement or results from disciplinary proceedings, inefficiency or grounds justifying dismissal at common law, advisers will be given not less than three months’ notice in writing. Otherwise employment automatically terminates at the end of the current government administration or when the relevant Cabinet minister leaves the government or moves to another appointment or, in the event of a general election, on the day after polling day.
Guiding Principles and Appointment Exemptions
Schedule 1 to the Model Contract, The Role and Duties of Special Advisers, states that special advisers ‘must always be guided by the basic principle that they are employed to serve the objectives of the government and the department in which they work’. They are exempt from the general civil service requirement that appointments must be made on merit on the basis of fair and open competition, providing that they are appointed for the purpose only of providing advice to any minister.
Compliance and Role of Special Advisers
They are, however, in other respects to abide by the Civil Service Code and the Code of Conduct for Special advisers. Their constitutional position is ambivalent they are servants of the Crown but not a formal part of the departmental hierarchy, de nut wok directly under a permanent civil servant or have permanent civil servants working fur that, Special Advisers are appointed to advise the minister in the development of government p0liy and its effective presentation. They do not have any executive powers to Instruct civil servants.
Advisers as Crown Employees: Balancing Government Interests and Communication
As Crown employees paid our of public funds, special advisers operate to support the Interests of the government rather than the government’s political party, although they act as a channel of communication between government and party. Government communications with the media and public is the responsibility of the Government Communication Network, established In 2005 to replace the former Government Information and Communication Service. The Communication Network is headed by a Permanent Secretary of Government Communications.
Conclusion
The Civil Service Code in the UK safeguards the political impartiality of civil servants, ensuring they serve the public interest, while special advisers play a delicate role in bridging political strategy and civil service operations.