The work of the Public
Administration Select Committee
(PASC)
Bernard Jenkin MP
A very short history
• Established in 1997
• Combined the remits of two committees
– A committee on the Ombudsman
– A committee on public service
• Chaired by
– Rhodri Morgan (1997-1999)
– Tony Wright (1999-2010)
– Bernard Jenkin (2010 to date)
PASC’s remit
• “to examine the reports of the Parliamentary
Commissioner for Administration and the Health
Service Commissioner for England” (i.e. the
‘Ombudsman’)
– “and matters in connection therewith”
• “to consider matters relating to the quality and
standards of administration provided by civil
service departments”
– “and other matters relating to the civil service”
(House of Commons Standing Order No. 146)
A rough map of PASC’s remit
Quality and standards
of administration in
the civil service
Other civil service
issues
Cabinet Office policy
responsibilities
• Public service
delivery, both in the
civil service and
beyond (often linked
to Ombudsman
findings)
• Systemic HR issues
• ‘Macro’ performance
management, such as
the use of targets
• Responses to specific
incidents, such as
data loss
• These have included:
• the role of special
advisers
• Government use of
IT
• the need for a Civil
Service Act
• Including:
• Charities and the
voluntary sector
• Quangos
• Public
appointments
• Ethical regulation
for government and
public life more
widely
• Official statistics
Ombudsman reports
• on specific issues
where the
Government is
unwilling to remedy
injustice
• on general ‘quality of
administration’ issues
Who does UK National Strategy?
Whitehall has lost
the capacity to
think strategically
Government needs
to consider national
strategy – beyond
national security
Strategic Thinking in Government
Follow up to the National Strategy inquiry
•
•
•
•
How strategy is linked to policy-making
International examples
Lessons from business
The role of social media
Smaller Government:
Shrinking the Quango State
• “A missed opportunity”
• “Hopelessly unclear”
• “Rushed and poorly handled”
Govt should have used this as an opportunity to
transfer function to charities and mutuals
 Big Society
Smaller Government:
What do ministers do?
Current legal cap on the number of paid ministers should
set the absolute limit.
Limit on the number of ministers in the Commons should
be cut in line with the reduction in the number of MPs.
The number of PPSs should be limited to one per
department—a reduction of 26.
Change in Government: The
Agenda for Leadership
Civil Service needs new
capability to engage with
voluntary and private sector
Need clear overall change
programme
Need a world-class centre of
government to coordinate
and deliver reform
Minister for the Cabinet
Office must take a clear lead
on civil service reform
Leadership of change: new
arrangements for the roles of the
Head of the Civil Service and the
Cabinet Secretary
Changes “could lead to weaker leadership and disperse
power at a critical time of change in government”
•
•
both attend Cabinet on equal terms
both must have access to the Prime Minister and the
authority “to speak truth unto power”
Government and IT- "A Recipe For
Rip-Offs": Time For A New
Approach
• Over-reliant on an oligopoly of large
contractors
• Lack of in-house skills
Result: A recipe for rip-offs
The Big Society
A Big
Society
Minister
An impact
assessment
on every
new policy
and Bill
Government use of statistics and
the UK Statistics Authority
Taking a more active role
in appointment process
for chair of UKSA
Scrutinising the use of
statistics by government
departments
The work of the Parliamentary
and Health Service Ombudsman
PASC acts as a
‘critical friend’ of
the Ombudsman
Improved complaint
handling must be part
of public sector reform
The work of the Commissioner for
Public Appointments and First
Civil Service Commissioner
Pay cap at Prime Ministerial level is too
arbitrary and crude
Govt needs to reduce dependency on
‘head-hunter’ firms and develop inhouse expertise
Commissioner should review
Department’s appraisal systems to
ensure appointees are performing
The Administrative Justice and
Tribunals Council
Administrative Justice and
Tribunals Council (AJTC)
oversees tribunals and
challenges to decisions by
public bodies
Govt announced that it
plans to abolish the AJTC as
part of its programme of
reform of public bodies
The work of the Business
Appointment Rules and the
Advisory Committee on Business
Appointments
A ‘revolving door’ between business and
Whitehall?
• concern about the movement of personnel between the
private sector and the civil service
• growing demand for civil servants with external expertise
• civil service job losses
• greater diversity of providers for public services
Future Work Programme
Use of special
advisers in
Whitehall
Work of the
Committee on
Standards in
Public Life
Six Principles of Good Governance
1. Leadership
2. Performance
3. Accountability
4. Transparency
5. Engagement
6. Empowerment
The work of the Public
Administration Select Committee
(PASC)
Bernard Jenkin MP