Tuesday, March 11, 2025
Mimicking Musk?
The paper says that Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden did not deny reports that the Government plans to make it easier to oust civil servants, but he insisted the Government’s focus was not on people losing their jobs but was on being “radical” in reforming the civil service.
They add that McFadden says he wants to see more civil servants working in the UK’s regions, instead of in London, and an increase in using technology to make processes more efficient.
But not everybody is convinced:
The plans are facing a backlash from unions, as well as some within Labour. One Labour MP told the Mirror the plans were “another knee-jerk reaction, mimicking [Elon] Musk DOGE [Department of Government Efficiency]. Not a good look.” Mr Musk, who is Donald Trump's efficiency tsar, has come under fire after launching a wave of sackings since the Republican Party's return to the White House.
TUC boss Paul Nowak said “Trumpian language” from the Government is “not helpful”. He said: “I think these are a set of proposals that look more about grabbing headlines rather than about a serious plan for reforming our public services.
“Our members are absolutely up for that debate about delivering effective public services, interesting and serious discussions about things like how you deploy digital technology, AI, about workload, about flexible working. But you've got to have those conversations with the staff involved. What I want is a government that's going to help rebuild and repair our public services, bring public service workers with them while they do that.”
Prospect General Secretary Mike Clancy said: "Nobody would say the civil service is perfect, and our members are willing partners in reform, but this government must end the tradition of treating the civil service as a political punchbag. A serious reform agenda must start not from blunt headcount targets, but from an appraisal of the specialist skills needed in areas like science and data, and a realisation that the current pay system does not compete with the private sector for these skills."
We shall have to wait and see to what extent Musk has influenced the current UK Government.
But not everybody is convinced:
The plans are facing a backlash from unions, as well as some within Labour. One Labour MP told the Mirror the plans were “another knee-jerk reaction, mimicking [Elon] Musk DOGE [Department of Government Efficiency]. Not a good look.” Mr Musk, who is Donald Trump's efficiency tsar, has come under fire after launching a wave of sackings since the Republican Party's return to the White House.
TUC boss Paul Nowak said “Trumpian language” from the Government is “not helpful”. He said: “I think these are a set of proposals that look more about grabbing headlines rather than about a serious plan for reforming our public services.
“Our members are absolutely up for that debate about delivering effective public services, interesting and serious discussions about things like how you deploy digital technology, AI, about workload, about flexible working. But you've got to have those conversations with the staff involved. What I want is a government that's going to help rebuild and repair our public services, bring public service workers with them while they do that.”
Prospect General Secretary Mike Clancy said: "Nobody would say the civil service is perfect, and our members are willing partners in reform, but this government must end the tradition of treating the civil service as a political punchbag. A serious reform agenda must start not from blunt headcount targets, but from an appraisal of the specialist skills needed in areas like science and data, and a realisation that the current pay system does not compete with the private sector for these skills."
We shall have to wait and see to what extent Musk has influenced the current UK Government.
