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Byrne: we need a strong state, not a big government, to speed up public sector reform

CAB005/09
05 February 2009

Minister for the Cabinet Office Liam Byrne today laid out plans to create a smaller, stronger centre of government capable of speeding up public service reform and helping Britain through the economic downturn.

In a speech to the Guardian Public Services summit, the Minister said the Government must focus on supporting frontline workers and allowing them to deliver the services their clients need rather than what the centre dictates.

The plans outlined today will add to the £26.5 billion of efficiency savings already achieved by the Civil Service, improve Whitehall accountability and give greater independence to frontline staff while enforcing basic standards of service for everyone.

The measures include:

• Closing the gap between Whitehall policy and frontline delivery. Sir David Omand, Lord Victor Adebowale and Professor Ken Starkey, who have examined this area, have been asked to publish their findings shortly and then work with the Minsiter to set in place their recommendations.
• A radical rethink of performance management in the Civil Service. Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O’Donnell and former Civil Servant Sir Michael Bichard will look into new ways of promoting innovation, making it easier to learn from the frontline, and delivering greater value for money.
• Ensuring that improvements to public services are based on the latest evidence and insight. Permanent Secretary of Government Communications Matt Tee has been asked to chair of a panel of experts that will report on innovative and effective ways of driving change.

Minister for the Cabinet Office Liam Byrne said:

“What people want is an economy where our performance matches our potential, a society of fair rules and fair chances. As an extraordinary country, whose sense of invention helped define this age, we have an extraordinary future ahead of us. That future is well within our grasp. “But not unless government, the civil service, and our public services change with the world around us.

“Success comes not from accumulating, or hoarding, or concentrating power in the hands of politicians or civil servants – it comes from giving it away to people. We want a country of powerful people. And that is my guiding principle in reform of public services.

“Powerful people have professionals that work around them – not the other way round. Powerful people have services that are tailored to what they need; that help them make decisions about how to run their own lives.

“So we won’t walk away from Whitehall reform. The centre needs to be an agent of change, not an agent of control. We don’t need a big government to have a strong state, but we do need a strong state to have a richer economy and a fairer society. We need an active government putting people power at the centre of its vision for the future.”

Notes to Editors

1. Liam Byrne was speaking at the Guardian Public Services Summit in St Albans.
2. The full text of his speech is available on www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk

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