Multimedia Mania/abacus-multimedia-mania.iso/dp/0051/00513.txt

Text File | 1993-07-27 | 19KB | 343 lines

$Unique_ID{bob00513}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{United Kingdom
Northern Ireland}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC}
$Affiliation{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC}
$Subject{service
civil
government
ireland
northern
staff
management
servants
political
services}
$Date{1990}
$Log{}
Title:       United Kingdom
Book:        Britain's System of Government
Author:      Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC
Affiliation: Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC
Date:        1990

Northern Ireland

     Between 1921 and 1972 Northern Ireland had its own Parliament and
Government, subordinate to the Parliament at Westminster. However, in 1972,
following the resignation of the Northern Ireland Government, the British
Government assumed direct responsibility for its functions. Attempts have been
made by successive governments to find a means of restoring devolved
government to Northern Ireland on a basis that would command widespread
acceptance throughout the community. The most recent attempt failed in June
1986, when the Northern Ireland Assembly, elected in 1982, was dissolved after
it ceased to discharge its responsibility for making proposals for the
resumption of devolved government and of monitoring the work of the Northern
Ireland departments. The Government expressed the hope that a new Assembly
would be established which would contribute to the better government and
administration of Northern Ireland. To this end discussions have been
continuing since late 1989 between the Government and the local constitutional
political parties as a means of exploring the extent of the common ground
which now appears to exist between them. This approach is viewed by the
Government as a necessary prelude to discussions about arrangements for the
transfer of powers and responsibilities to locally elected representatives in
Northern Ireland.

     The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is the Cabinet minister
responsible for Northern Ireland. Through the Northern Ireland Office he has
direct responsibility for constitutional developments, law and order,
security, and electoral matters. The work of the Northern Ireland
departments, whose functions are listed below, is also subject to the
direction and control of the Secretary of State.

Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland

     Development of agricultural, forestry and fishing industries;
administration of agricultural grant schemes; advisory service to farmers;
agricultural research, education and training.

Department of Economic Development for Northern Ireland

     Development of industry and commerce, as well as administration of
government policy in relation to tourism, energy and minerals;
administration of an employment service and labour training schemes and
assistance to industrial development, through the Industrial Development
Board for Northern Ireland.

Department of Education for Northern Ireland

     Control of the five education and library boards and education as a
whole, youth services, sport and recreation, cultural activities and
community services and facilities, including the improvement of community
relations.

Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland

     Housing; planning; construction and maintenance of roads; transport
and traffic management, and motor taxation; water and sewerage; environmental
protection; ordnance survey; collection of rates; harbours; historic monuments
and buildings; maintenance of public records; and certain controls over local
government.

Department of Finance and Personnel

     Control of public expenditure; liaison with HM Treasury and the Northern
Ireland Office on financial matters, economic and social planning and
research; Ulster Savings; charities; Valuation and Lands Service; policies
for equal opportunities and personnel management; and general management and
control of the Northern Ireland Civil Service.

Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland

     Health and personal social services; social security; social legislation;
and the Office of the Registrar-General.

The Civil Service

     The Civil Service is concerned with the conduct of the whole range of
government activities as they affect the community, ranging from policy
formulation to carrying out the day-to-day duties of public administration.

     Civil servants are servants of the Crown. For all practical purposes the
Crown in this context means and is represented by the Government of the day.
There are special cases in which certain functions are conferred by law upon
particular members or groups of members of the public service; but in
general the executive powers of the Crown are exercised by and on the advice
of Her Majesty's Ministers, who are in turn answerable to Parliament. The
Civil Service as such has no constitutional responsibility separate from the
duly constituted Government of the day. The duty of the individual civil
servant is first and foremost to the Minister of the Crown who is in charge
of the Department concerned. A change of minister, for whatever reason, does
not involve a change of staff. Ministers sometimes appoint special advisers
from outside the Civil Service. The advisers are normally paid from public
funds, but their appointments come to an end when the Government's term of
office finishes, or when the Minister to whom the special adviser is
appointed leaves the Government or moves to another appointment.

     The number of civil servants has fallen from 732,000 in April 1979 to
562,000 in April 1990, reflecting the Government's policy of controlling the
cost and size of the Civil Service and of improving its efficiency. About
half of all civil servants were engaged in the provision of public services,
such as paying sickness benefits and pensions, collecting taxes and
contributions, running employment services, staffing prisons, and providing
services to industry and agriculture. Around a quarter were employed in the
Ministry of Defence. The rest were divided between: central administrative
and policy duties; support services, such as accommodation, printing and
information; and largely financially self-supporting services, for instance,
those provided by the Department for National Savings and the Royal Mint. The
total includes about 67,000 `industrial' civil servants, mainly manual workers
in government industrial establishments. Four-fifths of civil servants work
outside London.

     The Government is committed to achieving equality of opportunity for all
its staff. In support of this commitment, the Civil Service is actively
pursuing policies to increase employment and career opportunities for women,
ethnic minorities and people with disabilities. The number of black and Asian
people now employed in the Civil Service is proportionate to their
representation in Britain's population as a whole.

     Within the Civil Service, reforms of all aspects of the management of
government departments are being implemented to ensure improved management
performance, in particular through the greater accountability of individual
managers based on clear objectives and responsibilities. These reforms
include performance-related pay schemes, and other means to encourage and
reward improved performance.

Executive Agencies: Next Steps Initiative

     The Next Steps Initiative, launched in 1988, has been concerned with
improving management in the Civil Service and the efficiency and quality of
services provided to the public and to customers within government. This has
involved setting up, to the greatest extent practicable, separate units or
agencies to perform the executive functions of government. Agencies remain
part of the Civil Service but under the terms of a framework document they
enjoy greater delegation on financial, pay and personnel matters. Agencies
are headed by chief executives who are personally responsible for the
performance of the agency and for meeting the financial and quality of
service targets which it is set. By July 1990 a total of more than 30
agencies had been set up covering around 70,000 staff. It is expected that
this programme will have been applied to at least half the Civil Service by
1991.

     Savings in public expenditure are also being sought by subjecting
services in government departments to competitive tendering and by
contracting out such services whenever commensurate with sound management and
good value for money. By April 1989 savings of around 50 million Pounds net a
year had been achieved.

Central Management and Structure

     Responsibility for central co-ordination and management of the Civil
Service is divided between the Treasury and the Cabinet Office (Office of the
Minister for the Civil Service). In addition to its other functions, the
Treasury is responsible for the structure of the Civil Service and the
classification of posts. It is also responsible for recruitment policy and
for controlling staffing, pay, pensions and allowances. The Office of the
Minister for the Civil Service, which is part of the Cabinet Office and under
the control of the Prime Minister, as Minister for the Civil Service, is
responsible for the organisation, non-financial aspects of personnel
management and overall efficiency of the Service. The function of official
Head of the Home Civil Service is combined with that of Secretary to the
Cabinet.

     At the senior levels of the service, where management forms a major
component of most jobs, there are service-wide common grading arrangements.
These unified grades 1 to 7 are known as the Open Structure and cover grades
from Permanent Secretary level to Principal level. Within the unified grades
each post is filled by the person best equipped in terms of skills, ability
and experience regardless of the occupational group to which he or she
previously belonged.

     Below this the structure of the non-industrial Civil Service is based on
a system of occupational groups and classes, which are the basic groupings of
staff for the purposes of personnel management. These include the
Administration, Economist, Information Officer, Lawyer, Librarian,
Professional and Technical (which includes architects, surveyors, and
electrical and mechanical engineers), Secretarial, Science and Statistician
Groups. These groups account for 66 per cent of non-industrial staff. Work
requiring specialist skill is always done by qualified individuals.

     Personnel management policies encourage the deployment of staff so that
talent can be used to the best advantage, and higher posts are open to people
of outstanding ability, whatever their specialist background or original
method of entry into the Service. This ensures that people with the necessary
qualities can gain suitably wide experience to fit them for posts at the
highest levels. The exchange of staff between the Civil Service and industry
is also encouraged.

The Diplomatic Service

     The Diplomatic Service, a separate service of some 6,650 or so people,
provides the majority of the staff for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
and at British diplomatic missions and consular posts abroad. Its functions
include advising on policy, negotiating with overseas governments and
conducting business in international organisations; promoting British exports
and trade generally, administering aid, presenting British ideas, policies
and objectives to the people of overseas countries; administering the
remaining dependent territories; and protecting British interests abroad and
British nationals overseas.

     The Service has its own grade structure, linked for salary purposes with
that of the Home Civil Service. Conditions of work are in many ways
comparable, while taking into account the special demands of the Service,
particularly of postings overseas. Members of the Home Civil Service and the
armed forces, and individuals from the private sector, may also serve in the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office and at overseas posts on loan or attachment.

Recruitment and Training

     Recruitment of staff to the middle and higher levels of the Home Civil
Service and the Diplomatic Service is the responsibility of the Civil
Service Commission. In conjunction with departments, it ensures staff are
selected solely on merit through fair and open competition. The selection
of junior staff, such as those engaged in clerical and manual work, is made
by the departments.

     For the Administration Group, the central part of the Home and
Diplomatic Civil Services, entry is at three levels relating broadly to the
academic achievements of: a first or second class honours degree; GCE
Advanced level; and GCSE grades A, B or C. The selection procedure for the
highest of these levels (the Administration Trainee entry) comprises
qualifying tests, followed by tests and interviews at the Civil Service
Selection Board and an interview by the Final Selection Board. For the next
level (the Executive Officer entry) selection involves a qualifying test
followed by an interview. For the lower clerical level (the Administrative
Officer/Assistant entry) selection is normally by interview of those holding
the prescribed educational qualifications.

     Entry to the Professional and Technology Group usually requires
appropriate qualifications, and selection is by interview, taking account of
past record. Graduates are offered a structured training programme leading to
membership of the appropriate professional institution. Entry to the Science
Group is at three levels: to the Scientific Officer level for graduates and
those with Higher National Diplomas and Higher National Certificates; and to
the Assistant Scientific Officer level for those with GCSEs or GCE Advanced
level.

     Many government departments and agencies employ training officers and
tutors to help identify staff training needs and organise training by the most
effective method (for example, formal courses or self-instruction). The Civil
Service College provides a wide range of training courses in both management
and specialist skills. Use is also made of external institutions.

     Civil servants under the age of 18 may continue their general education
by attending courses, usually for one day a week ('day release' schemes). All
staff may be entitled to financial assistance to continue their education,
though mainly in their own time. There are also opportunities for civil
servants to obtain fellowships for research and study in areas of interest to
themselves and to their departments and agencies.

Promotion and Terms of Service

     Departments are responsible for promotion up to and including Grade 4.
Normally promotion is from grade to grade, but there can be accelerated
promotion for staff who show exceptional promise. Promotion or appointment to
Grades 1 and 2 and all transfers between departments at these levels are
approved by the Prime Minister, who is advised by the Head of the Home Civil
Service. Promotions and appointments to Grade 3 are approved by the Cabinet
Office.

     Terms and conditions of employment for civil servants are generally
subject to consultation between management and staff and their
representatives.

Political and Private Activities

     Civil servants are required to discharge loyally the duties assigned
to them by the Government of the day of whatever political persuasion. It
is essential that ministers and the public should have confidence that the
personal views of civil servants do not influence the discharge of their
official duties, given the role of the Civil Service in serving successive
governments of different political complexions. The aim of the rules which
govern political activities by civil servants is to allow them the greatest
possible freedom to participate in public affairs consistent with their
rights and duties as citizens without infringing these fundamental
principles. The rules are therefore concerned with political activities
liable to give public expression to political views rather than with
privately held beliefs and opinions.

     The Civil Service is divided into three groups for the purposes of
deciding the extent to which individuals may take part in political
activities. Those in the `politically free' group, consisting of industrial
staff and non-office grades, are free to engage in any political activity,
including adoption as a candidate for the British or the European Parliament
(although they would have to resign from the Service if elected). Those in
the `politically restricted' group, which comprises staff in Grade 7 and above
as well as Administration Trainees, are debarred from national political
activities but may apply for permission to take part in local political
activities. The `intermediate' group, which comprises all other civil
servants, may apply for permission to take part in national or local political
activity, apart from candidature for the British or the European Parliament.

     Where required, permission is granted to the maximum extent consistent
with the reputation of the Civil Service for political impartiality and the
avoidance of any conflict with official duties. A code of discretion
requires moderation and the avoidance of embarrassment to ministers.

     Generally, there are no restrictions on the private activities of
civil servants, provided that these do not bring discredit on the Civil
Service, and that there is no possibility of conflict with official duties.
For instance, a civil servant must comply with any departmental instruction
on the need to seek authority before taking part in any outside activity
which involves the use of official experience, or before accepting a
directorship in any company holding a contract with his or her department.

Security

     As a general rule the political views of civil servants are not a
matter of official concern. However, no one whose loyalty is in doubt may
be employed on work vital to the security of the State. For this reason
certain posts are not open to those who are known to be members of communist
or fascist organisations or of subversive groups, or associated with them
in such a way as to raise legitimate doubts about their reliability, or to
anyone whose reliability may be in doubt for any other reason.

     Each department is responsible for its own internal security, advised
as necessary by the Security Service. The Security Commission may
investigate and report on breaches of security in the public service and
advise on changes in security procedure, if requested to do so by the Prime
Minister after consultation with the Leader of the Opposition.