In a bold move to revolutionize the British civil service, Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the prime minister, has unveiled a sweeping plan to “bust the sludge” in Whitehall. Addressing a crowd at the What3Words tech company, Jones outlined a comprehensive strategy to inject new life into the heart of the government’s bureaucracy.
At the core of the plan is a focus on performance and accountability. Jones made it clear that underperforming civil servants will face consequences, with the ability to sack senior officials who fail to deliver. “Instead of the sideways shimmy to another team or department if you fail to perform, I’m afraid you will be sacked,” he declared, emphasizing that “the doers, not the talkers” will be in line for promotion.
To drive this transformation, Jones plans to establish small, agile task forces that will tackle specific problems within government departments. These units will be subject to the “two pizza” test, ensuring that they remain nimble and responsive. The cabinet ministers will be able to bid for extra support from these task forces, a move aimed at injecting more competition and dynamism into the system.
The changes extend beyond just personnel. Jones highlighted the need for a complete digital transformation of the British state, arguing that the public rightly expects the same level of convenience and efficiency from government services as they do from their online banking or shopping experiences.
To facilitate this, the government will look to strip away some of the bureaucratic red tape that has long
