Wasteful Whitehall diversity and inclusion spending will end
Like all Conservatives, I want the public to pay less tax. And so all tax receipts collected must be used efficiently, in a way that benefits the taxpayer and improves public services.
Given the crucial role it plays in delivering that, we need to stop the back door politicisation of the Civil Service, which diverts time and resources away from that focus on the public. We have too often seen them distracted by fashionable hobby horses, especially when it comes to issues like equality and diversity.
That is what I will be addressing in a speech in Westminster tomorrow; to ensure we take a common sense approach to how government operates. Particularly how we approach ‘Equality, Diversity and Inclusion’ (EDI) to ensure what takes place benefits the public and does not become a pointless job creation scheme for the politically correct.
The public sector is diverse. House of Commons research shows over a quarter of the staff across the NHS in England are from minority ethnic backgrounds. We know too that while ability is spread across the country, that has not always been the case when it comes to opportunity. That’s why we’ve already moved over 18,000 roles out of London, including to new offices across the UK. Diversity in the civil service should never just be measured in terms of race and sex; it should also be about background and differences of opinion – and, above all, merit.
However, some managers instead spend millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money on advice from so-called equality professionals. Where is the common sense in that? Is this really what we should be spending people’s hard-earned taxes on?
It’s a major concern of mine because this work takes up a huge amount of staff time. Indeed, we have some employees in the public sector whose only role is to ensure that departments are meeting diversity targets. Time and money which should be spent on the core purpose of the public sector – delivering for the public – is being wasted on woke hobby horses. Most of these kinds of EDI programmes – especially when delivered by private companies or campaigning organisations – are not transparent, and their benefits unproven. If we can’t prove their worth, then they don’t pass the public interest test. So I’m determined to stop it.
It’s also a major concern for the Chancellor, which is why he previously announced a review on public sector spending on EDI schemes throughout the public sector. This was unprecedented in government: an audit of how many staff are actively working on EDI and asking Departments to account for how this work supports our priorities.
As such, I will announce that, following this review, new guidance will cease all external EDI spending across the Civil Service unless it is specifically signed off and cleared by Ministers. There will be no more spending on campaign organisations or unproven programmes delivered by external ‘experts’. In the future, we will have accountability and transparency, focusing on delivering opportunity for all, not political ideology.
Second, I will be meeting with the top outliers of external EDI spend across our Arms-Length Bodies asking them to account for this spending and how it is actually supporting their service to their customers: the public.
In future there will be no more dedicated (or standalone) EDI jobs in the Civil Service outside of HR. No more staff dedicating 100% of their time to EDI work. All EDI roles within the Civil Service will be consolidated into their department’s HR teams, and Ministers and their Permanent Secretaries will ensure that these teams are focused on their statutory obligations around EDI – the things we are legally required to do which have a proven benefit, not unproven diversity work which has no basis in law.
I’m pleased that we are getting a grip on this EDI spending, because the public sector serves the public, not itself.
Esther McVey serves in the Cabinet
