THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE THATCHER GOVERNMENT'S 'GRAND STRATEGY' FOR THE CIVIL SERVICE: A PUBLIC POLICY PERSPECTIVE

Since the Thatcher Government came to office, the policies which it has pursued towards the civil service have been characterized by its determination to emphasize political control over the work of government departments and to‘de‐privilege’ the civil service. The paper traces and evaluates the dev...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Public administration (London) 1984-09, Vol.62 (3), p.322-335
Main Author: FRY, GEOFFREY K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
CIVIL SERVICE
CONSERVATISM AND CONSERVATIVES
CONTROL OF HUMAN GROUP OPERATIONS
Development
EVALUATION
FINANCIAL SERVICE, BANKS, INSURANCE SYSTEMS, SECURITIES, EXCHANGES
Government and politics
GREAT BRITAIN
MANAGERS AND MANAGEMENT
MARGARET THATCHER
NATIONAL GOVERNMENT
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT OR POLITICAL DEGENERATION
PUBLIC POLICY
STRATEGY
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Summary:Since the Thatcher Government came to office, the policies which it has pursued towards the civil service have been characterized by its determination to emphasize political control over the work of government departments and to‘de‐privilege’ the civil service. The paper traces and evaluates the development of the Conservative Government's‘grand strategy’ for the civil service which was eventually given the form of the financial management initiative in 1982, an attempt to universalize MINIS and institutionalize Raynerism. Among other things, this policy study considers the cuts in civil service numbers and the changes in its hierarchy, the dismantling of the Priestley pay system, the civil service strike of 1981, and the disbanding of the Civil Service Department, involving as it did the dismissal of the Head of the Home Civil Service.
ISSN:0033-3298
1467-9299
DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9299.1984.tb00566.x