Civil servants have questioned whether sweeping plans to centralise government communications could serve to “undermine democracy”, an internal document shared with the Guardian has revealed. In a dramatic overhaul of civil service press offices, social media teams, designers and campaigners, the UK government’s 4,500 communications staff will be reduced to about 30 per department – and have each of them working for a central employer instead of the department they work with. Many of the civil servants affected by the proposals, which the leaked document states have been signed off by Boris Johnson himself, first learned of them from media reports earlier this month. In the wake of discontent following that, the Government Communication Service (GCS) prepared a 14-page report of frequently asked questions responding to concerns. One of these asked: “Does the new structure centralise power, and does this undermine democracy?” The response gave some general assurances before dismissing the central concern with the implication that the proposals could not be undemocratic because they originated from the prime minister. “The single employer model aims to ensure better coordination, greater efficiency and effectiveness and unified, excellent professional standards and practice,” it stated. “This approach has been mandated by the PM who of course was democratically elected.”
Increasing central control of communications is seen as further evidence of No 10’s increasingly controversial attempts to extend its political control over the civil service, as most dramatically manifested in the recent departure of Mark Sedwill as cabinet secretary and the departure of other permanent secretaries in major government departments. Though proposals for centralising government communications have been in circulation since 2014, the briefing to civil servants notes that “the PM’s personal backing now means this is the time to bring this into being”. Beyond this assurance, the document offers little in the way of detail for communications staff, who have been told to expect to operate under the new centralised model by April 2021. The civil servants were told the GCS was “unable to confirm” whether existing teams would be kept together, whether they would get any say over which campaigns or policy areas they work on, or details on how the process would work. Instead, the closing section of the staff briefing tackles the communications fiasco of staff learning about seismic changes to the nature of their roles through the media, rather than through official channels. “The timing of the announcement on 6 July wasn’t of GCS’s making, and we apologise that you did not hear about it first through GCS,” it notes apologetically. “The timing isn’t what we would have wanted and certainly is not how we advise into our organisations. “We know this has caused a lot of hurt and anger among many. From here on, we’re now trying to repair that and actually practise what of course we know about good comms.” Another questioner in the document asked: “Did you know No 10 was talking to the Times prior to publication, and if you did, what steps did you take to inform directors of communication?” The response notes: “This announcement was not as we would have wished. This announcement was made the night before publication. Directors of communication were rung as soon as we knew this.” The document also tried to reassure staff on the high quality of government communications work during recent crises, with one answer noting that “we have done, and continue to do, incredible work on Covid”, and another in response to asking why efforts have not been recognised and valued stating: “The prime minister and government have been pleased, impressed and proud by what we’ve achieved. There is plenty of evidence of the success of GCS and our communicators. Examples like our work through Covid-19, EU transition and other major programmes are, genuinely, applauded and appreciated.” A Cabinet Office spokesperson said: “Moving to a single employer model is a longstanding plan to make government communication more efficient and effective. There will now be a formal civil service process, overseen by a dedicated programme board. There will be full consultation with staff throughout this process.”