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The UK’s civil service recruitment regulator has launched an inquiry into several recent Whitehall appointments in the wake of a cronyism row engulfing the new Labour government.
The Civil Service Commission on Friday said it was reviewing all appointments made “by exception” between July and August 2024 that did not require its prior approval.
The principle that recruitment into the civil service takes place “on merit on the basis of fair and open competition” is enshrined in law, but there is a separate “exceptions” route overseen by the regulator.
It is often used by departments in areas in which they are struggling to recruit specific skills, such as expertise in AI, and was used to draft in temporary staff for the test and trace programme during the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, since winning the general election on July 4, Labour has been accused of misusing the exceptions route to usher in figures connected to the party to senior civil service roles.
The move by the regulator will come as a blow to prime minister Sir Keir Starmer who has vowed to restore ethics and integrity to the heart of government, following a string of sleaze, bullying and sexual misconduct allegations under previous Conservative administrations.
Outcry erupted earlier this month over the appointment of Ian Corfield, a former Labour donor who gave money to Rachel Reeves, now chancellor, last year and worked for the party in the first half of this year, being made a director of investment at the Treasury.
The Commission must approve the most senior exceptional appointments directly. At more junior pay band levels, oversight is delegated to departments and later audited by the regulator.
The regulator had approved Corfield’s appointment on the basis of a business case made for it. His status as a previous party donor would not have been relevant to the regulator’s decision.
Propriety and background checks on exceptional appointments are conducted by the relevant department.
Corfield, who had previously held senior positions at financial services firms, has since left the Treasury director role and has been made an unpaid adviser to the department.
A series of other Labour appointments have also drawn concerns over the process of Whitehall appointments and been seized upon by critics in opposition parties.
First Civil Service Commissioner Baroness Gisela Stuart, a former Labour MP who is now a crossbench peer, wrote to departments on Friday announcing the inquiry and seeking information.
In 2022-23, more than 9,360 people were appointed by exception — more than 10 per cent of all civil service appointments. It marked a fall of almost 40 per cent from the previous year, when 15,295 people were appointed by this route, according to the commission’s latest annual report.
The Conservative party, which had demanded an independent probe of recent appointments by the regulator, welcomed its announcement.
Tory MP John Glen, shadow paymaster general, said: “As the first step, we need full transparency from the government on every ‘exceptional’ appointment they have made since the general election. Keir Starmer can no longer try to brush this under the carpet.”
Backbench Labour MP Dame Siobhain McDonagh wrote to Stuart asking her to extend her inquiry to review appointments to the civil service made by exception under the last Tory government, giving five examples of people she alleged had “political links” appointed during that era.
The Cabinet Office said: “All civil service appointments must follow the correct rules and processes. The Civil Service Commission is independent of government and is able to conduct regular reviews of recruitment processes, in line with their powers as set out in the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.
“We will fully support the Commission with their review.”
