Britain's civil service is under fire like never before — criticised as an obstructionist "blob" by ministers and castigated for a "terrifyingly sh*t" response to the COVID-19 pandemic by former Downing Street aide Dominic Cummings.
So what do U.K. government officials — normally banned from speaking to the media — actually make of it all?
This week in a spe ... Show More
Jul 4
Can Keir Starmer survive the next 6 months?
Keir Starmer's authority is under question following a humiliating series of U-turns and a restless parliamentary Labour Party. In this Westminster Insider interview, host Anne McElvoy talks to Maurice Glasman, the Labour peer, who’s seen as the godfather of "Blue Labour" and an ... Show More
27m 17s
Mar 2023
Happy Birthday, Sir Humphrey
It's 170 years since Gladstone commissioned the Northcote-Trevelyan review, which gave birth to the impartial civil service. Why has the system survived, and is it now under threat? Matt speaks to former cabinet secretary Lord Butler, who ran Whitehall under Thatcher, Major and B ... Show More
42m 20s