Home > News > FDA and Institute for Government examine the systems of standards in public life

FDA and Institute for Government examine the systems of standards in public life




IfG555




Do we need to rewire the systems of standards in public life? An event held at this year’s Labour conference, co-sponsored by the FDA and the Institute for Government (IfG), attempted to tackle this question. 

The union and the independent think-tank welcomed speakers including FDA’s Assistant General Secretary Amy Leversidge; Chris Bryant MP, Chair of the Committee on Standards; Shadow Leader of the House of Commons Thangam Debbonaire MP; Director of Policy and Programmes at Transparency International UK Duncan Hames; and IfG Associate Director Tim Durrant. The event was chaired by IfG Acting Director Dr Hannah White.

Standards in public life remains a key priority for the FDA, including:

At the event, Leversidge outlined the importance of ministerial conduct and shared theFDA’s focus on ensuring that our members are treated with dignity in the workplace. She said: “The ministerial code is explicit that bullying, harassment and sexual harassment are not accepted behaviours, the continuing problem is a lack of enforcement and consequences for ministers breaking the rules”. 

Leversidge added that “we are not starting with a blank piece of paper. We have the excellent report from the Committee on Standards in Public Life about Upholding Standards and we want to see the recommendations from that report fully implemented”. This would help to reform a system that prioritises political loyalty over employee fairness, and hold ministers to the same standard of accountability as is already upheld by civil servants and special advisers. 

Reflecting on Dame Laura Cox’s report into Parliament, which argued that MPs should play no part in the system because political party interests will always take priority, Leversidge highlighted the importance of independence in the Committee on Standards in Public Life’s recommendations. These recommendations include the statutory basis for the Independent Advisor on Ministerial Interests. Currently only the Prime Minister has the power to instigate an investigation. Given the power to start investigations, an independent adviser will help remove partisan loyalty from the standards process. 

Chair of the Committee on Standards, Chris Bryant MP, agreed “that we have got to have a statutory Independent Adviser on ministerial standards” and said that he would also put the Ministerial Code into statute. IfG’s Tim Durrant added that “doing the basics right” – such as having an independent adviser with the power to start investigations – will certainly help improve standards in public life.

Leversidge recalled when MPs debated introducing independence in Parliament, when a significant number of MPs said that they’d “bought this on themselves” amid a general feeling the tide had turned and change was inevitable. She added that “the same is now true for ministers – the system has to be reformed because of their behaviours. By introducing a genuine and robust independent process for upholding standards in government, the Prime Minister, as head of the civil service, can ensure the safety and welfare of civil servants in Westminster and set the example for devolved parliaments throughout the UK”. 





Dave Penman will be at the Conversative Party Conference on Tuesday 4th October for the next joint event with the IfG: “After the Johnson era, how can the government rebuild trust?”

Related News