Contestable Policy Fund sponsors Institute for Public Policy Research
Institute for Public Policy Research has won the first contract from the Government’s Contestable Policy Fund to carry out a review into how other civil services work.
The review is the first award from the Contestable Policy Fund. It will particularly focus on accountability systems and is a step towards the goal of open policy making becoming the default. The fund enables ministers to commission policy advice from beyond Whitehall.
IPPR’s review into civil service models in other countries will provide the Minister with policy advice to inform thinking on future reform. The IPPR, one of the UK’s leading think tanks, will bring extensive experience and expertise to this review.
The operation and accountability structures of civil services including those of Australia, Singapore, the United States, France and Sweden will be analysed. IPPR will also consider the balance between permanent officials and administrations in which appointments are made by ministers.
The review will specifically examine the New Zealand model of civil service accountability. There is a contractual relationship between ministers, who set clear outcomes, and heads of departments, who are accountable for delivering them.
Sir Bob Kerslake, Head of the Civil Service, said that this review demonstrates that the Civil Service Reform Plan in action.
“Open policy making must become the default in the Civil Service, and I hope this announcement signals a continued change in the way we think about policy development in the future,” added Sir Kerslake.
The Contestable Policy Fund was announced in the Civil Service Reform Plan. The Cabinet Office will act as a secretariat to the process and support departments to evaluate the effectiveness of the approach and its value for money.
The fund will be overseen by Ministers to ensure that the policy is being developed with the best public interest and that it does not favour any bias of the provider.
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