Civil service cuts must not affect services, says CBI
The director general of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has said that job cuts in the civil service must not be allowed to undermine the standards of service to business.
With the Government pledged to cut waste in the civil service, including jobs, the CBI are concerned about the impact on the Department for Trade and Industry (DTI).
The service is set to lose 40,000 jobs, mainly in the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Health but there are press reports that the Chancellor is set to announce further job losses in other departments.
Digby Jones said: “We are right behind the idea of greater public sector efficiency and are keen to have people and methods which reflect the standards of modern business.
“But that does not mean we will accept a decline in services critical to competitiveness. I would be amazed if there were not scope for savings at the DTI but I do not want its services emasculated.”
“I cannot enlighten ministers on how many people should be doing these jobs. I don’t know how many officials it takes to change a light bulb, but I know when I need the light bulb changed and I expect it to work when I turn it on.”
He called on the Government to carry out a “root and branch” analyses of the different tasks done by the DTI and how they may best be delivered.
“Ministers must not undermine key DTI functions such as running schemes that help small firms take science and innovation projects to market, lobbying for business in the EU, and supporting trade and investment in overseas markets,” a CBI spokesman said.
Mr Jones said that whilst the private sector backs the drive to reform the public sector, it is generally sceptical about the ability to deliver the £20 billion worth of savings predicted in the budget and called for independent auditing of any efficiency gains.
