Rachel Reeves could axe up to 50,000 civil service jobs in summer spending review as Chancellor prepares to put squeeze on Whitehall
Around 50,000 civil service jobs could be axed as Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to put the squeeze on Whitehall at her upcoming spending review.
Officials suggested about 10 per cent of roles would be scrapped by 2030 as Ms Reeves and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer look to shrink the size of the state.
There are currently around 515,000 full-time equivalent posts in the civil service, which is up from around 380,000 in June 2016.
An official briefed on negotiations over Ms Reeves’ spending review told the Financial Times: ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if the number comes down to 450,000 by 2030.’
Sir Keir recently outlined his ambition to reform what he described as an ‘overcautious and flabby’ state.
Ms Reeves also used her Spring Statement in March to set out how she wants to cut Government running costs by 15 per cent by 2030.
The Chancellor will deliver her review of Whitehall departmental spending on 11 June, with ministers currently engaged in last-minute talks over their budgets up to 2029.
The size of the civil service has ballooned over recent years following the Brexit referendum and the Covid pandemic.
Another official told the newspaper: ‘A total of about 450,000 civil servants by the end of the decade is about right.’
But a senior Cabinet Office said they did not recognise the reported figures.
Around 50,000 civil service jobs could be axed as Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to put the squeeze on Whitehall at her upcoming spending review
There are currently around 515,000 full-time equivalent posts in the civil service, which is up from around 380,000 in June 2016
The size of the civil service has ballooned over recent years following the Brexit referendum and the Covid pandemic
After winning last July’s general election, Labour quietly dropped Tory plans to cut 66,000 civil service jobs.
Former chancellor Jeremy Hunt had vowed to freeze numbers and eventually reduce them to pre-Covid levels – but this freeze was abandoned by Sir Keir and Ms Reeves.
Senior Whitehall officials are said to think a 10 per cent reduction under Labour could be achieved without compulsory redundancies, if there is a period of relative political and economic calm.
Dave Penman, head of the FDA union, which represents civil servants, said: ‘Civil servants don’t get to decide on the size of the civil service, ministers do.
‘The political chaos of the last decade was both inefficient and ineffective.
‘It meant successive governments may have spent a great deal of energy talking about cuts, yet in reality they piled promises on top of promises.
‘The number of civil servants had to grow to try and match those political commitments.’
Last month, the Cabinet Office announced it is slashing more than 2,000 jobs as it ‘leads by example’ in Labour’s bid to shrink the size of Whitehall.
Around 1,200 roles will be lost at the department through a voluntary redundancy scheme and by not replacing staff when they leave.
Another 900 posts are being transferred to other parts of Whitehall as part of a shake-up of departmental responsibilities.
The 2,100 job cuts represent just almost a third of the 6,500 ‘core staff’ at the Cabinet Office, which supports the PM and sits at the heart of the civil service.
Ms Reeves’ bid to reduce Whitehall administrative costs includes making savings on back office functions like HR, financial and procurement management, policy advice, communications and office management.
She hopes this will ensure that departments are prioritising frontline delivery and putting more money into public services.
A Government spokesperson said: ‘We don’t comment on speculation ahead of the spending review.
‘More broadly, we have already announced a target of reducing departmental administration costs by 15 per cent over the next five years, delivering savings of over £2billion a year by 2030 and targeting spending on front line services.’
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Around 50,000 civil service jobs could be axed as Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to put the squeeze on Whitehall at her upcoming spending review.
Officials suggested about 10 per cent of roles would be scrapped by 2030 as Ms Reeves and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer look to shrink the size of the state.
There are currently around 515,000 full-time equivalent posts in the civil service, which is up from around 380,000 in June 2016.
An official briefed on negotiations over Ms Reeves’ spending review told the Financial Times: ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if the number comes down to 450,000 by 2030.’
Sir Keir recently outlined his ambition to reform what he described as an ‘overcautious and flabby’ state.
Ms Reeves also used her Spring Statement in March to set out how she wants to cut Government running costs by 15 per cent by 2030.
The Chancellor will deliver her review of Whitehall departmental spending on 11 June, with ministers currently engaged in last-minute talks over their budgets up to 2029.
The size of the civil service has ballooned over recent years following the Brexit referendum and the Covid pandemic.
Another official told the newspaper: ‘A total of about 450,000 civil servants by the end of the decade is about right.’
But a senior Cabinet Office said they did not recognise the reported figures.
Around 50,000 civil service jobs could be axed as Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to put the squeeze on Whitehall at her upcoming spending review
There are currently around 515,000 full-time equivalent posts in the civil service, which is up from around 380,000 in June 2016
The size of the civil service has ballooned over recent years following the Brexit referendum and the Covid pandemic
After winning last July’s general election, Labour quietly dropped Tory plans to cut 66,000 civil service jobs.
Former chancellor Jeremy Hunt had vowed to freeze numbers and eventually reduce them to pre-Covid levels – but this freeze was abandoned by Sir Keir and Ms Reeves.
Senior Whitehall officials are said to think a 10 per cent reduction under Labour could be achieved without compulsory redundancies, if there is a period of relative political and economic calm.
Dave Penman, head of the FDA union, which represents civil servants, said: ‘Civil servants don’t get to decide on the size of the civil service, ministers do.
‘The political chaos of the last decade was both inefficient and ineffective.
‘It meant successive governments may have spent a great deal of energy talking about cuts, yet in reality they piled promises on top of promises.
‘The number of civil servants had to grow to try and match those political commitments.’
Last month, the Cabinet Office announced it is slashing more than 2,000 jobs as it ‘leads by example’ in Labour’s bid to shrink the size of Whitehall.
Around 1,200 roles will be lost at the department through a voluntary redundancy scheme and by not replacing staff when they leave.
Another 900 posts are being transferred to other parts of Whitehall as part of a shake-up of departmental responsibilities.
The 2,100 job cuts represent just almost a third of the 6,500 ‘core staff’ at the Cabinet Office, which supports the PM and sits at the heart of the civil service.
Ms Reeves’ bid to reduce Whitehall administrative costs includes making savings on back office functions like HR, financial and procurement management, policy advice, communications and office management.
She hopes this will ensure that departments are prioritising frontline delivery and putting more money into public services.
A Government spokesperson said: ‘We don’t comment on speculation ahead of the spending review.
‘More broadly, we have already announced a target of reducing departmental administration costs by 15 per cent over the next five years, delivering savings of over £2billion a year by 2030 and targeting spending on front line services.’
