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2.54 pm
The Parliamentary Secretary, Office of Public Service (Mr. Peter Kilfoyle): I certainly put my weight behind all sorts of things. Whether I will put it behind the many contentions of the hon. Member for Lewes(Mr. Baker) is a moot point. I came here to answer him on the subject of Prime Minister's press office, but, as usual in his scatter-gun approach, he seems to have ranged across a series of targets and, true to form, to have missed most of them.
The Government's overall political strategy, direction and style is set by the Prime Minister. As he has made clear, the Government intend to address serious problems with the consideration that they deserve. We shall co-ordinate the development of our policies within government, across departmental boundaries and in discussion with our private sector partners and the wider public and voluntary sectors. We shall communicate those policies clearly and coherently.
The Prime Minister has appointed his chief press secretary as a special adviser to advise him on the effective presentation of policy and to lead the No. 10 press office to ensure that the essential messages and key themes that underpin the Government's strategy are sustained. The strategic communications unit, which was established at the beginning of this year, adds a strategic dimension to the communication of Government policy. The unit reports to the Prime Minister's chief press secretary.
The No. 10 press office gives a clear sense of purpose and direction from the centre, liaising closely with departmental press offices, agreeing how departmental communications can best play into broader Government objectives, and ensuring that Government announcements are communicated in a structured and coherent manner--for example, through clearing major interview bids and the timing and form of announcements.
Authority for the co-ordinating and leadership role of the chief press secretary and the No. 10 press office flows from paragraph 88 of the ministerial code, which states:
On the specific issue of the memo that was issued by the chief press secretary to the Secretary of State for Social Security and Minister for Women and to the Minister for Welfare Reform, that was issued on the authority of the Prime Minister. The chief press secretary was acting entirely within the rules.
Incidentally, the No. 10 press office is staffed mainly by career civil servants, but this Government take the view that the post of chief press secretary--a post in the most politically exposed area of government--should be performed by someone who is not expected to have to perform a similar role for another Government.
There are many precedents for political appointments to the chief press secretary job at No. 10; we have to think only of people such as Joe Haines, who fulfilled a similar role. As a Government, we wanted to be above board and open about our intentions for that role, which is why, immediately on our election to government, we amended the Civil Service Order in Council to allow a maximum of three special adviser posts in No. 10 to have executive powers, allowing the people occupying those posts to have civil servants working directly for them.
We have heard from those on the Opposition Benches that those appointments are the first steps towards the politicisation of the civil service. That is most definitely not the case.
Mr. Baker:
Just for the record, that comment was made by the Chairman of the Select Committee on Public Administration, who is a Labour Member, and not by me.
Mr. Kilfoyle:
It may have been made by a variety of people, but, as I have said, it has been made from those on the Opposition Benches.
The terms of the special adviser contract, of which the hon. Member for Lewes said that he was aware as a result of a debate on the radio this morning, allows the chief press secretary and other special advisers to discharge their role with a degree of party political commitment that would not be permissible for a permanent, politically impartial civil servant.
Special advisers are free from the obligation placed on all other civil servants to be politically impartial. Unlike other civil servants, special advisers are not required to act in a way that would enable them to gain the confidence of future Ministers of another Administration. We believe that, by distinguishing clearly and openly the roles of special advisers, it avoids any creeping politicisation.
The hon. Gentleman made certain charges, including the one that uncontrolled power was wielded by the chief press secretary. He said that we should exercise some constraint over the operation of the press office and that we needed some clarification in writing of the powers and role of the press office. That is rubbish, even by the hon. Gentleman's standards.
The chief press secretary, like all other civil servants, is accountable to a Minister, who in turn is accountable to Parliament. The terms and conditions of employment are based on provisions set out in the model contract. What can and cannot be done by special advisers, including the chief press secretary, in such circumstances are circumscribed by the model contract for special advisers, which is published; by the ministerial code, which is published; by guidance on the work of the government information service, which is published; and by the Mountfield report, which sets out the relationship between special advisers and members of the government information and communications service, and which is also published.
The hon. Gentleman also made the charge of statements being leaked to the press in advance of being made in Parliament, and suggested that that was somehow attributable to the chief press secretary. The ministerial code clearly states:
The hon. Gentleman again spoke of an incestuous relationship with Mr. Rupert Murdoch, and linked it directly with the chief press secretary. Mr. Murdoch is
not treated any differently from anybody else. The hon. Gentleman referred to the telephone conversation between the Prime Minister and Mr. Prodi. Again, it has been made abundantly clear by the Prime Ministers and others that the reality is that the telephone call was initiated byMr. Prodi, not the Prime Minister. My right hon. Friend has made it clear that he will go in to bat for any British company--indeed, he does so regularly. He did so for BSkyB.
The hon. Gentleman inferred that the chief press secretary speaks for the Labour party and so confuses his office. I want to make it clear here and now that the chief press secretary is not a spokesman for the Labour party; he is a spokesman for the Government and responsible for the presentation of Government policy. He also questioned whether the chief press secretary attends Cabinet meetings. There is nothing strange about civil servants attending Cabinet meetings as observers. If the hon. Gentleman wants to attribute some sinister motive to that, that is down to him. I assure him that he is far removed from the truth.
I wish that the hon. Gentleman would begin to understand the very different roles of the Minister without Portfolio and the chief press secretary. I do not know whether it is by design or through confusion, but he tends to mix up the two roles and the two personalities.
The hon. Gentleman referred to The Observer report of an anonymous member of the Cabinet who apparently made allegations about the way matters were conducted at No. 10. He should not expect anyone here to respond to anonymous allegations of any sort--whether they come from those on the Opposition Benches or those on the Government Benches, or are some fabrication by a third party.
The hon. Gentleman has also misunderstood line management in the context of the role of special advisers. It is abundantly clear exactly how the line management operates in terms of the chief press secretary's role in the press office at No. 10 and his relationship with the strategic communications unit. That unit was set up on the recommendation of the Mountfield report. As the hon. Gentleman knows, Robin Mountfield is a permanent secretary. The unit was set up with the full co-operation of the Government Information Service.
"In order to ensure the effective presentation of Government policy, all major interviews and media appearances, both print and broadcast, should be agreed with the No. 10 Press Office before any commitments are entered into. The policy content of all major speeches, press releases and new policy initiatives should be cleared in good time with the No. 10 Private Office, the timing and form of announcements should be cleared with the No. 1o Press Office".
That is not a new requirement; it has been the practice--as the hon. Gentleman said I would remark--of successive Administrations. The only difference is that this Government are enforcing the rule.
"Ministers will want to bear in mind that the most important announcements should be made in the first instance to Parliament"--
and so they should. The hon. Gentleman referred to the letter from the chief press secretary to the Secretary of State for Social Security and Minister for Women and to the Minister for Welfare Reform. If he read the letter, he would recognise that the chief press secretary was exhorting people to stem the alleged leads from the Department.
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