Fast-Stream Freeze Furthers Government’s “Anti-Civil Service Narrative”
University students and graduates will be unable to apply for the popular Civil Service fast-stream due to a “pause” by the government to help reduce staffing numbers. The fast-stream, triple-winner of The Times No 1 Graduate Employer award, attracted 59,603 applicants in 2021, with a success rate of only 1.8pc.
This planned fast-stream freeze was part of a wider plan by the government to reduce overall civil service numbers to 2016 levels, following remarks in May by PM Boris Johnson that the civil service had become “swollen” during the pandemic. This has meant some departments have had to produce proposed cuts of 40pc, which were supposed to be announced in the next spending review in 2024 as revealed by Simon Case, incumbent head of the Home Civil Service.
The Cabinet Office – who were unable to answer requested questions – met with unions after the resignation of Boris Johnson as Prime Minister to reiterate their official response, meaning a planned total of 91,000 job losses.
Tory leadership candidate Rishi Sunak has previously tabled plans to reduce civil service numbers to pre-pandemic levels. The other remaining candidate Liz Truss has had her campaign backed by Jacob Reese-Mogg, who was instrumental in cutting civil servants from 70 per 10,000 people (2021) to 56 (2025).
Matthew Howard, deputy head of student careers at the University of Leeds, called the government’s decision “disappointing” as it was a popular opportunity for both students and graduates over the years.
“As a Careers Service, we are continuing to work with employers locally, nationally and internationally to source opportunities that meet the needs and ambitions of our talented students. We remain fully committed to supporting students from under-represented and less privileged backgrounds into roles across all industries, as outlined in the University strategy.”
In response to what can be done to mitigate the impact on students, which will negatively impact 2023 graduates who started university during the pandemic, Matthew said:
“The graduate jobs market has recovered well, with the number of vacancies now 20% higher than in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic according to the Institute of Student Employers. Our [University of Leeds] MyCareer platform has more than 1,000 student and graduate vacancies currently advertised, including 40 exclusive, paid internships for Leeds’ students with Leeds City Council. Our service is also working closely with HM Treasury, based in Darlington, to source new public sector opportunities.”
“The Careers Service is open all year round to help students secure the future they want.”
The FDA, the only trade union recognised by the Cabinet Office to represent Fast Steamers, remarked that the hiring freeze furthered the government’s “anti-civil service narrative”.
Lauren Crowley, FDA National Officer for the Fast Stream, said: “The decision to cancel the Fast Stream in 2023 has nothing to do with the efficient delivery of public services or strategic workforce planning, it is simply yet another attempt to further an anti-civil service narrative.
“It will undermine a scheme that is one of the most diverse and representative in the service – in 2021, 23.3% of successful applicants were non-white, 25.5% were disabled, 19.6% were LGBT+ and 58.4% were women.
“No one objects to reform of public services to make them more responsive to the needs of the people they serve. Indeed, Fast Streamers are well-placed to provide the skills and understanding needed to enable the civil service to become more efficient and to make better use of technology.
She added: “The Fast Stream is a great success story for the civil service – suspending it next year will contribute little to the government’s overall target of reducing the number of civil service jobs by 91,000, but it will do huge damage to its reputation for years to come, and deprive it of some of the brightest and the best talent in the UK.”
For updates and more information about the fast stream and joining the civil service as a graduate visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/civil-service
Header Image Credit: HM Government; Available from: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Cabinet_table.jpg
