Sue Gray, who was once Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, gave her first speech in the House of Lords. She spoke out against the government’s plan to cut the civil service by 15%, which would save £2.2 billion. The plan includes offering voluntary exit packages, freezing pay raises for top officials, and firing those who don’t perform well.
The government denies calling this plan “Operation Chainsaw,” but Keir Starmer has criticized the civil service as being slow and inefficient. He pointed out that while the civil service has grown by 130,000 workers since the Brexit vote, public services haven’t gotten better.
Gray, who worked for Starmer until last year, urged politicians to be careful with their words when talking about civil servants. She said terms like “blobs” and “pen-pushers” are unfair and demoralizing. She agreed that reforms are needed but stressed that civil servants should be part of the solution. She praised their hard work, saying many are dedicated people doing difficult jobs.
Gray left her role after disagreements with other senior officials. She was later given a seat in the House of Lords.
Starmer has said the problem isn’t civil servants themselves but the system they work in. Still, he believes the civil service isn’t delivering good results. He called it overworked, unfocused, and unable to provide the services people need.
